U.S.-based stalwart IPVanish is widely regarded as one of the best VPN services on the market, and its recent upgrade from 10Gbps to 25Gbps on a large number of its major servers is shoring up that reputation.
Upgraded locations include a number of US cities, the UK, Germany, France, Korea, Singapore, Sweden, Australia, Poland and Japan, which means users in these areas — and anyone else using these servers — should have faster, more reliable connections.
Back in February 2020 IPVanish began rolling out these changes in a single U.S. location, but we're pleased to report that scope has been significantly widened to allow users worldwide to benefit — and we can only see more global servers getting upgrades in the months to follow.
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What's the difference between 10Gbps and 25Gbps?
As evidenced by NordVPN's rollout of 10Gbps servers last month, it's imperative for VPN providers to keep up with developing technology as users become more aware of what to look for in a VPN — and what their current provider might be missing.
In simple terms, a server equipped with a 25Gbps network card (in IPVanish's case, an Intel XXV710) can transmit 2.5 times more data than one with a 10Gbps card can. However, while this is no bad thing and certainly an upgrade worth making, this won't necessarily translate into doubled connection speeds.
Essentially, allowing more throughput with more powerful network cards is like building a wider road — unless the cars were being slowed down because of congestion, they won't be going any faster.
That said, however, what this upgrade should ensure is that IPVanish's servers will be less prone to overloading, and that each server should deliver peak speeds at all times, no matter how busy the 'road' is.
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Are rivals upgrading?
IPVanish isn't the first to announce an upgrade of its servers, but it's certainly boasting the most impressive numbers.
As mentioned above, NordVPN has recently upgraded from 1Gbps to 10Gbps servers, and Private Internet Access is also running 10Gbps servers on all of its 'NextGen' locations.
So, no provider can yet match IPVanish's massive 25Gbps throughput, but it's worth noting that NordVPN is one of the very best fast VPN services on the market, and the searing speeds we saw in our testing were delivered even before the full rollout of its upgraded servers.
What's next for IPVanish?
IPVanish isn't resting on its laurels, and the provider is seeking to roll out the new-ish WireGuard protocol across its network early this year. If we're honest, we expect this to make more of an impact on connection speeds than the server upgrades.
However, one thing's for sure — with its servers' 25Gbps capabilities, IPVanish has thoroughly futureproofed its network for the next few years at least.
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