One of the few downsides to using a VPN service is the potential for drops in speed, which can be particularly frustrating if your connection isn’t particularly fast in the first place.
However, VPN platform IPVanish is now aiming to address this potential sticking point with a major overhaul to its network of data centers.
According to a blog post published by the firm, the latest generation of IPVanish hardware combines AMD Epyc CPUs with Intel XXV710 network cards, delivering 25Gbps of connectivity and a 2.5x improvement in throughput capacity per server network.
For comparison, fellow major player NordVPN recently also announced a significant server network upgrade that could deliver speeds of 10Gbps, markedly slower than the reported speeds of its rival.
IPVanish VPN upgrade
The new IPVanish hardware was rolled out to a selection of its data centers over the course of 2020, but the firm is now ready to double down on its efforts.
“IPVanish is thrilled to enter 2021 delivering an improved network, and we’re not stopping there,” said Wayne MacLaurin, SVP Technology at IPVanish.
“This year, further developments are planned as IPVanish continually elevates performance of our network and evolves our infrastructure to meet the demands of our customers.”
MacLaurin also confirmed that WireGuard will roll out across the IPVanish network over the next few months, which should result in additional performance gains for end users.
WireGuard is a much “lighter” protocol, designed to offer the same levels of encryption at greater speeds, and has emerged as a viable alternative to more taxing OpenVPN and IPsec protocols.
Other VPN providers have steered clear, however, sceptical of WireGuard’s ability to deliver equivalent levels of protection.
As ever, selecting the right VPN is about prioritising the features most important to you (e.g. speed, encryption, breadth of server network etc.). If speed is your number one concern, though, it appears you won’t be short of options in 2021.
