DotVPN in USA Reviewed and Tested 2024

DOTvpn-review

DotVPN is a Hong Kong-based VPN service provider that offers unlimited bandwidth with the help of its 1000+ servers spread across 30 different nations. What we like about this service is you can get access without providing the company with any personal or financial information.

Just simply register by using your email address and you are ready to use the free VPN service in USA. After that, you can use their fully encrypted free and premium versions by adding the DotVPN proxy add-on to your browsers or by installing the DotVPN app on your smartphones in USA.

However, the drawback of its free version is it does not work with streaming platforms like Netflix, BBC iPlayer, etc in USA. Even with the premium version, the speed performance can be poor and the security isn’t as robust as other reliable VPN services in USA. To know more about this VPN service, continue reading our DotVPN in USA review blog.

The most concerning aspect of DotVPN after our sufficient testing is that it exposes your IP address in USA, which means that the websites you visit will know where you live. Furthermore, DotVPN lacks a kill switch feature, leaving your data at risk of being exposed online in case your VPN connection suddenly stops.

For those wishing to test this service out for themselves, it offers a reasonable 45-day money-back guarantee which is fairly generous in comparison to many other VPNs.


Key Findings – DotVPN Review in USA

  • Pricing DotVPN offers both free and paid plans in USA. Its subscription cost starts at $1.60/mo
  • Servers and Locations– DotVPN offers 1000 servers in 30 countries on its browser extensions
  • Security and Features– DotVPN lacks a kill switch and strong encryption and it keeps user logs
  • Speed and Performance– Delivers fair speed on nearby servers but extremely poor speed on distant servers
  • Streaming– It only works with US Netlfix and HBO Max
  • Torrenting It does not support torrenting in USA
  • Bypassing Censorship – DotVPN does not work in China
  • Installation Apps and Easy to Use– Its apps and extensions are easy to install and offer a simple UI
  • Compatibility It has apps available for Android and iOS. Extensions for browsers. But no apps for Windows and Mac
  • Customer Support– DotVPN does not offer a live chat option, you can only send them an email if you want to ask about the product.

DotVPN Review in USA – At a Glance

Price $1.60/mo for the 3-year plan – 68% OFF
Money-back Guarantee 45- days
Do they keep logs? Yes (your IP address, email ID, payment dates, etc)
Number of servers 1000 servers in 30 countries
Simultaneous connections 5 devices
Kill switch Slow
Supports torrenting No
Jurisdiction Hong Kong
Customer Support No Live Chat, Only FAQs and Feedback Form

Pros and Cons

Pros
  • Offers free and paid service in USA
  • Have servers in 5 continent
  • 45 days money back guarantee
  • 5 simultaneous connections
  • Fast speed on nearby servers
  • Unblocks US streaming services on the premium version
  • Pocket-friendly subscriptions plans

Cons
  • They keep logs
  • No kill switch
  • No apps for Windows and Mac
  • Doesn’t support torrenting
  • Does not unblock Netflix on the free version Outside USA
  • No live chat for customer support

1. DotVPN Pricing in USA

DotVPN premium accounts offer affordable subscription plans for the services they offer in USA. However, you can also use free servers located in the United States, the Netherlands, and France but they will limit your access to some features, like speed and encryption.

dotvpn-price-in-USA

It doesn’t offer multiple payment options. You can pay using your Paypal account if you purchased a premium plan in USA. For all of its plans, DotVPN also provides a 45-day money-back guarantee. This provides you with plenty of time to evaluate the service’s features risk-free before deciding to stay on a premium plan.

2. DotVPN Servers

DotVPN offers 1000 servers in 30 countries. You don’t know it until you install its extension first. This is due to the fact that their outdated website still displays 2017-old content that still shows 700 servers in 12 countries only.

However, what attracts me is the geographic distribution of DotVPN’s proxy servers. It provides servers in every continent including Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, and North America. Most servers are located in Europe. While Asia has servers in India, Turkey, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan. The Americas solely has servers in the US and Canada.

However, you won’t find all these servers in their Android and iOS apps, you will just get 12 countries’ server locations.

3. DotVPN Security in USA

DotVPN delivers robust security measures in USA as it should given that its key selling point is that it keeps you anonymous and secure online.

Robust Encryption – DotVPN uses multiple layers of encryption, including the concrete AES-128 encryption level, which they claim is less prone to attack than AES-256.

However, we found this statement somewhat dubious as AES-256 encryption is trusted and utilized by banks, government organizations, and the vast majority of secure VPNs.

Strong Protocols – DotVPN uses OpenVPN(TCP/UDP) and IPsec as their native protocols for Android and iOS devices, respectively. Additionally, The browser extensions transmit your data via a 4096-bit kit-stabilized Secure Socket Layer (SSL-proxy).

