Windscribe Review 2016

Summary
  • 7/10
    Features - 7/10
  • 5/10
    Speed & Reliability - 5/10
  • 6/10
    Security & Privacy - 6/10
  • 7/10
    Usability & Compatibility - 7/10
  • 7/10
    Support & Documentation - 7/10
  • 7/10
    Value for Money - 7/10
6.5/10

Summary

Windscribe VPN is a good VPN service with a lot of potential and it's going in the right direction. The speed needs to be improved, mobile applications are needed and the customer support response time needs work. That being said, we are happy to see they are addressing these issues and we hope to see them flourish in the future.

You might not have heard much about Windscribe, and that’s because they only officially launched around April 2016. Even though they are new to the VPN scene, the product they provide is a sturdy and well designed one.

They offer a free service which includes access to 9 server locations: US East, US west, UK, Canada, Hong Kong, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Netherlands. This package also comes with a traffic restriction of 2GB or 10GB for registered users. The premium package offers access to an additional 20 locations and unlimited usage. Here is a quick breakdown of what you get if you choose to go premium:

windscribe-features-freevspaid

The service is provided across all major platforms, but some, such as Android, is only available through a third party software and only to premium users.

windscribe-supportedplatforms

We were very interested about some particularities that Windscribe has to offer, and we are here to share the experience of using the product, so let’s get right to it.

Privacy and Logging Policy

Windscribe has a well structured and transparent privacy policy that explains exactly what information is held and for how long. In the case of premium accounts, the information is held for 30 days for charge-back and fraud disputes, and the free accounts needn’t provide any personal information, so there is no discussion there.

There is also a mention in the policy about the legal aspect and other important information, so we suggest that you read more about their privacy policy here.

Software

The first thing that we would like to discuss about the software is the fact that it’s well built and gives a lot of options to customize your experience. We want to emphasize this because generally when it comes to free or even paid VPN services, there is a lot of compromise made in the design and where they fail to provide with functionality, they attempt to make up with visual effects. This is not the case with Windscribe. It’s a functional, easy to use software and we were very pleased with its performance.

windscribe-desktopapp

 

You have the possibility to modify parameters such as connection type and firewall settings right off the settings interface, and we cannot stress enough the fact that the software offers a great experience. There aren’t any flashy tricks or menus, it’s simply made to work.

Windscribe also offers a chrome extension that left us with a good overall impression. Had we not known that they offer a VPN service and a chrome extension as an addition, we would easily mistake it for a stand-alone VPN service. The extension is complete, easy to use and has feature such as ad-blocker and “split personality” (a feature that randomly rotates your user agent) that actually work.

windscribe-chromeextensionf

The chrome extension has some very good reviews in Chrome Webstore, there don’t seem to be many complaints about the functionality. However, we noticed some problems with it. Just like pretty much every other Chrome proxy/”VPN extension”, it will leak the real IP via WebRTC. For privacy, it’s a must to use a 3rd party Chrome addon to block WebRTC leaks. Here is how to fix WebRTC leaks.

Some other interesting and negative aspect that we noticed is that it is by-passing the proxy when testing the speed on speedtest.net, including beta.speedtest.net which isn’t Flash but HTML5. This means that the speed tests with Windscribe Chrome extension, at least on speedtest.net, can’t be taken into consideration since they will measure the direct connection between user and speedtest servers. We made some speed test with other test sites while making sure that the traffic isn’t leaking and the speed test results were quite good, actually, ranging between 50 and 200 Mbps depending on locations.

Features

We tested Netflix and Hulu and unfortunately they were unavailable, as we expected. We don’t consider this to be a negative aspect since these media streaming services are cracking down hard on VPN providers, but we do want to mention it in case this is one of the reasons why you are looking for a viable VPN solution.

Killswitch (firewall feature on the main app screen) works well, there were no IP leaks, and they provide IPv6 and DNS leak protection directly in the client. The firewall killswitch runs as a service called WindscribeService.exe and doesn’t seem to integrate the firewall bundled in Windows.

Windscribe uses AES-256 with SHA512 and a 4096-bit RSA key. Users can also manually change the connection type, which defaults to OpenVPN UDP (the fastest and most secure). The other options are: OpenVPN UDP – port 443, OpenVPN TCP – port 1194, and “Stealth” which uses OpenVPN via Stunnel over port 8443. This so called “stealth” connection type which is a TLS tunnel inside another TLS tunnel comes handy if you are looking to by-pass ISP blocking in countries where normal VPN connections are blocked, like China.

