When it comes to online privacy and security, one of the topics that
we always emphasize on is using a VPN service. Using a VPN, you can make sure that your online privacy is secured
as you can browse the web anonymously. In case you are looking for a
VPN service for a similar reason, you should not really be looking for
the free stuff. A paid VPN service is what would be ideal in such a
situation. You might have to compromise on speed and privacy breach
might also be an issue. Read our piece on the dark side of free VPN for the risk attached that comes with these free VPNs.
However, at times, you just want to bypass the country restriction
while trying out a new service on Android, or you just wish to install
an app not yet available in your country. In these scenarios buying a
VPN service doesn’t really makes sense. A free VPN app would be ideal to
bypass these restrictions. But here also you should be choosing a
service which is comparatively secure and trustworthy.
So here are 5 free VPN services that can help you bypass country restriction on Android and at the same time protect privacy.
1. Betternet for Android
Betternet for Android
is one of the best free VPN services for Android. The app has some ads
to support its free services, but the ads are not at all irritating.
From the homepage, you press the Connect button and wait for the connection to establish.
One thing to note here is that you cannot select the server/country
you wish to connect to manually. The app will auto-connect you to the
best server using a load balancer. Most of the times, it’s US or Canada,
but at times, you might also connect to servers at Singapore,
Netherlands, and the UK. We have already covered all the details about the app in one of our previous posts which you can have a look at for more details.
2. FlinchVPN
FinchVPN
is another free VPN service for Android that you can try. You need to
create a free account and after successful activation, you will get a
monthly bandwidth of 3 GB. FlinchVPN allows you to select the
server/location from US, Canada, and France.
There are no ads in the app and as long as you are using the free
servers and don’t need more than 3 GB of free data in a month, FinchVPN
will work like a charm. However, for just $1 per month, you can get
access to many fast servers and extend monthly data limit to 25 GB. For
those who would like unlimited data, it would just be $3 per month.
3. Hideman VPN
Hideman VPN
gives you a long list of countries to choose from even in the free mode
and you don’t need to create an account to start the VPN service. Also,
if you are looking for a VPN to download torrents, Hideman can help you
with that. There are a few free servers which support torrents and
there will be an icon next to the server which will denote the support
for them.
You get a few free hours on the app and you can share links for the
apps and do a few other things to get the time extended. For paid
membership, there are hourly packages available for users who would like
to have a reliable VPN service for just a few hours.
4. Hotspot Shield Free VPN Proxy
Hotspot Shield Free VPN Proxy,
unlike the other apps, give you the power to start the VPN service
automatically when a specific app is launched on your Android. This is
apart from the usual overall VPN service that it provides. The advantage
of using Hotspot Shield on just a few apps will provide more security
and privacy.
In the free plan, you can change different countries/servers, but
there is some time limit and also the app has ads. However, there is an
option to upgrade to monthly and yearly elite plans to get better speed
and an ad-free experience.
5. Tunnel Bear
Tunnel Bear
is one of the most trusted names when it comes to VPN and if your
monthly usage is anywhere less than 1.5 GB, you can trust this service
even on blindfolds. There is a long list of servers/countries to choose
from even in a free account and there are no ads in the app.
You get 500 MB of free usage every month on the limited account and a
tweet asking Tunnel Bear for free data will give you another 1 GB of
free data every month. The interface is one of the best when compared to
other VPN apps available for Android. If you are looking for a premium
VPN plan, I would definitely recommend this one because of its speed and
security. Furthermore, if you’re looking for Android only plans, they
have it at cheaper rates.
Conclusion
So those were some of the top free VPN services you can install on
Android to bypass country restrictions. I would again suggest you to use
these free services on a limited basis and look for a secure, paid
service if you want to round the clock security and privacy.
Sharing any type of content within a group can be quite a pain
sometimes and many times, issues go unresolved and content gets
inadvertently ignored due to the nature of the group dynamic. This is
ironic since one of the points of being in a group and using apps for groups is to be more effective. Any tool that can make this process easier is welcome. Spaces… | ShutterstockGoogle Spaces,
announced on May 16th, 2016 represents Google’s effort at improving the
small group dynamic. With Spaces, you can easily locate the content you
wish to share from directly within the app and share it with the people
in your Spaces.
But why should you try Spaces over other services that allow for group sharing? Let’s explore this.
Note: Spaces is available on Android, iOS as well as on the web.
You don’t need to worry about copy and pasting links to media that you want to share. The app has a built-in browser as well as YouTube built right in, which means that content can be shared from right within the app without too much effort.
Images from your gallery can be used to make posts and there is always the option of making a simple text post.
2. Interactive Nature
Ok, you can easily share content but what about feedback from persons
who your Space is shared with? Well, each post made in a space allows
for an interactive chat between persons in the Space.
The interface for commenting on posts is identical to a typical chat
interface. Also, a snapshot of the post is always visible at the top of a
discussion which helps to keep things focused.
3. Keep Track of Activity Easily
In a group setting, things can move fairly quickly at times and it
may be difficult to keep up with what’s going on. Luckily Spaces’ Activity tab highlights recent activity. This way, users don’t have to wonder what they missed.
This feature also aids in the locating of content.
4. Easily Find Posts With Search
As you continue to make posts, it will become increasingly difficult
to find older content. The search feature of Spaces allows for you to
carry out a search across all of your Spaces. You are not limited to just searching within one space at a time.
