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Astrill VPN Review

Astrill VPN was founded in 2009 in Seychelles and has strived to achieve a global mark for itself in the recent years in China. It has 323 servers in 53 countries ideal for unblocking restricted sites. It provides 3 types of services i.e. Personal VPNs, VPN routers, and solutions in the form of business VPN. It provides both Windows Client software as well as Android one. The Windows client has different encryption choices along with IPv6 leak protection, a kill switch feature, and DNS leak protection among many. This signifies excellent quality and pushes Astrill to be top notch VPN.

The windows client used most of the settings as the default option. The website is quite simple, easy to navigate, and self-explanatory for first time users. Astrill has client software for all the popular platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS.

Astrill also has a knowledge-base on its website through which you can solve many queries. A quick search helps you get access to your solution. Their customer support is provided via a ticket system, emails and a 24/7 live chat systems.

Features

  1. Encryption protocols: Astrill VPN provides a wide range of encryption protocols like OpenVPN, OpenWeb, L2TP, PPTP, Cisco IPSec, StealthVPN, SSTP and IKEv2.

    2. It has mainly four various types of encryption protocols which are as below:

    • PPTP provides a 128 bit basic encryption. It has got the fastest speed among all as the encryption level is low and the setting it up is an easy task. But it is not much secure as other encryptions because it uses low level of encryption. This also makes the connection sometimes unstable.
    • L2TP provides 256 bit encryption and checks for data integrity, but the connection speed is little low due to additional security. It has the ability to bypass the restrictions on various networks. As it has high level of encryption sometimes it results into low speed connection.
    • OpenVPN provides a 256 bit encryption which is highly secure and uses digital certificates for authenticating data. It suits to needs of every network like mobile, wired or WLAN providing most stable connection across all. As it has got a high speed and stable connection it can bypass almost every firewall and networks.
    • Astrill offers a lot of cipher options to choose from such as: Blowfish 128-bit, AES 128-bit, CAST 128-bit and Camellia 128-bit.
  2. Astrill helps a user to have 2 simultaneous connections. So, you can use this VPN service only for desktop and mobile in standard plan keeping in mind that maximum it can create 2 connections simultaneously for you. You can also get up to 5 connections in Home Plan with an additional $5 a month.
  3. It covers a total of 53 countries across the world having a total of 323 servers. Moreover; you can get access to both East and West coast of United States, with a server count of 27 servers in the US.
  4. It provides a total of 3000+ different IP addresses from 53 different countries many with P2P support to which you can connect.
  5. It allows unlimited server switches and you can easily switch from one server to another server instantly any number of times.
  6. Astrill can be configured on different platforms such as Windows, Mac, and Linux. In addition to desktop application, it also provides mobile app for Android and iOS devices.
  7. They have an extensive 24/7 customer support team. They work round the corner offering ticketing system to its users. You can also solve your queries through live chat. Astrill has a knowledge base called as Astrill Wiki on its website. It has answers to many common problems which users can quickly search in order to get answers. It also has a support forum which can be used to post questions and get answers from the community experts.
  8. It offers a 7-day trial period to try out its services for free. Well, that’s a plus point which cannot be missed. But now, before signing up you can have a look at its services and another few days to decide whether you need it or not.
  9. Special features: It provides an important feature of kill switch and DNS Leak Protection to its Windows client. It also provides private IP addresses to the users.
  10. Company ubicated under which jurisdiction: Astrill is based in the Seychelles, East Africa which means that the firm isn’t under the jurisdiction of any neighboring governments which enhances its privacy features.

Prices and Plans

In comparison to other VPN service providers, Astrill is a little expensive.

Overall they offer four different pricing plans to their customers:

Firstly, a 3 month plan costing you $9.98 per month.

Secondly, a 6 month plan costing you $6.66 per month.

Then there are annual and bi-annual subscriptions costing you $5.83 and $7.06 per month.

The biggest drawback of their pricing plan is absence of any monthly plan. They offer you minimum purchase of 3 months which costs you $9.98 per month. If you choose a yearly subscription you can avail a price of $5.83 per month.

Moreover, there is no free trial period unless you adamantly ask the customer support for it. Also, their refund policy is little bit ambiguous and they follow their own rules for the same without following any pre defined criteria.