Speed

Let’s talk about speed, because after all, this is definitely a deal breaker in most cases. We ran several speed tests including browser and torrent, and we would like to discuss them individually:

Browsing speed

The browsing experience was very good, we had no issues, disconnects or any other unpleasant events. Here are the speed test results:

windscribe-browserspeedtest

Unlike their Chrome addon, the tests on speedtest.net weren’t by-passing the connection, so the results are accurate.

Windscribe managed to surprise us, not necessarily through outstanding speeds, but rather through the consistency of the connections and the fact that even locations such as Norway or Russia (which usually work very slowly or not at all) provided a good and stable connection.

Torrent speed

Even though results vary, we found that the download speed was more than satisfying regardless of the location used. Here are the torrent download speed test results for Canada, France, Germany and Norway respectively:

canadabc

france

germany

norway

Please keep in mind that there are a lot of factors to take into consideration such as number of seeders, file and server hosting location and services, so your results might vary depending on the type of content you attempt to download.

Mobile Performance

Windscribe has a native VPN Client app for iOS which is working using IPsec IKEv2 connection protocol.

On Android, they do not provide yet their own VPN client app and they rely on StrongSwan, which is a third party application for Android, using IKEv2 IPsec connection:

windscribe-androidapp

We tested out the Android application and came up with this speed test result:

windscribe-androidspeedtestuseast

We only tested out US East since the configuration part was a bit tricky and we feel the need to emphasize this. It’s not exactly quantum physics, but for those of you who are not willing to go the extra mile, or simply don’t enjoy configuring these parameters into a VPN application, we figured we should mention it.

The experience was very good, the connections were constant speed-wise and uninterrupted. Adds actually get blocked and even though the speed is not the best on paper, streaming media gave us no issues on mobile, both Android and iOS.

Pricing

We spoke a lot about Windscribe, what it does, how well it does it, but we haven’t mentioned prices yet, so here is a quick break-down of the pricing options that they have available:

windscribe-pricing-methods

It’s a legitimate price range, with a bit of a discount for an annual subscription, and we really enjoyed the variety of payment methods accepted. Windscribe doesn’t require any personal information at sign-up so having payment methods such as bitcoin available, drastically increases your online privacy.

We weren’t able to find out anything about a refund policy, so we addressed the question the support team. They have not answered our question to this day.

Support

The technical support experience was a poor one, with longer than average response times as far as e-mails go, but the answers were straight-forward and helpful. The representatives were knowledgeable and responded in a professional manner and they used proper English in the process. It seems like a must, but we’ve encountered quite a few cases where the customer support team spoke English horribly and the issues could not be resolved due to the language barrier, which makes us feel the need to mention the language skill in our reviews since not all the VPN providers are based in English-speaking countries.

Conclusions

Here is a quick break-down of what we liked and what we didn’t:

Pros:

  • Intuitive and sturdy software, very clean website.
  • Transparent company with an understandable privacy policy.
  • Decent price for such a quality service.
  • No personal information required for sign-up.
  • A good variety of payment methods to keep your identity protected, including prepaid cards and bitcoin.
  • Service available for free (monthly data cap).

Cons:

  • No stand-alone application for Android (yet).
  • Configuration for the third-party mobile app on Android is a bit of a pain and each location requires separate setup.
  • No connection logs available in the software. We had to dig through %UserProfile%\AppData folder to find it.
  • speedtest.net by-passes the proxy connection with their Chrome extension. This is most likely intentional to save bandwidth but also to show unrealistic results.
  • VPN speed is ok-ish, not great.
  • Terrible Customer Support response times.

Overall, we found Windscribe to be a good service with a lot of potential, seeing how young they are on the VPN scene. They provide some nice features and a sturdy product, and we would definitely like to hear more about them in the future. We give Windscribe a rating of 6.5/10.

19 thoughts on “Windscribe Review 2016”

  1. Just signed up for free Windscribe and tried Windows desktop software only. (The Firefox extension doesn’t seem to work. No toolbar button and no options link. I’ll have to contact them for proxy settings and set them manually when I need them. A different browser is unacceptable for me. (Firefox v.38)) Note: I use Ublock Origin so I don’t need Windscribe’s help with privacy leaks in my browser.

    My speed was FANTASTIC connected to my “Best Location” (Canada West Coast) 100 down/5.5 up!!! http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/5870014729 (My current unprotected speed is 121/6 over cable ISP.)

