Turbo VPN is proud to announce that it has over 300 million users around the world who have downloaded their service. You can find many great reviews written by satisfied customers on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
These facts might be a bit difficult to believe for critical consumers in an innovative age. Turbo VPN is Turbo VPN worth the hype? Is its popularity an indicator of quality?
All this and more is in our Turbo VPN review. Continue reading to discover more!
What is Turbo VPN?
Innovative Connecting developed Turbo VPN. The company describes itself as an “Internet Startup”.
Danian Chen, a Chinese entrepreneur and CEO of LinkSure, the company behind WiFi MasterKey, is the director of Innovative Connecting. Forbes referred to Chen as “one the most influential young leaders of China”. Chen is only listed in corporate filings. He has no public association.
Turbo VPN is located at 38 Beach Road #29-11 South Beach Tower in Singapore. This country is known for its intrusive surveillance and government snooping. It also has a relationship with the 5-Eyes, an intelligence-sharing network led by the US. Much research has shown that Turbo VPN is able to transfer data to authorities in China.
Turbo VPN claims that it will give users’ personal data to the authorities “if ordered” by a court.
Turbo VPN usability
Design
Turbo VPN may be a free VPN service, but it does not look or feel that way. The interface is simple and intuitive with easy-to-navigate buttons and windows that allow you to access all information at your fingertips.
It has clear icons for flags and menu items, as well as progress bars and buttons that are easily visible. The entire design features a cute motif that is distinctive enough to make it stand out and makes the experience fun and lighthearted.
Supported devices
Turbo VPN is only available for mobile devices, and is only available for Android and iOS. There are no manual solutions for any other platform. You will need to find another provider to access VPN services on other devices.
Turbo VPN Premium plans allow you to connect up 5 devices, with all server locations. You also get faster connections, streaming servers, and zero in-app ads. You can also sign up for a free 3-day trial.
User experience
Turbo VPN apps are easy to download and install. It’s also quick and easy to use.
iOS
Turbo VPN’s iOS application can be downloaded easily from the iTunes app store. You can select your preferred protocol from OpenVPN TCP (default), IKEv2 or UDP.
iOS users do not have any server options. They must connect to the server it assigns to them automatically. Ads are displayed almost every time you click on a menu item, and often force you to wait for 5 seconds.
Android
You can choose between OpenVPN encryption or IPSec in the Android app. You can also choose from one of the nine servers in the US (New York, San Francisco), UK, Canada, Singapore and France.
Turbo VPN performance
Servers and locations
Turbo VPN only has a small server network. It claims it has 10,000+ servers, but that is very unlikely. It could be a premium feature that is only available to premium users, even if true.
Free users can choose from seven countries: Canada, Germany and India, as well as the Netherlands, Singapore, Singapore, the UK, and the United States. Only the USA has a city-level selection – San Francisco on one coast and New York on the other.
Users in South America and Africa will be disappointed to discover that there are no servers for the Asia-Pacific. A provider like expressVPN is better if you will be connecting from these areas. It covers 94 countries and is sure to work for you.
Speed
Turbo VPN claims that it connects you at the speed of a Hare on its official website. Turbo VPN’s speed is not always consistent. Nearby servers appear to be faster than distant servers. However, the speed drops only slightly from the normal non-tunneled speed. Servers further away can slow down the connection by up to half which is extremely disappointing.
The premium-plan servers also have lower traffic than the free one, so it is clear that such servers will offer faster speeds. Users may sometimes have trouble connecting to Turbo VPN. It could be due to high traffic on the network or poor connectivity from your cellular network.
In other words, Turbo VPN’s premium plans are better than any other VPN provider if you want to enjoy high speeds.
Streaming
Turbo VPN allows you to access all major streaming sites. Turbo VPN is only available to VIP-level users, so it leaves free users behind.
Turbo VPN security features
Turbo VPN defaults to OpenVPN protocol, which is the most widely used protocol type in the industry. Protocols are what allow you to establish a connection between your browser and the Internet. It is encrypted to protect your IP address and your exact location.
OpenVPN is one of the most popular tunneling protocols. OpenVPN is widely used because it’s free and open-source. This means that many developers have tested it for vulnerabilities. Turbo also offers IKEv2 protocol. This is a brand new option that is slowly gaining ground in the VPN industry.
Both protocols use AES256-bit encryption. This encryption is used by military and government agencies around the world. There is little evidence that encryption actions are actually being carried out.
We were also disappointed that there was no kill switch in the app. This is a critical security feature that prevents regular internet traffic from being blocked if the VPN connection is lost. Turbo VPN does not have its own DNS servers so your traffic will be routed to third-party servers. This makes it less secure.