Though all pricing plans are fairly well except one loophole that they don’t offer a monthly plan. This is a big no –no for many prospective customers. So, atleast you have to choose a minimum period of 3 months for using its services.

If you want to use it for a long period of time then opt for a yearly plan which also gives you a special offer of add on i.e. Stealth VPN for PC/Mac/Linux. Moreover, payment options are diverse and easy. They accept various payment options such as Credit card, Debit card, Bit coin, Union Pay, MasterCard, Alipay, PayPal etc.

Pros

  1. User-friendly interface with just enough features available: They offer a really good interface which eases the usage of Astrill for the customers. It has a very simple design with buttons placed at perfect places for the users so that they don’t have to spend the time looking for buttons they want to use.
  2. Support for all major encryption protocols: It supports major encryption protocols including OpenVPN, OpenWeb, L2TP, PPTP, Cisco IPSec, StealthVPN, SSTP and IKEv2. This makes it a highly secured VPN and at the same time does not compromise the security. Moreover, it offers customization options like type of encryption protocol, IPv6 leak protection, Kill switch, and DNS security.
  3. Good amount of payment options available: They offer numerous payment options like Credit card, Debit card, PayPal, Bit coin, Union Pay, MasterCard, Alipay etc.
  4. Excellent customer support: They have well structured FAQ page and manual. They have an extensive 24/7 customer support team. They offer ticketing systems to its users, answer queries through live chat option. They offer excellent support tools to solve the queries of their users.
  5. Good browsing and torrent download speeds: The speed tests were really satisfactory. They were far better while using OpenWeb technology compared to OpenVPN usage.

Cons

  1. High price: Though the prices for the service offered by Astrill are fair, but they amount to an exorbitant amount if you choose some extra services. Overall, they charge quite high price compared to many of their counterparts.
  2. No monthly plan: They don’t offer any monthly plan which is really a negative point if you are first time user and want to check their services. A minimum period of 3 months is necessary to use its services and there is no free trial available unless you adamantly request it from customer support
  3. Only 2 simultaneous connections: The biggest disadvantage of using Astrill is that it you can use only desktop/laptop along with a mobile connection. So, this limits its usage to only 2 connections while many other service providers provide upto 5 connections. More simultaneous connections require a family or business plan which is charged extra.
  4. Privacy policy: They don’t offer a transparent approach while seeking information related to personal data. Their support team generally tries to avoid this question. They don’t even provide security details about the proprietary VPN protocols.

Recommended Uses

Astrill software is very popular in China as it bypasses its geographical restrictions and help users to access blocked sites such as Netflix and Hulu easily.

Along with multiple protocol support it also offers two unique features like StealthVPN and OpenWeb technology. StealthVPN works in countries like China and UAE which offer strong censorship. But, you have to pay an extra amount of $2 per month for it or as a free service in case of an annual plan.

It also has other add-ons like Crypto Plus and VIP which help you achieve better speed and latency with network congestions in country like China. It has one big disadvantage as it provide only 2 simultaneous connections which can be increased only by shifting to Home Plan from the Basic Plan.

It supports all major operating systems and has got a dedicated iOS and Android app available for its customers. They also support routers which run DD-WRT firmware. Its rate is competitive considering the fact that it supports strong encryption protocols which makes it very secure and reliable all over the world.

The customer support is outstanding as they have a well maintained customer support and a FAQ section. You can contact them via live chat, ticketing system, support forum, email and phone call. They are available 24*7 for support.

Overall, it is an expensive VPN but as far as unlocking censored sites in countries like China, it is committed to fulfill its service satisfactorily.Astrill VPN was founded in 2009 in Seychelles and has strived to achieve a global mark for itself in the recent years in China. It has 323 servers in 53 countries ideal for unblocking restricted sites. It provides 3 types of services i.e. Personal VPNs, VPN routers, and solutions in the form of business VPN. It provides both Windows Client software as well as Android one. The Windows client has different encryption choices along with IPv6 leak protection, a kill switch feature, and DNS leak protection among many. This signifies excellent quality and pushes Astrill to be top notch VPN.

The windows client used most of the settings as the default option. The website is quite simple, easy to navigate, and self-explanatory for first time users. Astrill has client software for all the popular platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS.

Astrill also has a knowledge-base on its website through which you can solve many queries. A quick search helps you get access to your solution. Their customer support is provided via a ticket system, emails and a 24/7 live chat systems.