Windscribe is a VPN service provider that is based in Canada and is somewhat new in the VPN market. While it is still considered to be a new player in the game, Windscribe does offer a variety of advanced features, good encryption and a decent number of server locations, as there are 45 locations in total available to users. Servers are located in Canada, USA, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Australia, Thailand and more countries. Some locations could be used for P2P/Torrenting, but not all serves are meant for that, so be sure to check which ones are the best for such activity.
Windscribe supports Mac, Windows, Linux as well as iOS and Android operating systems. Windscribe also has Opera, Firefox add-ons and a Chrome extension available to users. The software and browser extensions all secure Wi-Fi connection and help to browse the web anonymously. Also, the extensions have ad and tracker blockers integrated. However, be mindful that when using a browser extension or an add-on, only your Internet activity of the specific browser is encrypted, but your computer or other devices are not.
Windscribe VPN service provider offers a strong AES 256-bit encryption and OpenVPN protocol as well as a few different ports (UDP, TCP, Stealth). As for privacy, Windscribe stores the amount of bandwidth the users consume for about 1 month. While storing bandwidth is not the same as storing activity logs, the time period is quite a long one, as most other VPN providers store information for a far shorter period. Moreover, payment transaction IDs are also stored for 30 days in case of fraud. On the other hand, Windscribe’s Privacy Policy states that the VPN provider does not store connection data or Internet activity logs. Windscribe also offers a killswitch, which is helpful when your Wi-Fi drops and your IP is left exposed, as it prevents your IP address from leaking.
There are two pricing plans - a free one and a Pro pricing plan (1 month - $9.00, 1 year - $7.50/month). The free pricing plan offers 1 simultaneous connection, 8 locations and a 10GB/month bandwidth limit. The Pro plan has unlimited simultaneous devices, all of the locations available to connect to, unlimited bandwidth and more. Accepted payment methods include Visa, American Express and MasterCard credit cards, Paymentwall, PayPal as well as BitCoin. 3-days money back guarantee with no explanation required. However, if you have violated the Terms of Service or exceeded 10 GB of global traffic, you will not be able to get a refund.
The offered support options are a ticketing system, a FAQ section as well as email support. The FAQ section is somewhat more technical, but it answers all of the basic questions a user might have. Furthermore, there are setup guides available for computers, browsers, phones and more. The said guides are in a video format, which is a great addition to the overall customer support. Surely, the biggest disadvantage is that there is no live chat available.
While Windscribe is still considered to be a new VPN service provider, it does have a few excellent features: strong encryption, a killswitch, browser extensions and more. On the other hand, it has its flaws like some user information being stored, no live chat and while the setup guides are a nice addition to the overall experience, they might seem a little technical to the average user.
Windscribe is a new player in the market and it does provide good quality services. However, there is still room for improvement.