Firewall – DotVPN uses a Firewall to guard against hackers and unwanted incoming network traffic intercepting or exploiting a VPN connection. This feature is enabled by default for each user.

Ad and Malware Blocking – This function guards you against malware and hides intrusive adverts from you. Go to the settings section to enable this feature.

Privacy

Despite claiming to be a logs policy VPN, we found out that DotVPN doesn’t actually follow a strict no-logs policy. They collect the following information encrypted in SHA256. For example, during registration, they keep users’ email and passwords, and IP addresses for 24 hours. Here is the proof of their logging policy details.

dotvpn-logging-data-in-USA

This clear privacy policy is stated on the DotVPN website in USA.

Although Hong Kong (not a part of 5/9/14 Eyes) does not have data retention laws. According to the company’s privacy policy, your information is kept on servers in Hong Kong which are accessible to all their employees (local or located in other countries).

The idea that they might share your information if new owners acquired the service or they will protect your information only in situations where the government would not require it didn’t totally satisfy me. You can also check it on your own on the DotVPN privacy policy page.

Now it is clear that DotVPN continues to hold some of your personal data. You must determine how much information is too much for you, regardless of what you view or download in our blog about VPN logging policies.

4. DotVPN Speeds in USA

DotVPN speed in USA was too slow during our testing.

Before starting, we checked our base connection speed. The benchmark test resulted in a download speed of 78.20 Mbps, an upload speed of 51.17 Mbps, and a ping time of 115 ms before activating DotVPN. After using DotVPN, we got some unexpected results.

speed-result-without-vpn-in-USA

This was our base connection speed before connecting to DotVPN in USA.

To check DotVPN speed we had to manually start connections with servers in the United States, France, and the Netherlands because the quick-connect feature was not available.

When connecting to a server in New York, the speed test results show download speeds of 29.60 Mbps, which is 62.15% slower than my benchmark speed.

dotvpn-us-speed-in-USA

We got this decent speed in USA because the US was the nearest server.

Next, we connected to the France server. The speed we received was extremely slow and decreased up to 93.48%. Maybe this is because it was a faraway server.

dotvpn-france-speed-in-USA

We got really poor speed in USA when connected to the DotVPN distant server.

Overall, speed tests for a free service will usually always be unsatisfactory.

5. DotVPN Streaming in USA

In our unblocking tests, we discovered that DotVPN was unable to unblock the majority of the streaming services we tried in USA. We were only able to unblock HBO Max and US Netflix in USA.

Although unblocking content isn’t quite this VPN’s focus, we still would have preferred to see perform better in this area.

We connected to it US server from its browser extension and tries to access the US library. Surprisingly we were able to access it. However, we experienced buffering issues due to poor VPN speed.

netflix-with-dotvpn-in-USA

We were able to access US Netflix movies with DotVPN in USA with no prominent lags.

Next, we tried unblocking HBO max with the same DotVPN US server. Luckily, we unblocked HBO Max and watched “His Dark Material” in USA. The only drawback is that we faced lag while streaming.

Dotvpn-unblocked-hbo-max-in-USA

We experienced buffering while watching the show “His Dark Material” on HBO Max in USA.

Disney+, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and BBC iPlayer: Blocked

We tested other streaming services in USA, but not all of them could be accessed securely with DotVPN. The DotVPN US server was unable to connect me to the Disney+ webpage when we attempted to access my Disney+ account through it.

Similarly, Amazon and Hulu wouldn’t let us sign in since they could easily tell we were using a VPN. We were instructed to stop using the proxy service by the error message when we wanted to access our account.

Additionally, DotVPN is useless for people trying to access UK channels from overseas because it is unable to unblock UK streaming websites and services like BBC iPlayer and Channel 4. That’s why we recommend ExpressVPN for streaming geo-blocked content without any hurdles due of its amazing speed and reliability.

While DotVPN may have limitations in its unblocking capabilities, several reputable VPNs offer exceptional performance in bypassing geo-restrictions and granting access to various libraries, including US Netflix. Exploring the best VPNs for streaming opens up possibilities for users to unblock their favorite content seamlessly and without compromise. These top-tier VPNs go beyond basic unblocking and provide a comprehensive solution for users seeking optimal streaming experiences.

6. DotVPN Torrenting in USA

According to DotVPN, it does not permit peer-to-peer file sharing in USA. The information on their website indicates that the service will soon add this choice. We did try the Utorrent platform for downloading, and it was quite shocking to find that DotVPN could download torrent files with it in USA.

Our experience led us to the conclusion that their website needs to be updated because the last time it was was in 2017. Before starting torrenting using DotVPN servers, it is important to be aware that even if this VPN doesn’t officially permit torrenting, there is a potential that this activity will be recorded or reported.

