I’ve been a StrongVPN user for more than 15 years. I like using it. But it’s not a full Silicon app and MacOS warns it won’t work starting with MacOS 27.
I contactwd StrongVPN about this in June after I saw my first warning message, and again today. They replied both times that they are aware of it and plan to release a new version but don’t have a release date.
My current subscription expires in December. I don’t know if I want to wait to install MacOS 27 just because StrongVPN has not been able to update it after all this tiime.
Any suggestions for other VPN solutions that are reasonably priced? I live in Japan, so find having VPN useful because sometimes I can’t connect to a U.S. site if they see I’m accessing from overseas.
Rosetta 2 is still fully functional in macOS 27 Golden Gate. It only works for some games starting in macOS 28 Baja, and will be gone completely in macOS 29 Redwood Forest.
That’s interesting, because when I upgraded to 26.6.2 my Mac upgrader specifically warned me that StrongVPN won’t be supported in MacOS 27 because it’s an Intel only based app. In fact, that’s the only app it warned me about.
I’ve seen a number of these warning Notifications when I launch Intel based apps, and I didn’t screenshot them but iirc they said something like ‘wouldn’t work after OS 27’, or ‘in future versions of macOS’ etc.
There was a time when Rosetta 2 could be downloaded on its own if it hadn’t been moved in a update/migration.
edited to add: Oh, and to your point of a new VPN provider/App. It’s not an easy scene, there have been a number of posts here on changing providers. I changed from one whose ownership became dodgy, then to another whose reliability/security/ownership politics were in question, to a popular one here among TBTers, but after 18 months am fed up with their Apps on mac and iDevices so am using the remaining pre-paid volume of usage manually set up in open source Tunneblick on the Mac and OpenVPN on iDevices. I suspect the largest providers/most popular on app store would keep their Apps compatible with macOS.
As to the quality/security of providers, I have no way to really know. Most reliably connected to various worldwide locations, but one seems to have its IPs routinely blocked by a number of mail providers and other sites. I change location frequently during the day just to get things done. YMMV.
I used Private Internet Access until it was bought by Kape Technologies, which has had a shady past. So I swapped to Proton VPN (a universal app) and I’m quite happy with it.
I can confirm that Rosetta 2 is still available for OS27. I am using a version of SMARTReporter that is Intel and my wife is using Intel Quicken. Launching the apps in OS27 invoked the option to download Rosetta 2. For that reason the Strong VPN warning doesn’t make sense to me. I understand that it will be OS28 that will discontinue Rosetta 2. So, one more year that Intel apps will still work.
I use Mullvad VPN on various Macs, iPhones, and iPads, based on the recommendations at Wirecutter. I like the month-to-month payment scheme and the easy to use app.
There is something that may matter to some people, though. @TBTdn pointed out, in an earlier thread, that one of the co-founders is involved in Swedish and European politics. Details and Mullvad’s response are easily found online, so I won’t go into them here.
I guess from what people are writing here it sounds like StrongVPN should continue to work for now, despite what the upgrader reported. And maybe StrongVPN misunderstood my question and thought I was asking about OS 28 and later. So when I get back to Japan (visiting the U.S. right now) I’ll upgrade and see!
if you goog Kape Technologies, the accusations will show themselves.
Whether one buys it or not, to each their own.
I like that Proton is a Swiss company.
I moved to Proton VPN as part of a wider subscription to their services. Very happy with them, Swiss based and privacy focussed. The team are ex-CERN hence the name.
I tried Proton for a while but had a few issues and their customer support was abysmal in my experience. Technically might be top but that’s no use if they can’t help with fairly clearly written questions.
I use ProotonVPN from the Middle East and when I first started with them, their customer service was pretty bad. I believe it has taken leaps and bounds toward improvement since then.
BUT, and there is always a BUTT: Need to have a backup not so flashy VPN app JUST IN CASE! In my neck of the woods, there is active action toward blocking VPNs. So, my backup is NETSHADE, and I run it periodically just to make sure.
Lastly, one can manually set up a VPN with “WireGuard” but you need to get all of the parameters in place just in case your preferred VPN service goes off line.