Hola is intended to provide access to blocked websites by establishing a VPN connection to the Internet. Most services of this kind re-enroute traffic through their servers. Hola does this but also establishes VPN routes using other peers in the network. In addition, since the data is encrypted, it is quite difficult for others to know what URLs you are visiting. Thus, it is effective for not only bypassing local ISP rules but also accessing geo-restricted sites.
The program is installed on your system and runs from the Tray. Moreover, it also adds VPN extensions to Opera and Chrome that connect through their servers only. The tool is very easy to use and you just need to select a country and start the service.
The best advantage of Hola is derived from the hybrid nature of its network. In the first place, routing traffic through peers makes blocking IPs quite difficult. Besides, it is more environmentally friendly as it saves part of the energy normally used by powerful servers. Secondly, the program is not completely dependent on your peers to provide the service because standard browser navigation is done through traditional VPN architecture. On the other hand, traffic rerouting also happens through your machine, which means that it may affect your connection speed.
All in all, Hola is a good alternative to other VPN services. The service is available for free but it is possible that you can be used as a peer. To avoid that and its implications, you can subscribe at quite an affordable price.
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