To minimize the risk of being caught and traced, use the best VPN for torrenting and stay anonymous.

7. Bypass Censorship – Does DotVPN Work in China?

To check if DotVPN works in China, we asked one of our team members who live there, to test its DotVPN bypassing ability. Unfortunately, DotVPN is incompatible with the country.

However, while searching more we found out that, DotVPN does not market its services as an advanced unblocking VPN, despite some of its excellent capabilities, it is unable to circumvent China’s government-established internet firewalls.

8. Installation and Apps and Ease of Use

DotVPN has a very easy and simple installation process. You can download and install DotVPN extension in your browsers. It is currently compatible with Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Android, and iOS in USA.

With only a few mouse clicks get a DotVPN extension review from the website onto your preferred browsers. This is the only way to use this VPN on Windows and macOS since DotVPN didn’t offer a dedicated app for these 2 device platforms. While using the extensions, you can choose to sign up or purchase a premium plan, or you can do it on the website.

This is what the DotVPN chrome extension review looks like:

dotvpn-chrome-extension-in-USA

A message is sent by DotVPN following a successful sign-up. After successfully registering, DotVPN sends you a message. Its VPN extension has a very simple design. The DotVPN Android app design is significantly different than its browser extensions.

DotVPN-android-app-in-USA

We like how they differentiate VPN connectivity using these colors in USA.

We had no trouble figuring out how to use any of its apps. Even when using its servers, DotVPN offers a feature that monitors your connection rates and ping times. This function was really helpful because it allowed you to choose the top nearby servers.

9. Compatibility with Devices and OS

DotVPN is a relatively easy-to-use VPN and can be used on multiple devices except for Windows and Mac. DotVPN can be added as an extension to popular browsers including DotVPN for Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Chrome starting with version 22. We personally did the DotVPN Chrome extension review after enabling its add-on, and it worked pretty smoothly with my chrome extension.

If you use an Android device running version 4.2 or later, you can find apps for it on the Google Play Store. If your iPhone is running version 8.0 or later, you can find them on your App store.

The thing which bothered me is prior to the middle of 2016, DotVPN pledged to set up its Windows and iOS platforms, but this commitment appears to be in jeopardy.

10. DotVPN Customer Support in USA

DotVPN’s customer service is terrible in USA. There are no 24-hour live chats available, social media platforms, or phone numbers to get in direct touch with them. Only email addresses entered into a ticket form on the DotVPN website can be used to contact them in USA. Even on sending hundreds of emails, we do not once get a response in time.

So, to find solutions to certain frequently asked questions, we had to either come up with the answers ourselves or stick to the FAQ or solution parts. You can also fill out the contact available on the official site. Hence, you can get the answer to your problems with the product in many days.

DotVPN-Contact-Form-in-USA

Its website has very few guidelines, and those that do exist are too old and relate to impending updates that were supposed to launch the desktop apps in the middle of 2016 but have yet to do so.

FAQs – DotVPN in USA Reviewed  And Tested

No, DotVPN is not safe to use in USA for anyone who values their privacy. It uses 128-bit AES encryption, which is less secure than 256-bit AES encryption also it doesn’t have a kill switch feature to protect your IP address from leaking in case of VPN connection drops. Instead of securing your data, DotVPN is more like a proxy service, only helpful for unblocking restricted sites in your browser.

Yes, DotVPN is a free VPN for Android. Their service provides proxy access to banned websites and apps including Facebook, Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Skype, and WiFi hotspot security.

DotVPN encrypts your browser connection while you are using public Wi-Fi hotspots. It routes your entire internet activity over a secure VPN connection so you can access any restricted content you want while maintaining your privacy in USA. Also, DotVPN doesn’t record your connection details.

You can not delete your DotVPN account in USA. According to DotVPN, “We did not include a “Delete account” feature in order to enhance the DotVPN service’s operation”. Any new account once it has been created in our database, can not be deleted. But don’t worry, they neither store nor disclose any of your personal information to a third party.

DotVPN Review in USA Summary

Now you can understand the major pros and cons of this Hong Kong-based brand through my exclusive DotVPN review. If you wish to know about our verdict, we will not recommend DotVPN.

DotVPN is a mediocre VPN service with sufficient capabilities to assist you in carrying out basic operations. However, it has significant security and privacy flaws which includes the lack of a kill switch and keeping logs of your IP address.

Additionally, DotVPN has awful video streaming performance, no support for torrenting, and lacks native Windows and Mac apps.

We advise purchasing one of the VPNs that are listed in our top 10 list for 2024 ExpressVPN rather than using the DotVPN premium free trial or paying for the monthly or yearly subscription.

Let me know your feedback about this VPN service in the comments section below.

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