BolehVPN is a Malaysia based company that started back in 2008. As a company, BolehVPN is very clear cut on their website as they carefully list extensive details on what makes their VPN different than others. Is eight years enough time for BolehVPN to become one of Best10VPN’s best? Keep reading for our BolehVPN review.
Pricing 8/10
BolehVPN has a fair pricing model. BolehVPN prices it at $9.99 for a month subscription, $16.99 for a two-month subscription, $44.99 for six months, and $79.99 for a year. In addition to these standard prices, BolehVPN also offers a seven-day trial for $3.70 which is a relatively low-cost commitment. BolehVPN also offers BitCoin to help make your purchase anonymous as well as a generous thirty-day refund policy.
BolehVPN doesn’t have the lowest prices around, but they are very standard and inclusive.
Check out this list if you want to know the cheapest VPNs.
Software 9/10
BolehVPN has a large application with many details spread about in the interface. In some ways, this makes the application feel a bit dense and confusing. However, BolehVPN’s app covers most major security features and performs well with a lot of customizable server solutions.
The main dashboard page is where you can connect, pick your protocol, and select your country and connection type. One interesting addition BolehVPN added to the application is that every time you connect or disconnect, there are audio cues. When you connect it sounds like a sound ripped straight from Mario, and when you disconnect, there’s a slightly unpleasant ping.
There are a few options here like using a fully routed server, GEO-DNS-SERVER, proxied server, surfing streaming server, and xCloak proxy and routed.
But what do all of these different servers do? Well, good question.
Luckily, BolehVPN has included a small help and FAQ tab right above this part in the application where you can read up on the information. The basic rundown is that proxied and fully routed servers contain 256-bit AES encryption while surfing / streaming servers use lower encryption like 128-bit AES or SSL. As you may know, a proxy can be useful and provide higher speeds, but it doesn’t encrypt all of your internet traffic like a VPN. A proxy like this requires your program to have support for it.
The xCloak servers have an additional layer of security that cloaks VPN use, which is helpful for restricted access in censored countries. The GEO server doesn’t have any encryption that makes it the fastest, and thus the best for streaming.
When you’re not trying to figure out which server to use, you can see a small log showing connection information in one tab, or you can explore a few options in the settings menu. Most of these options pertain to how the application works–like if it’ll run at system startup, or if it’ll auto reconnect. It’s great to see that BolehVPN has included DNS leak protection and an oddly unexplained “lock down” feature that serves as a kill-switch–which means if your VPN stops–so does your internet. I would have liked to see an app kill switch, as well as some small icons in the settings– like an “i” which if you hover over would give you more information on some users using BolehVPN seem confused with some of these features.
BolehVPN’s dedication to bringing multiple unique server offerings and necessary security features is very impressive.
Mobile Software 0/10
BolehVPN doesn’t have any native mobile VPN software, but you can try to access their VPN servers through the iOS OpenVPN app. Check out the guide to do that here!
Extra Services 7.5/10
BolehVPN is one of the few VPN providers to provide more than just a simple VPN. They included xCloak servers with their VPN, which is great if you’re looking to hide VPN use in restricted countries like China. I also liked the addition of available proxy servers within the VPN client app.
BolehVPN also has seedbox app. The app is a server hosting platform that lets you remotely host seed trackers in BitTorrent. Alongside this, they also offer game hosting, but they don’t want to get involved in semi-illegal hosting like emulated servers. It’s great to see some extra options here, and they even partner with Sabai Technology to sell VPN routers.
Boleh unfortunately only offers two simultaneous connections, which is a bit weak considering some VPN providers offer as much as five.
Website 7.5/10
BolehVPN’s website has a lot of information about their services which is useful. Even on the front page, they already provide a majority of information about the VPN. Everything just feels laid out–and while some information might require some digging–I was continually impressed with how detailed and concrete BolehVPN was on their website.
A lot of VPN websites are all graphic images and fluff content. BolehVPN genuinely feels like they want their you to understand their software so they can use it to the maximum potential. You can find a lot of information about their VPN and extra services in their FAQ section. Not only that but they are also one of the few sites to offer a forum community so everyone can participate.
While BolehVPN’s website is refreshingly straightforward with its content, I think it still needs a support tab on the top of the page (instead of just an FAQ link at the bottom) and a bit of an overhaul. The site just feels a bit old, and considering BolehVPN has been around for awhile, it probably is. Noting that you might find that some of the tutorials have pictures of their more elderly client instead of their newer one.
Servers 7/10
BolehVPN’s specialty is that they give you a ton of different server types to use. Depending on your needs, you can use a proxy server, a typical VPN server, a DNS type server, and their xCloak servers that are ideal for use in countries that restrict VPN use. While there are many different kinds to choose from, I didn’t see any options in the VPN server selection that were in the USA, or any options to customize the server to be in a particular city for optimal speeds.
While there are many different server types to choose from, I didn’t actually see any in the VPN server selection that were in the USA, or any options to customize the server to be in a particular city for ideal speeds.
I think BolehVPN now needs to work on getting more servers, in particular, locations and increasing rates.
Privacy 9.5/10
BolehVPN offers 256-bit AES encryption on their VPN servers. They also have a no logging policy, but we didn’t find any protocol switch options in their client even if OpenVPN is the best protocol to use.
Speeds 4/ 10
Since BolehVPN offers so many different server types, it’s expected that rates will vary between the various server connections. However, the most important connection is the standard VPN connection, and with those servers, I got a very average download/upload speed of 6.16 Mbps and 6.10 Mbps, as well as high ping that slowed down browsing times considerably.
Support 8/10
BolehVPN uses a standard ticket support system in place of live chat. But, unlike a lot of VPN providers, they do have a forum community that is excellent for questions and learning about VPN use. The site also has detailed support articles (although like I said, the interface and images of the site could be spruced up a bit) that explain to use how to use every part of the VPN app. Couple with a generous 30-day refund policy and responsive emails, BolehVPN’s support is quite good.
Verdict
BolehVPN is a very solid VPN that offers a great amount of variety here in their VPN servers. They also have all of the security essentials inside their Windows app, a proper amount of support information on the site, and some nice VPN service extras like Seedbox. However, once BolehVPN improves server speeds, gets live chat, and refreshes their website–they might just be more than a “solid” VPN, instead an amazing one.
