General Overview
Most people who are new to VPNs and would like to dip their toes into the technology will be tempted to test out Opera VPN. It is Opera browser’s built-in VPN service that does not require installing any additional software, creating an account or even being eligible for a credit card! Users get unlimited data, and it seems to do well with streaming Netflix too. So, what’s the catch? Our review actually stumbles across quite a few catches that users should be aware of before they start using Opera VPN.
Opera VPN Special Features
No Additional Software Installation Required: Using Opera VPN does not require you download and install any additional software. All you need is to Opera Browser, and then just turn on the VPN feature. However, turning off the VPN feature does not in any way hinder the otherwise brilliant browser’s performance.
No Bandwidth limitation: Opera VPN does not have a cap on how much bandwidth you can use unlike other free and trial services. So, regardless of if you want to stream HD content, or browse through geo-locked websites, there is no fear of being locked out as soon as the data cap is reached.
Privacy & Anonymity
Now for starters calling Opera VPN, a VPN service would be technically incorrect. It is technically a secure proxy service which means that even though it does encrypt the browser’s traffic to and from websites, it isn’t moved through a tunnel server the way it is with VPNs. VPNs encrypt every piece of information as opposed to Opera’s HTTPS/SSL encryption which is only for websites accessed through the browser.
While Opera VPN will not reveal your real IP address to websites making it possible to visit geo-blocked content or geo-specific content, it isn’t all that anonymous. Opera VPN’s Privacy Policy tends to be pretty clear about how they store and log information. According to the company, they administer a unique ID to each user which tracks how the VPN service is used, how often it is used, the environment in which it is used and the session activity. However, they claim that the ID isn’t linked to your device or personal account, but we’d need to take their word for it. Opera VPN also logs other information like app crashes, platform, memory data, operating system, etc. all of which they claim is used to improve product experience.
Opera VPN Speed and Performance
We tested Opera VPN’s speed and performance across a multitude of countries, i.e. within Australia, the US, Europe, and Asia. Each time we disconnected and reconnected to a new country’s proxy server. We used Speedtest.net to test the speed, and averaging out the results of three tests per country. To ensure that we know how much speed we are losing when connected to Opera VPN we took baseline tests which were at 10Mbps.
When connecting to proxy servers within Australia we received an average of 5Mbps, in the US, it was around 4Mbps, European servers gave us 3Mbps with Asia being the worst at hardly 1Mbps. The overall drop in speed was between 70% to 90% for the most part.
So how bad is the speed that Opera VPN offers? Well pretty bad. To put things into context the slowest VPN service we’ve tested capped our download speeds at 30% lower than baseline. Opera VPN slowed it down by 70% at least. Now for us that does not mean a lot since we are on Australia’s most expensive broadband connection but for the average Australian using 4G or 3G or even a 5Mbps home network WIFI connection, the speed will be frustratingly slow.
Ease of use (Desktop and Mobile)
Opera VPN’s service is limited to laptops and desktop computers only. The mobile version of the feature was shuttered in April 2018, after Symantec purchased SurfEasy.
Getting online using Opera VPN is pretty simple. Just click on the browser’s logo, on the top left of your screen, choose settings and go to Privacy & Security, then click on Enable VPN. A few seconds later the Opera browser’s logo will turn blue indicating that you’re now using their VPN. Also, the interface will show your current IP address and how much data is being transferred.
Opera VPN Servers and Locations across Australia
Unfortunately, since Opera VPN isn’t technically a VPN, there is no way of knowing how many servers they have. After all, it is a proxy service which means that they could just be using one server to run the entire service.
Customer Support
No customer support beyond just a few FAQs and troubleshooting guides.
Value for money
It’s free, so the only value it has is of your time. If your time is valuable, then don’t waste it on Opera VPN’s sluggish performance.
Our Verdict
Sure, the Opera VPN is free to use with unlimited data and pretty decent video streaming via a series of proxies, but its awful network performance makes it difficult to recommend. When compared to similar services like those of ProtonVPN which is slowed down on purpose for free account holders, it is still faster than Opera VPN. So, unless you like sitting around waiting for websites to refresh and videos to load, it being free does not matter.
