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This app works by connecting to a VPN. From experience, user experience on these kind of apps using a VPN is pretty poor (for example, ad blockers) I believe k
by EZ-E 8y ago
This app works by connecting to a VPN. From experience, user experience on these kind of apps using a VPN is pretty poor (for example, ad blockers)
I believe keeping VPN connected drains the battery because some of the device's chips cannot "sleep"
A VPN-based app also disconnects when going from Wi-FI to cellular.
Worse, when going from cellular to WiFi (ie: going back home) with a VPN on, the iPhone just keeps using the mobile network until the VPN is disconnected
These apps usually try to auto-connect to VPN but when your connection is spotty, it becomes a very annoying, you have to kill the app, disconnect the vpn manually etc
As user you're left manually putting the VPN on/off constantly if you're on the move
It's definitively not a "set and forget thing". I wish Apple could give a way for ad-blockers and this kind of apps to function normally without using a VPN as a crutch
- Gaelan 8y agoIt’s not a “real” VPN. I’m not sure exactly how much it does, but everything but the actual DNS queries happen on-device, with other network connections not touching CloudFlare servers.
- dzek69 8y agoIt just acts as both server and client. The issues described still apply
- elithrar 8y agoNot quite. There’s no VPN tunnel - no IPSec tunnel is being set up, even on loopback. The reason the “VPN” icon appears is because VPN profiles are how you override iOS network settings on unmanaged devices: which can include just DNS. Any time a profile is ‘active’, the icon appears. You could generate your own unsigned profile to do the same, if you were so inclined.
- nothrabannosir 8y agoI’ve been using openvpn on iOS for about a year, and this 1.1.1.1 app for a day now, and I can guarantee that most of the connectivity issues described are not true. [edit: for me, of course. sorry, didn't mean to discredit parent comment like that. just wanted to add my perspective.] - it automatically switches networks, both to and from WiFi - it does not disconnect when switching - the 1.1.1.1 app does not make anything more spotty or unreliable; it’s just DNS. Openvpn yes, but this app clearly not. As for the battery issue: could very well be true, I have no idea how to test it. The difference between this app and an actual VPN are clear from using it.
- aneidon 8y agoYou’re right, that’s because (I think) this is an “on-demand” VPN, which basically only connects as needed, and allows for switching between Wi-Fi and cellular. It also shouldn’t drain more battery, since it’s not keeping the connection alive when the device is asleep.
- philamonster 8y agoI wish there was an option in OpenVPN to not use connection on SSID/network xyz. I have static IP at home and use dyndns for DNS resolution with service specific subdomains. Then, using forwarder at home I create split DNS to point to local device for public domain. It currently doesn't work as I combined domain for VPN and another service out of laziness after moving VPN to physical box. All that said, I don't need to VPN while at home to home network and prefer a little more granularity instead wifi or cell only. I believe this could be where battery drain would come from, at least in my case as the client constantly retries at home though it will never resolve the proper host internally cause I am lazy admin.
- jlgosse 8y ago'the 1.1.1.1 app does not make anything more spotty or unreliable; it’s just DNS. Openvpn yes, but this app clearly not.' Not entirely true, in my experience it really fucks with your ability to connect to public hotspots (ex. airports, airplanes, trains, coffee shops) which took me a while to realize
- donogh 8y agoHaving tried it, my biggest gripe is the DNS query log stored in the app. This should be optional.
- zackbloom 8y agoIt can be a privacy feature. It allows you to see exactly what the apps on your device are connecting to.