Review of UnoDNS, an intelligent DNS service from UnoTelly
Are you looking for a free DNS solution that will allow you to watch Netflix and other region restricted channels from anywhere in the world without any location limitations? Try UnoDNS, a smart DNS service that allows you to watch programs without regional restrictions.
We recently moved from the USA to India, after living more than 10 years there. During our pretty long stay in the USA, we had developed an ecosystem that made life very comfortable. When we decided to move to our home country, we very well knew and were prepared to adapt to a new ecosystem in the new location. Education, driving, lifestyle etc were some of the changes we were prepared to cope with. However, one of the unexpected comforts we lost was access to some of the digital channels our family enjoyed most in the USA. Our entire family enjoyed watching movies in Netflix at a very affordable cost. However, after we moved to India, when we try to access Netflix, that is what we get:
How to watch Netflix from India
Well, even though Netflix shows "Sorry, Netflix is not available in your country yet", I knew there exist many solutions. Using a VPN service is one of the easiest ways to access region limited websites. Typically, sites like Netflix block access from India by looking at the ip address. If you can hide your real ip address and use a USA ip address, you will be able to get to Netflix and continue to enjoy the great movies. That is exactly what the VPN services will do - they will connect you to another network, giving you an ip address from that network. VPN services act as a middleman between you and the site you want to access, which is Netflix in this case. If you are in India and use a VPN service from USA, Netflix will think you are part of a network in USA because of the US ip address you obtain from the VPN service.
One of the disadvantages of using a VPN service is, it will slowdown the access since the VPN acts as a layer between you and the websites you are accessing.
UnoDNS is a service from UnoTelly, which allows you to access the geo blocked channels like Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer etc from anywhere in the world. It has many advantages over traditional VPN services since it gives you the best performance by directly streaming the channels without the middle layer. Review of UnoDNS - the DNS solution
To begin with, UnoDNS is a DNS based service, not a VPN. What this service does in few words, is that it will let you access blocked channels like Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer and more, from anywhere you are with the press of a button. You can find the complete list of supported channels here.
In short, UnoDNS removes geo-blocks imposed by streaming sites and allows you to watch these geo-restricted channels regardless of where you live.
The basic difference between UnoDNS and traditional VPN services is that by using this service, you will have a much faster connection for streaming video compared to VPN services. That's because unlike VPNs and other solutions, with UnoDNS service there is no "middle-man" and as a result, you can stream directly from the streaming media station (ie. Netflix, BBC iPlayer) with your full internet speed. Despite that, with this service, users can stream content on almost any internet connected device(tablets, Game consoles, Smart TV's and many more), in contrast of VPN's that the majority of them can be used only on PC and Mac.
Advantages of UnoDNS
UnoDNS has several advantages over other existing solutions to watch streaming media from various geo locations:
1. Offers a faster streaming compared to traditional VPN solutions
2. Support for a wide range of media devices like smartphones, smart TV, computers, tablet PC, home theatres etc. Most VPN solutions support only computers.
3. Easy setup and configuration: Once configured, you can continue to watch streaming videos from your favorite site without having to reconfigure each time you try to access it.
Since UnoDNS does not use a VPN to stream the videos, you can enjoy the videos in full speed just like you are directly accessing them. This is one of the best advantages of UnoDNS over traditional VPN services.
How does it work?
It is not a VPN, instead, it uses proprietary DirectDNS technology to make some network packet level envelop readdressing to make the receivers think the web request is originated from another geo location. For the specific data envelops that target the selected streaming sources, UnoDNS will transparently divert it through a custom tunnel created between the device and the streaming source. All other data transfer will be untouched and so will not affect other network traffic at all. The technology behind UnoDNS service is pretty sophisticated but the good news is, users will never have to worry about those underlying technology. UnoDNS will take care of all those dirty work for you while you continue to watch your favorite channels without any geo restrictions.
In a nutshell, UnoDNS will process your network traffic to the selected streaming sites through a network readdressing system and other traffic will be send through Google DNS.UnoDNS Dynamo
UnoDNS offers a unique feature called UnoDNS Dynamo that lets users switch between channel's regions. For example, with a US Netflix account, you will be able to stream from any of the 10 regions of Netflix available (with the same account).
Related to subscribing options, any user can try UnoDNS Gold for free for 8 Days. After the free trial is over, a user must subscribe to either the Premium or the Gold package to continue using UnoDNS service. Both Premium and Gold DNS packages have access to all the DNS supported channels. The only difference is that the Gold package includes a bonus UnoVPN service. You can use the VPN to access any US / UK websites not supported by the DNS service yet. The bonus VPN will also let the users download Android apps from the UK and US Google Play store.How to sign up and use UnoDNS
It is pretty simple and straightforward to get started with this service. Follow the steps below to get started:
This is what I see in the Netflix website when I access it from India after installing UnoDNS.
I no longer see the "Sorry, Netflix is not available in your country yet" error when I try to visit the Netflix website.
The process of signing up and installing UnoDNS is very easy and smooth process. If you are looking for a DNS service to access geo restricted streaming sites from countries outside USA or UK, Sign up and try it yourself. If you know a better DNS or VPN service, feel free to share your experience below as a comment.
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