Many users who use different VPN services complain that the Internet starts working very slowly, sites load for a long time, everything "dulls" and "slows down". It seems to be the problem - they turned off the VPN and everything is fine. So yes, but then those resources (sites) to which access is blocked will not open. I honestly doubt that anyone uses these services to protect the connection, spoof IP, anonymity on the network. VPN connection security, especially free VPNs, is a very controversial issue.
Almost everyone who connects through VPN servers uses them to access blocked sites, or to run blocked programs. And this is very important now. Many different websites are blocked in Russia, access to social networks Vkontakte and Odnoklassniki is closed in Ukraine. Search engines Yandex and Mail.ru. There are many different useful and interesting sites and services that can only be accessed from a specific country or countries. And all these problems are solved by connecting through a VPN.
You can read what it is in the article: what is a VPN, what is it for and how to use it. This is a kind of intermediary server. For example, if this server is located in Germany, and you connect through it, then you are physically in Germany. When you try to open a site, then all requests are no longer directly from you to the server on which the site is located, but through the VPN server.
Why is my VPN connection slower?
Everything is very simple. The distance between you and the site increases as all requests go through a VPN server located in a different country. Scheme for a normal connection: Your device - the Server on which the site is located. Scheme when connecting via VPN: Your device - VPN server - Server on which the site is located. I made a diagram for clarity:
Whichever service (program, browser add-on) you use, the speed through the VPN will always be lower. Sites will open more slowly. The only question is how much slower. There are good VPN servers that are fast and stable. But they are usually paid. If you are using a free VPN, then everything is very sad. They are heavily loaded, weak, poorly tuned. Well, who is interested in maintaining many expensive servers in different countries, keeping track of them, and providing you with free access.
If the VPN is free, then it is either a trial (with speed, time, traffic limit), or ads are shown in the application. I tried many different services when I wrote an article VPN for Chrome, Opera, Firefox and Yandex Browser. And almost all of them work just awful. Very slow. Often there is simply no connection, the server is buggy and slows down. Websites are opened every other time. If you need it to sometimes go to some site blocked in your country, then it's still powerful to use. But they are all very unstable and heavily loaded.
Perhaps the built-in free VPN in the Opera browser. But after the majority of users from Ukraine fell on him after blocking vk.com, Odnoklassniki, etc., he also often freezes. Sometimes there is simply no connection. I did not take any measurements on the speed, etc., but when using it, the download speed decreases noticeably. Still, Opera VPN is one of the best. Among the free ones.
I noticed a problem that when the server is unavailable (the icon is orange) and you turn off the VPN, then Opera just hangs. Probably already fixed.
So what to do?
If you often need access to blocked sites, you need a fast and stable connection, then buy a paid VPN. It will work well. It can be configured in a specific browser (via an add-on), computer, phone, or even a router. Just buy some of the popular ones. Don't go for cheap deals.
If you do not want to spend money on a paid VPN, then select one browser, install an extension with a free VPN in it (above in the article I gave a link to instructions for different browsers) and use this browser only to access blocked sites. And to visit unblocked sites, download files, etc., use a different browser. Of the free ones, I can only recommend the built-in VPN in Opera and friGate. If you know other good solutions, then write in the comments.
This is probably all that I wanted to tell you in response to the question about the low speed and stability of the VPN. Good luck!
