The acronym VPN stands for Virtual Private Network or Red Virtual Privada in Spanish. Lately, you will have heard a lot about such apps through the invasive advertising of many Twitch and YouTube channels. However, this time we will not introduce one type of application, but hardware that performs the same function. What is a Hardware VPN? Are they recommended for the average user? Let’s respond to these answers.
The regionalization of content broadcast on streaming platforms means that we cannot watch many series and films in our country due to existing distribution and broadcasting agreements. However, if you’re one of those who prefer to watch content in its original version, either to practice the language or because you hate the dubbing here, then a hardware VPN is the best bet.
What is a Hardware VPN?
It is an independent device to which we connect our PC and which allows us to privately access a private network from the outside. In the case of a hardware VPN, this have its own processor and memory and generally supporting built-in functions such as cryptography and data encryption.
The key to VPNs is precisely the secure encryption of data and informationthe big difference is that by doing it on a separate device instead of our computer’s processor, we not only free it from this task, but also it is much more secure than its software counterpartsince the process is executed outside the operating system and therefore It escapes a good part of malicious applications.
When it comes to IT security, hardware VPNs add additional firewall functionality. They are therefore ideal if you work in a company that has to take care of its customers’ data. Let’s also not forget that they offer the possibility of masking the IP address and accessing content on the Internet that is prohibited in the country in which you live.
What do I need to have a hardware VPN at home?
At the home user level, it is enough that our internet router supports VPN hardware, not all brands do, however, some brands offer this service and these are the following:
- ASUS.
- AVM FRITZ!Box.
- D-Link.
- Edimax.
- NETGEAR.
- Synology.
- QNAP.
- TP link
In any case, read the technical specifications before changing your router to know if this is the model you are going to buy and in many cases you will have to enter the device options to configure it. However, once you do, you won’t have to worry anymore and you can reap the benefits of hiding your IP.
Are they better than software solutions?
Let’s be blunt with the answer, most software VPN services are advertised as apps that interact directly with a third-party provider in exchange for payment. In case the service is free then beware because nothing is free and maybe they are taking your data to finance themselves. They may not have the bad intention to use them for certain purposes, however, many of these companies are part of countries where political freedom is conspicuous by its absence. For this alone, they are much better, apart from the fact that you are not dependent on paying a monthly fee in many cases.
