Invizbox Review & Test 2021 - Keep This in Mind Before Buying

When mentioning VPNs, the first association is usually an app you need to download, install, and run to get a safe and private connection. InvizBox 2, on the other hand, is a stylish and compact round box-style VPN router that creates safe and encrypted networks, making it easy to protect all devices at the same time.

After using it for close to a month and running extensive tests, I can say my general experience with InvizBox 2 is positive.

There are a couple of different purchasing options. There’s InvizBox 2, the router for home and office, which I’ll talk about today. There’s also its sibling, InvizBox Go, which is a smaller portable router you can carry to stay protected on the go.

You can order the device only, preconfigured to one of the 7 compatible VPN providers. Or, you can purchase the device together with a monthly or yearly VPN subscription package. It is powered by the excellent Windscribe, so you don’t need to buy a separate VPN subscription.

It offers good connection speeds and stable networks. It supports torrenting and can unblock many sites. It blocks ads and offers additional parental controls. Moreover, it’s compatible with all devices, and there’s no limit to how many devices you can connect.

The fast and easy setup makes InvizBox suitable even for non-tech users. InvizBox is plug-and-play. Just connect it to a power socket and your WiFi router. It will automatically create two VPN WiFi networks – 2.4GHz and 5GHz. All you have to do is connect your devices to one of these hotspots and start surfing safely and anonymously.

If you are more tech-savvy or want to get the most of your VPN router, there’s an administrator interface that lets you customize your network. Of course, there are many areas where InvizBox could use improvement, and they already have some extra features in the works.

But if you are looking for an affordable yet effective way to protect your home or office, I’d recommend InvizBox. They have a 30-day money-back guarantee so that you can take it for a test run. But if a VPN router is not the right choice for you, there are other top-of-the-line VPN services compatible with all PC, Mac, and mobile devices.

InvizBox Features — Updated in July 2021

Streaming — InvizBox Unblocks Most Platforms, Including Netflix and BBC iPlayer

InvizBox 2, when powered by their own InvizBox VPN, is an excellent choice if you are looking to unblock geo-restricted streaming services. They offer a selection of streaming-specific servers in the US, UK, Canada, and Japan. Throughout testing, I was able to unblock Netflix, BBC iPlayer, and ITV Hub.

Unblocked: Netflix US, Netflix UK, Netflix Japan, Netflix Canada, BBC iPlayer

I tested InvizBox’s ability to unblock different streaming platforms by connecting to servers in different countries and was positively surprised with the results. A US server allowed me to unblock Netflix US on all devices. I got the same results when testing the UK, Canadian, Australian, and even the Netherlands servers. Throughout testing, I was able to also unblock BBC iPlayer, and ITV Hub.

And I was positively surprised by the streaming speeds! I got speeds of over 30 Mbps and could easily stream in 4K. The speed didn’t drop even when I connected a second device to the same VPN network and streamed in HD. There was no lagging nor buffering during streaming. Everything was running smoothly on desktop and mobile devices. And I have to admit that InvizBox’s claim that the device can encrypt all the devices on the network simultaneously and remain fast proved true for me.

I got these results using the default VPN service. The streaming capabilities and speeds you get are highly dependent on the VPN you’re using. If you don’t want to use the InvizBox VPN service, you can connect your own VPN as the device is compatible with numerous other VPN providers. At the moment, you can set up the device for ExpressVPN, IPVanish, and My Expat Network.

Blocked: Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, YouTube

Unfortunately, InvizBox is not all-powerful when it comes to platform unblocking, which was slightly disappointing. Their tech support confirmed that I should be able to unblock platforms like Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+, and YouTube, but I had no luck. Perhaps choosing different servers might have given different results.

But if you get impatient like me and don’t want to endlessly connect to different servers till you find one that works, you can try using InvizBox with a different VPN provider or ditch the router all together.

Speeds — Fast When Using One Device or Multiple Networks

Since this is a router, a drop in speed is expected when you have more than two devices. Yet, InvizBox 2 surprised me. Once you create multiple hotspots and spread your devices across them, InvizBox can be fast enough for pretty much anything. I could browse the Internet easily, stream video on multiple devices, even in HD and 4K simultaneously. It was also fast enough for torrenting and gaming. In my book, it passed the speed tests. (There’s a catch, but keep reading.)

To check InvizBox’s speeds, I first started with browsing and streaming. Browsing went smoothly. Next, I connected several devices to the network and set them to stream Netflix. The results from my short speed test were as expected. The speed was highest, both on mobile and desktop, when I wasn’t using a VPN. When using InvizBox, the speed dropped slightly. My Internet connection is not the fastest. My usual download speed is around 45Mbps with a 12Mbps upload speed. When I connected to a US VPN server, it slightly dropped to 35Mbps download speed and 10Mbps upload, which is more than enough for HD and even 4K streaming. So, my streaming kept running smoothly.

