- NordVPN wants to move the conversation of the amount of server to the quality
- The number of servers is one of the main measures to measure the quality of a VPN service in today’s industry
- NordVPN thinks that suppliers should focus on factors that have a direct impact on user experience instead
NordVPN has just met the VPN industry – modifying the way suppliers are talking about VPN servers.
The number of servers has been, and is currently one of the main standard measures recognized to measure the quality of a VPN service in the industry. You may have noticed how today’s best VPN suppliers use these often enormous numbers to market the competition.
However, NordVPN believes that suppliers should rather focus on all other factors with a direct impact on the user experience, such as the bandwidth of the server, speed, reliability, etc. This is exactly why the team now seeks to move the conversation of the amount of server to quality.
“The idea that the more you have VPN servers, the better, is not very true. So we have to start talking about it,” CTO Mariad Bried in NordVPN told Techradar CTO.
VPN servers: what matters
VPN servers are a crucial part of the operation of a VPN. Whenever you connect to a service, your Internet traffic is redirected via the supplier network made up of these servers. This is how the Virtual Private Network (VPN) software usurpse your IP address.
If it is true that the supply of global coverage is an important factor in allowing users to access as much international content as possible, this will not matter if the user experience is poor.
“Think about it as roads,” said Briedis in a blog article. “More roads do not solve traffic problems if they are in poor condition or poorly planned. What matters most is to have large capacity routes and well -planned routes, so millions of cars can move without being trapped in traffic.”
Overall, according to Briedis, we must consider a VPN as an Internet service provider (ISP) because it is the service that de facto allows us to connect to the Internet.
“Do, they don’t say how many servers have around the world. What They speak, it is the capacity of the network they have, what type of quality of connection do you have, etc. “He told Techradar.
So what really makes a good VPN server? Here are the main factors, in accordance with the NordVPN team:
- Network capacity. This refers to the amount of data that the network can manage at a given time. To return to the example of the roads, the capacity of the network is the width and speed of the tracks of a highway. For example, NordVPN offers 70 TBPS for each server – but that alone is not enough.
- Bandwidth and load management. The amount of data that a server can manage is crucial, but it may be even more important to know how a supplier manages it throughout the infrastructure. To avoid overloading the server even during user tips and offer the best user experience, NordVPN guarantees the maximum load at 30% for each server.
- Speed and reliability. Having a quick and reliable VPN connection is the users the most. According to NordVPN, suppliers achieve it thanks to high network capacity and effective management management rather than the greatest number of servers.
- Georgaphic distribution. This metric refers to the spread of servers in different places. “The more strategically distributed the servers, the more the infrastructure is designed to manage global traffic, the more fluid your VPN experience,” explains Briedis.
A real breakthrough?
The VPN industry has been blocked on the number of servers because metric is easy to transmit to users. The quantity is a defined number, while the quality, as we have seen, depends on many other factors.
But, is the idea that the quality of the server is what really has a real breakthrough?
According to the main criticism of Techradar security, Mike Williams, the concept is not completely new and will not make much difference.
“The reality is that the number of servers, the overall capacity and most of the network details will not tell us much. To have a good feeling, we would need statistics depending on the use, but I doubt that anyone will tell us because they are commercially sensitive, “said Williams.
“Overall, I agree that server numbers do not mean much, but I doubt that most suppliers will replace them anytime soon,” added Williams. “We have to applaud North for trying.
Responding to Williams comments, Briedis said: “Each company has its own rules how it tries to withdraw from the VPN server, but for us, we have no more than 30% of load One of the key quality components to ensure that our user has the best quality at this location. “”
Overall, “we have to talk about the user experience in general. This is one of the main strategic areas that we can move forward.”