Privacy and policies for Turbo VPN
Jurisdiction
Turbo VPN, as mentioned above, is based in Singapore and China. Singapore is part of the 14-Eyes intelligence network which could pose some issues for Western governments.
Even worse, China does not consider privacy a human right. Turbo VPN is likely to have more government involvement than you realize.
Logging policy
The Turbo VPN privacy policy can be found on the App Store. It is a short read. This company claims to be a “no log network”, meaning it does not collect any information such as IP addresses or browsing patterns.
It does state that certain information is only collected for the duration of the VPN session in order to “improve” the service. It is not clear what type of information this information might be. Turbo VPN also requires access to your identity and device. Turbo VPN could access all this information, so it could possibly view, collect and share all information.
Turbo VPN’s log policy is, in short, questionable.
Torrent policy
The service is mobile-only, and we want to stress that. Torrents can be downloaded from the desktop or laptop of most users, who prefer to use mobile devices instead. We want to find out if this VPN provider can torrent for this purpose.
Turbo VPN supports torrenting as well as P2P activity. Turbo VPN is a very intrusive logging service that requires you to review your settings and lacks privacy features. Turbo VPN’s FAQ page clearly states that users must not access BitTorrent while connected to their accounts or they may be blocked.
Turbo VPN customer support
Turbo VPN claims that it offers seamless 24/7 customer support, but the truth is quite different.
The online resource is not of any use. It contains very general information, but doesn’t offer any troubleshooting or setup tips. Turbo VPN’s app has a FAQ page. However, it’s very basic and cannot solve most problems.
Clicking on the “F” symbol on the website will take you to their Facebook page. There you can also find their email address. Many users claimed that they never received a response to their emails, even though they tried to contact them via email.
Turbo VPN pricing plans
Turbo VPN is an ad-supported service. However, there are also paid options with more advanced features. You can access streaming sites and VIP servers, among other things.
Here are the costs of a Turbo VPN:
- 1-Week Plan: $9.99/week
- 1-month Plan: $11.99/month
- 1-year plan for $2.99 per month (billed $35.88 annually)
Turbo offers a free three-day trial that is great for testing the waters. You must cancel the trial to avoid losing your funds.
The service is only available through Google Play Store and Apple App Store. This means that the only payment option you have is your debit/credit card linked to your Apple or Google accounts. You cannot pay via PayPal, cryptocurrency, prepaid card, or cash.
Turbo VPN: The pros and cons
Pros:
- Offers encryption and top-of the-line protocols
- No leaks detected
- Uses streaming sites with VIP servers
- Allow torrenting
Cons:
- Questionable logging policy
- Problematic jurisdiction
- Limited device support (on mobile devices only)
- Limited server network
- There are no advanced security features
- Bad customer support
Alternatives to Turbo VPN
ProtonVPN
Let’s say you are looking for a Turbo VPN replacement that offers unlimited data, decent speed, and a good number of servers all over the globe. ProtonVPN would be our top recommendation.
What is ProtonVPN’s uniqueness?
- ProtonVPN’s headquarters are in Switzerland. This means that you are protected by strong privacy laws.
- ProtonVPN is easy to install and download
- It can also unblock streaming sites
- Its Secure Core servers provide an extra encryption layer
- It accepts both cryptocurrency and cash payments
Windscribe
Windscribe, another great alternative to Turbo VPN, offers exceptional features. Although there is a monthly data cap of 10GB, this is quite affordable as you can connect to high-speed VPN servers with no speed throttling. To use Windscribe’s free service, you will need to register, unlike Turbo VPN.
What is Windscribe’s uniqueness?
- Windscribe permits unlimited device connection per license
- You can also download it for free.
- Its privacy policy, however, is transparent
TunnelBear
TunnelBear is a premium VPN. However, it also offers a free tier that allows you to access 500MB data per month. The data limit is lower than Turbo VPN’s unlimited data allowance. We are aware of this. You can still access top-notch features with TunnelBear. This feature is not available on Turbo VPN.
What is the uniqueness of TunnelBear?
- TunnelBear enforces a no-logging policy
- No leaks detected
- It has advanced security features
- Its customer service is prompt and thorough.
- It also offers a free plan with great features
The bottom line
Turbo VPN would not be our first choice.
Turbo VPN’s limited server options and device support are not something to be overlooked. However, we are concerned about the privacy policy.
This VPN is not recommended for those who are concerned about privacy due to its lack of security features or logging policy. We’d rather recommend premium VPNs that are more secure than this one. Keep checking our blog for more details!