Since I already tested streaming on two devices simultaneously and got good results, I went a step further and connected two additional devices to the same network. And that’s when I saw the biggest drop in speed, which I also expected. Yes, the speed was still decent and above 15Mbps. But this is not really a problem since you can create up to four VPN hotspots and attach different devices to different networks. So, once I moved each of the three devices to its own VPN network, the speeds improved.

While your speed will largely depend on your Internet connection’s speeds and the VPN service you are using, bear in mind that InvizBox 2 supports over 100Mbps at peak. But not much more than that. If you want even higher speeds and have an internet connection faster than 100Mbps, I’d suggest you upgrade to InvizBox 2 Pro as it’s capable of over 400Mbps at peak.

Are InvizBox’s Speeds Fast Enough for Gaming? Yes, with InvizBox You Can Enjoy Your Favorite Online Games

If you like to play online games, InvizBox 2 won’t get in the way. Using InvizBox VPN, I tried playing some casual online games, and I didn’t experience any issues. But with speeds varying between 20Mbps to over 60Mbps, you should be able to play any online multiplayer games like PUBG, Fortnite, Dota, and World of Warcraft.

If you want to enjoy demanding online games, the best way to ensure your speed remains constant is to create a dedicated VPN network for gaming. Then, hide the hotspot from the network so no one else can connect to it.

Of course, your gaming experience with InvizBox may vary depending on the VPN service you use. But if you are a hard-core gamer and want the best possible experience, perhaps you can use another VPN provider as InvizBox is compatible with some of the best gaming VPNs.

Server Network — Various Network Options and Stable Connections

InvizBox VPN is powered by Windscribe. The default InvizBox VPN has access to over 180 servers worldwide, making it possible to set your location to any of 60 different countries. When testing, I was able to get a safe and stable connection to each one of them.

Unlike most VPN routers that are inflexible and allow you to choose only one location that will be applied to all your devices, InvizBox 2 is very versatile and flexible and offers more than just VPN services.

Due to its dual-band 2.4/5GHz radio, InvizBox supports creating up to 8 networks, each assigned to a separate network SSID. With InvizBox, you can have:

• up to four simultaneous VPN connections
• two clear (unencrypted) networks
• one Tor network
• one local WiFi network (with no Internet access)

And you don’t have to choose between creating an encrypted, clear, or local network. Since you can set up four networks, they can be of different types, and each can connect multiple devices.

This means that you can set up 4 different VPN hotspots connected to other VPN server locations, and you can even choose the specific servers. InvizBox is set up to connect your first VPN network to a server closest to your location – this is set based on your shipping address. For each frequency, 2.4GHz or 5GHz, you can have up to two hotspots and use different passwords for each hotspot on the same network.

Moreover, you can make the hotspot hidden so other devices can’t detect it, and you can also isolate the devices connected to the network so they can’t communicate with each other. This is great if you want to have different networks for different purposes, or you want every family member to have their own network.

Yet, this comes at an expense. If you are changing the settings/location of one network, all InvizBox networks will crash for two to three seconds. It may look benign, but if some connected devices are streaming video, the loss of connection will cause some lagging or buffering, which is annoying. So be careful when you’re reconfiguring the networks.

The clear or “open” networks, on the other hand, are basically normal, unencrypted hotspots. As there’s no encryption, network speeds will be faster. This makes the clear networks an excellent choice for general browsing where you don’t need additional safety and privacy, or streaming, provided you don’t need to overcome any geo-restrictions.

With InvizBox, you’ll also be able to set up a Tor hotspot which allows you to direct your traffic over the Tor network. Tor is excellent for staying anonymous. But due to the heavy encryption, it’s especially slow. I admire the option, but for me, it was a pass.

Last but not least, you can also have a local network that provides access only to local devices but doesn’t have the Internet connected. You can use this network to connect your printers, home media servers, or smart home devices (that don’t need internet).

Security – Safe and Secure Connection at All Times

InvizBox provides a completely safe and secure VPN service. This is notable from the first moment you receive the device, as credentials are not shared electronically. Each InvizBox device comes with a unique login and password printed on the bottom of the router. The routers are assembled in China, but to ensure the security of each one, InvizBox flashes the firmware of each router in the Ireland offices before they are sent.

Connecting to the server for the first time might take some time, but it’s stable and completely secure once the connection is established. InvizBox has a strict no-logging policy to secure personal data. But as routers normally keep logs, I was still unsure whether the company might see the record of my data.

