I got a Netflix streaming account sometime in 2010, shortly after the company started offering it in addition to its DVD mailing service. I hadn’t seen anything like it before. I had access to hundreds of movies and TV shows, right there on my computer whenever I wanted to watch. I didn’t even have to download big files that would take up precious space on my hard drive.
A couple years ago, though, I learned that Netflix, Hulu, and similar companies don’t actually give their customers access to everything in their catalogs. If you live in the U.S., where I am, you have a different catalog than people in South America, Europe, and other places.
I was a little taken aback by that. Once I saw all of the content that I couldn’t watch, I felt that I had been cheated. Why is it that the other countries always seem to have the coolest movies? It didn’t seem right.
That’s around the time that I learned about virtual private networks. A VPN gives you a lot more control over how your computer connects to the Internet. In fact, you can set your network so that websites think you are anywhere in the world.
Suddenly, I knew that I had a solution to my problem. I just had to find the right VPN service that gave me the control I wanted at a price I could easily afford.
About Unblock Us
Unblock Us is a little different from most VPN service providers (but I’ll get into that a bit later in the Criticisms section). Unblock Us focuses on helping people access a wider range of online media no matter where they are located. If you’re looking for more channels, movies, music, and video games, then Unblock Us is probably the best way for you to access media without paying a lot of money.
Top Features of Unblock Us
Unblock Us essentially does one thing, but it does that thing very well. Once you set up your device or home router, you can change settings to make it look like you are practically anywhere in the world.
You wouldn’t believe how much content there is that you cannot watch right now. I guess it has something to do with copyright restrictions. DVD and Blu-ray discs also have different regions so you can only watch them when you have the right type of player. Online media basically does the same thing by looking at where your computer is located and deciding what content you can stream.
Once you install Unblock Us, all of that changes. It’s like having a universal DVD player. Suddenly, you can watch and listen to what you want without a bunch of unnecessary restrictions.
Huge Range of Devices
If you’re like me, you already have a streaming device that connects to your TV (I use a Roku that I’ve had for a few years). That doesn’t pose a problem with Unblock Us. The service works with practically every device I’ve ever heard of, including Roku, Apple TV, and even PlatStation.
I know that some people still prefer connecting directly to their computers. That’s fine, too. You can set up the service so that it works with your computer or mobile device.
People who have several TVs and computers in their homes will probably want to set up Unblock Us on their routers. That way, you don’t have to worry about installing software on multiple devices. No matter what you’re using, you will get the same benefits.
Unblock Us Prices
Unblock Us costs about $50 per year. That makes it one of the most affordable VPN providers that I’ve ever seen. Plus, Unblock Us is specifically made to meet the needs of people who just want easier access to more videos and music. Since you get just the services that you need instead of a lot of unnecessary extras, you don’t have to spend more money on things that you really don’t want.
Criticism of Unblock Us
I’m not sure if this is really a criticism since it’s sort of a positive feature for me. But I have seen some people complain that Unblock Us doesn’t act like a traditional VPN service.
That seems true in my experience. From what I understand, most VPN services create a virtual tunnel that you use to connect with the Internet. Everything you send and receive goes through that tunnel. On the plus side, that probably offers better security. The bad part, though, is that it could slow down your connection by adding an extra step every time you open a new page.
I spend enough money on a decent Internet connection that lets me stream movies. I do not want to limit that connection.
Unblock Us takes a different approach by only using the VPN when your computer submits a DNS request. I’ll go ahead and mention right now that I don’t know a whole lot about computers. I had never even heard of a DNS request until I started reading about Unblock Us. I don’t fully understand what it is, but I do know that your computer doesn’t submit DNS requests all the time. It only does so when it needs to access certain types of information.
If you’re looking for a full VPN service, then Unblock Us probably isn’t the best option for you. If you just want to access more media, though, it’s great.
Unblock Us Customer Support
The easiest way to contact customer support is via email. If the company has a customer service phone line, I’ve never seen the number. That’s fine by me. I’d much rather send an email than spend a bunch of time on hold.
In my experience, Unblock Us usually gets back to me within half an hour. I’ve only had to contact the company a couple times, though.
Support Center Articles
If I were a more tech-savvy person, I probably wouldn’t have had to contact Unblock Us customer service at all. The website offers hundreds of articles that can help you set up your VPN and address common problems.
You can also post public questions that other users and the support staff will answer. It’s a handy way to answer questions that a lot of people probably have.
My problem is that I just didn’t know enough to follow the directions. I guess I needed a little more handholding than most people. The customer service reps were happy to help, even though I probably sounded like a real dummy. They just answered my questions as simply as possible. Once someone explained it to me, I didn’t have any trouble fixing the problems on my own.
Customer Support Reviews
Unblock Us has a website feature that I’ve never seen before. When you visit the customer support back, you actually view the last 100 customer ratings. Now, you might think that this is some kind of gimmick. It would be easy for a company to tell you that you’re seeing real customer ratings while it actually gives you cherry picked reviews that make the service look better than it actually is. I do not think that is the case with Unblock Us.
When you check out the customer service page, you will see that several people report that their experiences were “not so good.” I’d say that the negative reviews are usually about ten percent. I’ve worked in customer service before, and, to tell you the truth, a 10 percent disapproval rating isn’t that bad. If other companies were honest with their users, you would see that a lot of them fall short of customer expectations.
Every time I have looked at the site, there have also been a handful of customers who rate the support services as “just OK.” This seems pretty realistic to me. A lot of people just want a basic problem solved. They’re not blown away when they get the service they need. They’re not going to say “great” simply because they had to contact customer service in the first place.
Pros of Using Unblock Us
- Offers a free week of trial service (without a credit card)
- Strong customer services
- Very affordable
- Expands your movie, music, and gaming options
- Lightweight and quick
Cons of Using Unblock Us
- Offers a limited VPN service
Conclusion
I don’t have a great background in technology, so I hope that I’ve explained this well here. To put it as simply as I can, Unblock Us will let you access more content online. That’s basically all you need to know. Well, that and Unblock Us is really inexpensive. At about $5 per month, anyone can afford this.
If you think that you deserve better access to movies, music, video games, and other content, then Unblock Us is almost certainly the right option for you. If you want traditional VPN services, you should probably look elsewhere. As long as you are a media junky like me, though, you will love what Unblock Us has to offer.