Conclusion
The features of Spaces combine to give the app a more casual feel.
This app is not particularly geared towards business users but would
probably be more suitable for a group of persons who share a hobby.
Posts can be created quickly and feedback can be clearly communicated. Spaces streamlines the group sharing dynamic quite well.
Although there has been some talk that Spaces is just a rehash of Google+ Communities,
this is not necessarily the case. Google+ doesn’t have the personal
appeal of a Space. A Community is better suited for providing
information to a more general audience while a Space is suited to a more
closely knit group of persons.
It will be interesting to see how this app is accepted across the
board and if it survives in the long run or is eventually banished to
the scrap heap despite its potential. We shall see.
Whether a big milestone in your family’s life is coming up like a child going off to school,
or perhaps you’ve been through a personal scare, protection and
security for you and your loved ones ought to be a real priority.
Fortunately, we’re surrounded by technology that can keep us safer than
ever before. Thanks to several great apps, your iPhone is capable of
being a life saver. These apps can give you peace of mind about friends, family and yourself | Photo: ymgerman / Shutterstock
Whether you need an app to make sure you can quickly and safely get
in touch with emergency services or just need an app to monitor your
friends and family’s well being, we’ve got you covered. Check out these
iPhone apps that can truly help save a life if need be.
1. Patronus
Patronus is a phenomenal iPhone app that focuses on your own personal
safety by providing a quick way to get in touch with emergency services
at the press of a button. Unfortunately as phones have evolved, doing
something as simple as placing a phone call has become a multi-step process, including dialing 911 for emergencies in the U.S. (The service also coming to Alaska and Hawaii by the end of 2016.)
Patronus asks you to provide quick information about yourself like your name, email, gender and age. Then it places a large Request Help
button at the top of the app. This connects to the Patronus emergency
center which then automatically connects to 911 on your behalf. During
the phone call, the app helpfully shows you your current location just
in case you’re in foreign territory.
4 Lifesaving iPhone Apps to Keep You and Your Loved Ones Safe
Whether a big milestone in your family’s life is coming up like a child going off to school,
or perhaps you’ve been through a personal scare, protection and
security for you and your loved ones ought to be a real priority.
Fortunately, we’re surrounded by technology that can keep us safer than
ever before. Thanks to several great apps, your iPhone is capable of
being a life saver. These apps can give you peace of mind about friends, family and yourself | Photo: ymgerman / Shutterstock
Whether you need an app to make sure you can quickly and safely get
in touch with emergency services or just need an app to monitor your
friends and family’s well being, we’ve got you covered. Check out these
iPhone apps that can truly help save a life if need be.
1. Patronus
Patronus is a phenomenal iPhone app that focuses on your own personal
safety by providing a quick way to get in touch with emergency services
at the press of a button. Unfortunately as phones have evolved, doing
something as simple as placing a phone call has become a multi-step process, including dialing 911 for emergencies in the U.S. (The service also coming to Alaska and Hawaii by the end of 2016.)
Patronus asks you to provide quick information about yourself like your name, email, gender and age. Then it places a large Request Help
button at the top of the app. This connects to the Patronus emergency
center which then automatically connects to 911 on your behalf. During
the phone call, the app helpfully shows you your current location just
in case you’re in foreign territory.
Additionally, Patronus has an “On My Way” feature. It lets you select
emergency contacts, pick a location you’re traveling to, and when you
arrive there, the app will automatically notify them by email or text
message that you’ve arrived safely.
The Patronus service costs $4.99 per month but has the potential to seriously save lives.
2. Safetrek
Safetrek is another monthly service that takes a different approach
to personal safety. If you’re perhaps walking around in a sketchy
neighborhood or college campus at night and don’t feel comfortable by
yourself, open the Safetrek app. Just press and hold the green button
that says Hold until safe.
Once you feel safe, release the button and punch in the 4-digit PIN
you set up when you first launch the app. If you don’t do this within
10 seconds, Safetrek notifies police of your location and they are then
free to pursue this as an emergency. Safetrek works in the United States and requires a $2.99 per month subscription.
3. Parachute
Unlike Patronus and Safetrek, Parachute relies on your own emergency
contacts solely for support. The app has a simple UI with one purpose:
broadcast live video and audio of your location to the emergency
contacts you choose.
Press and hold the button to begin recording live video. Your
emergency contacts get a phone call and a live link where they can watch
what’s happening and decide whether or not to take action.
Important: The live video does not get sent to emergency services, nor do they get notified at all by you or the app directly.
A reassuring feature is that Parachute allows you to record while
keeping your screen black, so if you’re in a potentially dangerous
situation, no one around has to know you’re recording. You can choose to
turn the camera view on if you wish, though. Parachute is free and works anywhere.
4. Find My Friends
You might be more familiar with Find My Friends,
which is Apple’s own app for tracking the location of family and
friends in your contacts. But what’s especially helpful for safety and
security within the app are the notification options to find out when
your friends have arrived at a location or left one.
First, choose some contacts to send your location to indefinitely and request a location from them by tapping Add at the top. Once you’re friends within the app, tap their name and choose Notify Me.
You can choose to get a notification when the contact leaves their
current location or arrives at a different location that you specify.
This will let you know when they’re safe in their travels. They can also
get notifications about you if they please. Find My Friends is totally free and works anywhere.
