32 MACWORLD SEPTEMBER 2020
MACUSER REVIEW: WINDSCRIBE FOR MACexception being the Windscribe browser
extensions, which use a blocking
mechanism that’s independent of the
Windscribe apps, for now.
Overall, R.O.B.E.R.T. worked really well.
It had no trouble blocking sites like
Facebook and Twitter, as well as most
porn sites on page one of Google results.
Digging into pages 8–12 of Google, there
were one or two porn sites that got past
the blockers, but overall it was surprisingly
good. Just remember this feature only
works when you’re connected to the VPN.
Next, there’s the browser extension,
which has a ton of extras. Originally, the
Windscribe browser extension was just
like most other VPNs, a way to connect to
a proxy that only affects your browser. It
does that, but it also has a secure link
generator, a fancy URL-shortening service
that we explained in PCWorld’s Windscribe
review (go.macworld.com/wnrv).
In addition, the extension
has tracker blockers, and the
ability to block requests for
website notifications. There are
also spoofers for syncing a
system’s GPS location and
timestamp to that of the
connected server. Finally, the
extension supports double-hop
VPN connections in
conjunction with Windscribe
for Mac.
PERFORMANCE
Windscribe has pretty good speeds. In our
tests over three different days, Windscribe
retained about 25 percent of the base
speeds. That puts it in the middle of the
pack, with especially solid performance for
U.S., UK, and German connections.
Australia was mostly weak, while speeds in
Japan would vary between average to
incredible. Overall, Winsdscribe’s speeds
should be acceptable for most uses
including gaming.PRICING
Windscribe Pro costs $50 per year on the
yearly plan, which is an amazingly good
price for the features you get. You can also
opt for the monthly plan at $9 per month.
Alternatively, there’s a Build a Plan option
where you pay $1 per month for each
location you want.BOTTOM LINE
Windscribe is a feature-packed
VPN with good speeds,
excellent pricing, and a nice set
of features. The privacy
promises are very good, and
while we don’t think they quite
rise to the level of Mullvad they
are very close. The bottom line
is that you’d be hard pressed
to find a VPN with better value
than this one. ■mmmm
Windscribe Pro
PROS- Works with Netflix.
- A healthy number of extras
for power users.
CONS - There is some logging, but
it’s limited and mostly time
sensitive.
PRICE
$49
COMPANY
Windscribe