Luckily, the InvizBox team give me a detailed answer that confirms they do not store data:

“The only time your InvizBox router connects to the InvizBox hosted service is to receive updates. The firmware updates are also securely delivered over a hidden Tor service; meaning there is no way that InvizBox can identify the device and no data is sent to the update server.”

To ensure maximum safety, security, and anonymity, InvizBox uses the Tor network, allowing unlimited data and excellent speeds. And, as their customer support confirmed – the router updates automatically and securely over the Tor network. This is excellent because your firmware will always get the latest security patches that protect you from potential bugs.

It is equipped with 256-bit AES encryption, an ad blocker, and a built-in kill switch that will disconnect your internet if your VPN connection is interrupted unexpectedly. This feature is always on and applies to all devices connected to the router.

If you are using the default VPN service – InvizBox VPN – you can rest assured that you also have IPv6 and DNS leak protection. This is because Windscribe powers the VPN service, and they claim that the IPv6 connectivity is firewalled at the client, and all DNS requests are made through the tunnel, and domains are resolved at the VPN server level. This overrides the ISP DNS, which means you can’t be traced. But if you use another VPN provider, you should double-check if they provide the same safety and security features.

When it comes to switching protocols and ports, there’s not much choice. InvizBox uses OpenVPN on port 443, a configuration considered the standard for home routers. For most users, the lack of protocols and port options is not really a problem.

Privacy – Total Privacy and Anonymity

How private and anonymous your connection is depends on the VPN service you use. But, when it comes to InvizBox VPN, you can rest assured that you will be completely anonymous. And this applies to every device connected to a VPN hotspot.

If you are still uncertain and want an added layer of protection, you can create a Tor network, and all traffic will then pass through it. But as I already mentioned, while Tor is really good for keeping your privacy, don’t expect good speeds when using it.

In addition to setting up secure VPN networks, you can refine your safety and privacy options some more. In the Admin panel, in the Profiles section, you can fine-tune settings and create different configurations – Profiles. Once you assign a Profile to a network, it will affect all connected devices. You can mix and match the different profiles with your networks. And you can even assign profiles to specific devices.

InvizBox has a built-in ad blocker and malware blocker. Moreover, it has predefined customization options and parental controls. Parental controls let you block website access, for example, to adult content, gambling, and fake news websites.

Unfortunately, setting up the networks and the profiles is not intuitive and straightforward for everyone. The FAQs and the help pages are shorter than I’d want them to be and limited. But it’s not that difficult. After a few minutes of clicking and exploring the Admin panel, you’ll figure it out.

Torrenting — Fast and Safe Torrent Downloads

The InvizBox router is an excellent choice if you are looking to download torrents. Their default VPN, powered by Windscribe, allows torrenting on most servers in its network. Additionally, InvizBox is fast enough to enable good download times so that you can torrent safely and anonymously at all times.

Your InvizBox’s torrenting abilities depend on your VPN provider. But almost all VPNs support torrenting, so it shouldn’t be an issue. If you use ExpressVPN, for example, you might get more server choices and faster download speeds.

Does InvizBox Work in China? Yes, with Certain VPNs

I can’t answer this with a yes or no. InvizBox does ship the router to China. But even though the default VPN should technically work in China, it’s still debatable whether your InvizBox 2 will work.

So far, most VPNs that are compatible with InvizBox, including ExpressVPN and ProtonVPN, will allow you to establish a secure connection and bypass the Great Firewall and unblock western websites, streaming platforms, and apps. But if you use another VPN provider, you might not be able to do so.

Simultaneous Device Connections – Connect as Many Devices as You Need

The router makes a single connection to the VPN, so there is no ‘maximum connected devices’ limit, which means you can connect as many devices as you need. In fact, you can create different networks and connect multiple devices. You can have a local network for your home devices that don’t need internet access, another network with strict parental control for your children’s devices, and a VPN network you’d use for work, and another VPN network for streaming and torrenting.

But, keep in mind that connecting more than three devices on one network at once will cause a drop in speed. No, the slow down won’t cause lags or interruptions, but there will be a decline in speed. Depending on what you do at the moment, you might not even feel it.

Device Compatibility – Stay Connected on All Devices

Since InvizBox 2 is a router that broadcasts standard WiFi, connecting any device capable of WiFi should connect. I tested this with laptops running Win8 and Win10, Android smartphones, MacBook, iPhone, a Chromebook, and a smart TV. I also managed to connect a printer to a local network.

In addition to securing all devices while you’re at home, InvizBox allows you to use your VPN subscription on any device even if you are not close to your InvizBox 2 router by using OpenVPN. Set-up guides for iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux are available in the Helpdesk area of the website under VPN Service. They are well-written and easy to follow.