Unveiling Digital Freedom: Navigating the World Safely with Atlas VPN– A Comprehensive Review

By June Youngs

Atlas VPN delivers all that it promises. By placing the world at your fingertips, this user-friendly VPN service is excellent for those using VPN for the first time with a practical free version and a fantastic premium version. The free version offers solid protection features, no ads, and a reliable no-logs guideline. On the other hand, the premium version is relatively cheap, making this an ideal economical VPN.

While Atlas VPN is its own individual provider, the company was acquired by Nord Security, the corporation behind NordVPN, last year. Hence, it will inevitably benefit from Nord’s security, experience, and assistance.

Here's an overview

 

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • It unblocks US streaming services such as Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney Plus.

  • Excellent WireGuard download rates

  • Endless concurrent connections

  • Generous options even when it is free 

  • Good web filters

  • 30-day money-back assurance

Cons

  • Undersized server network

  • Substandard support site

  • Some issues with the kill switch 

  • No policy with logging in

  • No privacy audit

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Atlas VPN Features

Streaming

Atlas VPN’s apps provide separate lists that are specifically optimized for streaming. However, it becomes inconvenient sometimes as you will have to first disconnect from the VPN and then reconnect to choose the streaming list options.

The VPN does a great job of unblocking some major streaming platforms with smooth performance. These include Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, and Youtube. It does a quick job of settling in these servers with effective geo-restriction bypassing.

DAZN is one platform that even the most expensive VPNs have trouble unblocking, and Atlas was no exception.

Torrenting

While Atlas VPN doesn’t really have dedicated P2P servers, we can confirm that torrenting does indeed work anonymously, even though Atlas does not advertise it. But, don’t hope for fast speeds in the free version as there aren’t many countries and servers to connect to. However, the speeds may be different depending on where you are.

SOCKS5 proxy features are also missing, which is something one must consider with P2P activities. So long as you’re not a professional who may need advanced features like port forwarding, Atlas VPN is a suitable option for torrenting.

Servers 

With over 750 servers to choose from, Atlas VPN does a pretty good job of maintaining an adequately strong global range, with only a few glitches when connecting to specific countries. However, these numbers may not mean much compared to some of the top VPNs.

In the premium version, the user gets the added benefit of circumventing geo-restrictions and accessing media and gaming servers for a good deal.

Speed

Atlas VPN has excellent WireGuard download rates, with speeds that almost reach 800 Mbps in the US and UK. Even with WireGuard, the upload rate garnered average speeds of over 300 Mbps. The high speed and lower ping make it highly ideal for gamers. However, you have to ensure that the server you have connected to is not very competitive. Furthermore, the free version offers slightly lower speeds, but it’s a solid general performance.

Privacy and Security

Atlas VPN offers a SafeBrowse option that blocks malicious sites. With  AES-256 encryption, WireGuard, a system that maintains private DNS and kill switch, Atlas can cover all your privacy basics. It also includes ad and tracker-blocking that bring in that additional protection.

It states that there is a no-logs policy that restricts storing personal information, even in the free version. However, there is no concrete evidence that Atlas VPN lives up to that promise, as it has sufficient data to build user profiles discretely.

Users must accept the cookie disclaimer (there’s no reject option) when they visit its website for the first time. Users will also frequently receive promotional emails unless otherwise specified. This specifies that Atlas isn’t all that privacy-friendly. The VPN has claimed to have gone through an independent security audit but does not presently use a warrant canary.

Kill Switch

Atlas VPN’s kill switch feature ensures the prevention of data leaks by blocking the connection, subsequently disabling the VPN. While it primarily delivers its core function, its functionality has problems as it doesn’t notify the user that it has been triggered. There is also the inconvenience of disabling it when you’re done using it and restarting it (mainly for those who don’t want their VPN active all the time).

Split Tunneling

Split tunneling in Atlas VPN has proven to be a handy feature in the premium plan. It enables restricting apps that won’t necessarily use the VPN, even when the user is connected by transmitting part of the internet traffic via an encrypted VPN tunnel. At the same time, the remaining traffic travels from outside the VPN.

It has also aided in ensuring quicker speeds and lower ping. Although, this feature can currently be found only in Android devices, with support for split tunneling on specific versions of Windows known to be coming soon.

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User experience- Ease of Use and Interface

It is relatively easy to set up and use Atlas VPN. You download the app from the website or your device’s app store and tap or click the connect button to get started with the VPN connection.

Atlas VPN is one of the most uncomplicated VPNs as it is best suited for beginners with hardly any understanding of complicated VPN software. It presents simply designed apps for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS with little to no differences between Android and iOS. Nevertheless, the apps could use a little more upgrading in terms of fixing glitches (most common in the Windows app)

The simplicity of the apps also makes Atlas VPN a poor option for skilled and advanced users who want more customization, such as selecting encryption strength and configuring extra proxy servers.

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Pricing: Free and Premium plans

You can download Atlas VPN for free. On their site, under the no-registration free plan, you will be able to choose between two separate locations in the US (New York and Los Angeles) and one in the Netherlands (Amsterdam). It offers you a simple way to try out the service, albeit with some restrictions. The data cap for speeds is 10 GB per month, which has been found to be relatively lower in the free version compared to the premium one.

The premium plans offer more locations, excellent connection speeds, 24/7 customer assistance, Ultra-high-definition streaming, and zero ads. You can choose to pay from numerous payment options, including credit cards, PayPal, Google Pay, and even cryptocurrencies, with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Atlas VPN also offers a 3-7 day trial period (depending on the subscription deal you choose) so that you can try the premium version without spending any money. Atlas VPN currently offers three premium subscription deals. They also have an ongoing deal where you can avail premium benefits for two years using the code “SUMMER-TIME” for just $2.05 a month. It sounds too good to be true.

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Customer service and support

Atlas VPN presently offers email and web-form support; however, the address itself is not easy to find on their web pages and should be more perceptible. Atlas delivers quick and helpful responses from its 24/7 live chat support (offered in its premium version). Since the same channels are being used, it becomes unclear how the 24/7 benefit presents itself.

On the other hand, it typically takes them a few hours to several days to reply to email messages in the free version. The help center page includes general FAQs that give easy-to-understand explanations and workarounds to settle technical problems. It would be better if there were videos available to help solve issues.

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Is Atlas VPN worth it? Here’s our final verdict

Atlas VPN is, beyond any doubt, worth trying. If you are searching for an inexpensive, quick, and no-frills VPN to try out, Atlas is the way to go. In the first place, one can easily install the apps, and they are not complicated to use. Further, it functions competently at going around geo-restrictions, including those by streaming services. With no device limit, this VPN service offers premium features at a great price. Its mobile version includes additional features, such as ad-blocking, breach monitoring, and friend referral.

While Atlas VPN did not manage to unblock some of the trickier platforms like DAZN and 10Play, it did unblock significant streaming sites like Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, Youtube, and more. 

It has the potential to compete with well-known providers, namely ExpressVPN, other than a few drawbacks, such as a few problems with the kill switch and the need for upgrading fine app details and tunneling protocols. 

All in all, Atlas VPN can only get better from here. So we would definitely recommend giving it a shot.