GOOGLE fans are bracing themselves for another of the company’s services to be shut down in weeks.
The search engine giant has been widely mocked for relentlessly killing apps and products – and another service is about to join the Google graveyard.
VPN by Google One will be shuttered before the end of next month.
Google One is a subscription service that bundles in several benefits in exchange for a fee – starting at $1.99 / £1.59 a month.
One of the best benefits was the VPN, or Virtual Private Network.
A VPN encrypts your internet traffic and changes its location, making it harder to spy on what you’re doing online – giving your privacy a huge boost.
The Google One version was a very cheap way to get a high-quality VPN – but not for much longer.
“Starting June 20, 2024, VPN by Google One will be discontinued,” Google said in a statement.
Google suggested using the alternative VPN from Google Fi Wireless phone plans instead.
And Google Pixel 8 and newer devices come with a built-in VPN too.
If you’re using a Pixel 7, you’ll also be able to access VPN functionality by updating your software.
But everyone else who wants a VPN will have to fork out for one from another company.
Google has become known for regularly killing off products, so much so that two websites – Killed By Google and The Google Cemetery – have been set up to track everything that has been culled.
And fans have reacted poorly to the news that VPN by Google One is about to join the list.
In a Reddit thread about the VPN’s impending doom, one user wrote: “Google is annoying. I am afraid to buy Google products.”
Another joked: “Google cancels 10x more products than Taylor Swift has exes.”
And one added: “Google drives me nuts sometimes lol.”
Here's the official advice from Google...
On Android:
Delete your VPN profile:
VPN.
.Turn off the VPN from the Google One app:
.On iPhone:
Delete your VPN profile:
VPN & Device Management..Turn off the VPN from the Google One app:
.Of course a free VPN wasn’t the only benefit of Google One.
The main benefit is Google Cloud storage across Photos, Drive, and Gmail.
There are several plans available, for the following monthly prices:
Some plans also bundle in other features like Fitbit Premium, 10% back in the Google Store, the ability to share storage with up to five other people, and advanced access to the Gemini AI.
So many people will still choose to keep paying for Google One even when the VPN vanishes.
