Bright VPN

Finding a VPN solution that is both free and offers decent speeds is a tough ask. When you do find something that seems worthwhile, there's usually a catch in the middle, which all but makes you spring for a paid alternative.

In a sea of free — but largely deficient — VPN software, Bright VPN seeks to stand out by distancing itself from other free alternatives: no more ads, vastly reduced speeds, or underhanded ways to get you to pay for the full version. One can't help but wonder, though, is there a catch?

Perhaps by now, most users are of the belief that free VPN solutions are something to avoid, and that if you want to make use of a VPN, you'd be better off paying for one. Bright VPN may be free, but the first window that appears upon first launching the app might instantly put people off.

In short, the developer asks to occasionally use your IP address to download public data from the internet. In exchange, you receive a free VPN service that you can use to surf the web privately. Refer to the developer's page for more details. Whether that is a good trade is up to you to decide: some people might feel uncomfortable with the IP address sharing part, which is completely understandable.

The interface is straightforward and slick-looking, and the selection of IP addresses to connect to is quite generous. Over 100 countries are available, so you should have no problem bypassing geo-blocking on some website or service.

Speed-wise, conducting some download and upload tests revealed that the speeds were quite good for a free VPN. If you want blazing fast, you're not going to get it here — but for our connection, averaging about 115Mbps download and 6Mbps for upload, the result was very respectable.

Sharing your IP with the developer, so they can download data from the internet, is a decision that only you can make. If you happen to agree to such a practice, you'll find a capable, well-rounded VPN service in Bright VPN.