My Honest Review of Control D
Reviewing Control D in 2023
If you're looking for a way to take back control of your internet, you might have heard of Control D. It's a DNS service that lets you customize many aspects of your online connections, such as blocking ads, trackers, malware, and geo-restricted content. It also claims to improve your browsing speed and protect your privacy. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, I decided to give it a try and see for myself if it lives up to its promises.
What Is Control D?
Control D is a user configurable DNS service that offers transparent proxies deployed on top of an anycast network, with exit locations in over 69 countries (nice). When you get started on Control D, you will get a set of DNS resolvers that are unique to your account and can enforce your unique configuration.
You can use Control D on any device without installing any app or software. You just need to change your DNS settings to point to the resolvers provided by Control D. You can also use it on your router or firewall to apply it to all devices on your network.
What Can You Do with Control D?
With Control D, you can do a lot of things that would normally require a VPN or an ad blocker. For example, you can:
- Block ads and trackers across all websites and apps. This not only saves you bandwidth and improves your browsing speed, but also protects your privacy and security from malicious third parties.
- Block harmful content like porn, drugs, gambling, violence, etc. on your network if you have kids or want to avoid distractions. You can choose from predefined filters or create your own custom rules for any domain name of your choice.
- Bypass geo-restrictions and access websites and services that are not available in your country. You can choose from over 69 proxy locations around the world and appear to be in a different country without using a VPN app.
- Customize multiple profiles for different devices or scenarios. For example, you can have one profile for work that blocks social media and games, another profile for home that unblocks Netflix US and UK, and another profile for travel that redirects all traffic through a proxy location of your choice.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Control D?
Control D sounds like an amazing service that offers many benefits over traditional VPNs or ad blockers. However, it also has some drawbacks that you should be aware of before using it. Here are some pros and cons of Control D:
Pros:
- Easy to use: You don't need to install anything or run any app. You just need to change your DNS settings once and forget about it.
- Flexible: You can customize every aspect of your online connections according to your preferences and needs.
- Fast: You don't have any noticeable impact on your browsing speed or latency. In fact, you might even see some improvement by blocking ads and trackers.
- Cheap: You can use Control D for free with some limitations (such as 3 filters per profile), or upgrade to premium for $5/month (or less if you pay annually) with unlimited features.
Cons:
- Not foolproof: Some websites or apps might detect that you're using a proxy or DNS service and block you anyway. For example, some streaming services like Hulu or BBC iPlayer might still require a VPN app for full access.
- Not private: Your DNS queries are still visible by Control D (and potentially by Windscribe VPN which owns Control D). This means that they can see what websites you visit or what services you use. They claim not to log anything except aggregate statistics, but there is no way to verify this.
My Final Verdict
Control D is an innovative service that offers many advantages over traditional VPNs or ad blockers. It's easy to use, flexible, fast, and cheap. However, it's not perfect either. It has some limitations when it comes to bypassing geo-restrictions or securing/privatizing your traffic.
Personally, I will not be switching to Control D. I am a loyal user of NextDNS and plan on using them for a long time.
Cheers,
Joe