    For those who want to torrent, the speeds connected to the “legal” European servers were a lot slower but still OK. You’ll get your files. The Netherlands server, however, was not even worthy of browsing. Maybe East Coast, US people would have better luck there.

    Luxembourg: 13/5.3 http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/5870008537

    France: 12/2 http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/5870012110

    It’s worth noting that Windscribe does not have a problem with people torrenting on servers located where there is copyright-monitoring. But the risk of them cutting you off because they’re getting flack from the RIAA is greater. Other VPN’s have been reported to do this (PIA, IPVanish, HideMyASS etc.).

    I use a seedbox so the closest server in Canada or the US is fine with me. For $9/month (without discount) + $11/month for my seedbox I’m getting secure, crazy fast downloads, plus privacy. I think that’s a great price! (With my discount below that comes to $12.50/month) Yay!

    There’s a discount for Windscribe right now: $19/year at StackSocial https://stacksocial.com/sales/1-year-windscribe-vpn.

    Reply
  2. I like it! The windows client, en the firefox / Chrome plug-ins are strong. Effective & easy to use and including a ip-leak firewall function for the windows client. Privacy policy is good, no logs but a bit written to friendly to the copyright-industry. till 29-jan 2017 there is @ http://www.windscribe.nl /com a possibility to get the PRO update (unlimited everything). With the voucher WSNY2017 added to a free account its just $17 for 20 months which is a great deal.

    Torrent speeds are good. Browsing stays fast and responsive. The windows client is very good but they should check the standard firewall settings (blokking lan is not good). The android app is a bit weak. couldn’t make auto-connect work. Although they are Canadian its sad to see there is no Blackberry love.

    Reply
  3. I use the Mozilla Firefox extension and it is perfect. Of course, it leaks the real IP via WebRTC and the only way to avoid it is by doing the following:

    1) Type about:config in the address bar of Firefox.

    2) Click on “I’ll be careful, I promise!” (or some security message similar to that) [the message depends on the version of Firefox you have]

    3) A list will open with a search bar above. In that search bar, please type: media.peerconnection.enabled and hit enter.

    4) When the result comes up, double-click on it to turn its value to false.

    5) Close the tab to finish the procedure.

    It would be nice if the Windscribe extension would set the media.peerconnection.enabled to false when you use the vpn and to true when you don’t use it. I don’t know if this can be done technically but it would be great!

    Reply
  4. The Windows client works perfectly! I enjoy that Windscribe allows unlimited connections, which is awesome for those of us that have tons of devices we can’t always have behind a VPN Router.

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  5. This review is really outdated. Windscribe made a lot of changes since then, that pretty much address all the cons. Im using it for US Netflix and it works great!

    Reply
  6. Windscribe has been an absolute star for me! Got it on 3 devices and always works exactly how it should be. Also agree with George, this review is outdated, the changes Windscribe have made recently have been great and yes, you can unblock Netflix US no matter where you are!

    Reply
  7. Really cool VPN, great for both newbies and advanced vpn users. A good selection of features included plus an incredible list of locations for those on the paid plan. A bit more expensive than others, but worth it based on the speedy connections and flexible payment options/features.

    Reply
  8. Now got Windscribe on my Mac and iPhone. Really happy it can be used on a selection of devices and browsers. 5* for an overall great VPN provider.

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  9. I use windscribe for Chrome and it’s great! I have tried it on Firefox and it also works without a problem, just as there is no problem using it on multiple devices. The security features are awesome and I’ve definitely noticed I no longer have trackers following me or ads popping up. My favorite feature is the cookie monster and cruise control., love the ease of it automatically connected you to the best server. Overall, it’s a great service which I would recommend.

    Reply
  10. You’re not going to getting anything much better than windscribe, especially at their price. Windscribe continues to amaze me with their up to date system that never fails to provide excellent results and reliable speeds for all locations. The ease of use is great, and the information for each service is well explained on their website making it perfect for all user, even those that are new to vpns.

    Reply
  11. Good updates that recently took place. Happy that the connections have stayed stable and the speeds are consistent and reliable. It’s only been a few months since I first started using Windscribe, but i’ve been pretty impressed with how easy it is to navigate and all the features you get with it.

    Reply
  12. I think 6/5 our of 10 isn’t fair and this review is super outdated. Windscribe has improved in leaps and bounds since it first started. You should see the latest update, it’s awesome!

    Reply

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