Overview
Hotspot Shield built its reputation on speed. The protocol it uses was designed around throughput rather than around ticking every feature box, and on a long distance connection it consistently holds more of the underlying line speed than the general purpose protocols do. For streaming and for large downloads over a tunnel, that is the whole argument.
The free tier caps daily bandwidth and restricts you to a single location, which makes it a demonstration rather than a tool. This build applies the Premium tier, so bandwidth is unlimited, the full server list across every region is selectable, and the features that normally sit behind the subscription, split tunnelling, the kill switch and the malware filtering, are all available.
Connection and protocol
Connecting is one button with an optional location picker. The client selects the fastest server in a chosen country by default, and the manual list is there when a specific city matters. Reconnection after a network change, moving from wired to wireless or waking from sleep, is automatic and quick enough that a download usually survives it.
The proprietary protocol is the default and the reason to use this client. There is also a standard protocol option for networks that interfere with anything unusual, which trades some speed for compatibility. On a restrictive network the standard option is more likely to connect at all, so it is worth knowing where the setting is before you need it.
Kill switch, split tunnelling and filtering
The kill switch blocks all traffic if the tunnel drops rather than quietly failing back to the open connection, which is the difference between a VPN and a decoration. It should be on. The only reason to turn it off is troubleshooting, and it should go straight back on afterwards.
Split tunnelling routes chosen applications outside the tunnel while everything else stays inside it. That is how you keep a banking application or a local network device working normally while the rest of the machine is tunnelled. The malware and tracker filtering happens at the resolver level, blocking known bad domains before a connection is made, which is a light touch protection but a free one.
What a VPN does and does not do
It encrypts traffic between your machine and the exit server and presents that server's address to whatever you connect to. That protects you on a network you do not control and moves your apparent location. Those two things are genuinely useful and they are the whole feature set.
It does not make you anonymous. Anything you sign into knows exactly who you are regardless of where the connection appears to come from, browser fingerprinting works identically through a tunnel, and the exit server operator sits in the position your network provider used to. Choosing a VPN is choosing who to trust with that position rather than removing it.
What you get
- Unlimited bandwidth with no daily cap or throttling
- Full server list across every available region
- Throughput optimised proprietary protocol with a standard fallback
- Kill switch blocking traffic if the tunnel drops
- Split tunnelling by application
- Malware and tracker filtering at the resolver level
- Automatic reconnection across network changes and sleep
- Simultaneous connections without a device limit
- No account and no sign-in on launch
Inside the archive
- Hotspot Shield client installer
- Premium tier applied during setup
- Network adapter component
- Language packs for the interface list shown above
System requirements
| Operating system | Windows 10 version 22H2 or Windows 11, 64-bit |
|---|---|
| Processor | Any current x64 processor |
| Memory | 2 GB |
| Storage | 300 MB |
| Display | 1024 by 768 or higher |
| Other | Administrator rights for the network adapter install |
Installing it
- Disconnect any other VPN client and stop its service before installing.
- Run the installer as administrator and allow the network adapter to be added.
- Apply the tier step from the archive before the first launch.
- Open the client and check that the full location list is selectable rather than one entry.
- Turn the kill switch on in settings before using the connection for anything that matters.
Mirrors
| Route | Region | Note | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct, primary | Europe | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Direct, secondary | North America | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Torrent magnet | Global | Not needed at this size | Online |
Release history
- Reconnection after sleep made reliable on machines with several adapters
- Split tunnelling application list no longer clears on update
- Server list refreshed
- Standard protocol fallback added to the connection settings
- Kill switch behaviour corrected on wired to wireless handover
- Reduced idle CPU use of the background service
Questions about this release
Is the bandwidth really unlimited?
Yes. The Premium tier is applied, so there is no daily cap and no throttle after a threshold.
Which protocol should I use?
The proprietary one for speed. Switch to the standard option only if a restrictive network refuses to let the default connect.
Should the kill switch be on?
Yes, always, except while troubleshooting a connection problem. Without it a dropped tunnel silently exposes traffic.
Does it make me anonymous?
No. It encrypts the link and changes your apparent location. Anything you sign into still knows who you are.
Comments
Split tunnelling kept my printer and my banking app outside the tunnel. That was the setting I needed.
Reconnects on its own when the network flaps. Kill switch on and I stopped thinking about it.
Comments are read before they appear. If a build stops working, say so here and it gets rebuilt rather than quietly left up.
Full location list, no cap. Holding about 80 percent of my line speed across a continent, which nothing else manages.