Technologies

Google One VPN: What you need to know about this privacy tool

Analysis: Google now includes a VPN with its cloud subscription storage service. Here are some of the privacy implications you should know.

Google’s mobile virtual private network service — Google One VPN — is branching out. Once restricted to Android users in the US, the VPN is now a perk bundled with the search giant’s cloud-based subscription storage service, Google One. Earlier this month, however, Google made a change to its developer documents, as reported by 9to5Google. Android users in Canada and Mexico gained access to the service, along with those in the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

In October 2020, when Google launched its own standalone VPN as part of its $100 annual bundle package for Google One, subscribers with a 2TB or greater account got access to the service perk for the first time. While the idea of an Android-tailored VPN conveniently rolled into a Google One mobile app might seem appealing as a quick-fix privacy option, there are more than a few privacy concerns to give you pause.

If you’re checking into Google’s service for the first time, here are a few key things to know about the mobile encryption offering.

Is Google One VPN a true VPN?

Yes. According to the tech detailed in Google’s white paper, Google One VPN acts as a traditional VPN does: It diverts all the internet traffic from your device through an encrypted tunnel, sends it through a Google VPN server and passes it along to the website you’re browsing toward — effectively hiding your browsing. It even goes a step further by separating its user authentication process from your browsing, too.

I haven’t yet tested Google One VPN, so I can’t tell you whether it can help you bypass Google’s own geoblocking on country-specific apps in the Google Play Store, or if it can help you access your home country’s Netflix catalog while you’re traveling abroad.

Is Google One VPN truly private?

As we wrote in June, Google One users simply looking for an extra layer of protection while using free public Wi-Fi could find this VPN to be a convenient fit. But there’s an elephant in the room here.

By using Google One VPN, you’re actively feeding every piece of internet-bound data on your device to Google. Then you’re trusting Google to not peek at that data, and to shield you from the same third-party tracking tech that it only stopped profiting from in March.

This is the same Google that required a lot — Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal, a lengthy legislative haranguing over privacy concerns, three major antitrust lawsuits (including a landmark case by the US Department of Justice) and another complaint by a bipartisan coalition of states — before it decided to phase out those third-party tracker cookies in its Chrome browser. Google is only just starting that process, which also doesn’t apply to mobile Google devices.

We reached out to Google, and will update this story if we hear back.

VPNs function by routing all of your data through a single company’s servers. So when we recommend VPN providers, we evaluate not only the relative strength of their encryption tech and application security, but we also examine the VPN providers’ data privacy and retention policies, and any instances where the provider has been proven to have collected or shared user browsing data.

Read more: How we evaluate and review VPNs

We frequently advise users against adopting free VPN services except when indulging in a 30-day trial of a recommended provider, primarily as a precaution against undesirable data collection by shady VPN providers and their data brokers. If any of our recommended VPN providers had even half the access to your private digital life that Google so often does, I’d advise against using that provider’s VPN to protect your privacy, regardless of how strong its encryption is.

So if you’re interested in keeping your browsing, internet traffic and usage data private from corporations and government entities, you should carefully consider Google’s long, storied history of sharing and collecting user data before you use any of its products, VPN included. Ask yourself whether it might be better to trust your data to a company whose singular aim appears to be privacy, rather than algorithm farming.

Is Google One VPN worth it?

Thanks to far-reaching gag orders and secret subpoenas, the US government has overseen the collection of more data from internet users than we can feasibly or objectively measure at this time. As such, I recommend against choosing a VPN service with a US jurisdiction, which would include Google One VPN — though it’s worth noting that non-US VPN companies are still far too opaque to operate entirely independent of user trust.

But when even Uncle Sam has to sue a VPN company over data abuse? It may be worth selecting a different fox to guard your digital henhouse.

If you’re a subscriber to the Google One 2TB plan and just looking for light protection as you browse public Wi-Fi, the Google One VPN may do the job. But if you’re looking for more robust privacy, we’d recommend subscribing to one of our tested and recommended VPNs instead.

For more, check out our picks for the best Android VPNs, the best iPhone VPNs and the best cheap VPNs.

Technologies

We Played Nintendo Switch 2: Mario, Donkey Kong, Mouse, Camera and a Lot More

Technologies

Nintendo Switch 2: Every Reveal About the Console, New Games, Price, Release Date

The $450 console launches June 5, with Mario Kart World the highlight of its launch day game lineup.

The Nintendo Switch 2 console’s biggest reveal yet arrived Wednesday as part of the company’s latest Nintendo Direct event. This teed up a day of Switch 2 reveals that include its June 5 release date, a $450 price, its specs and its initial game lineup that extends from launch into 2026.

The console will be further buoyed by having Mario Kart World as a launch title, which will go on sale in either a $500 bundle with the Switch 2 or on its own for $80 — making the open-world racing game one of Nintendo’s most expensive yet. Other games announced, such as Donkey Kong Bananza, are being priced around $70, which matches the cost of 2023’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. That Zelda game and Breath of the Wild are among the original Switch titles that will get enhanced Nintendo Switch 2 Edition upgrades, a premium upgrade allowing players to get new features, modes and graphical enhancements that take advantage of the newer system’s capabilities.

Here are the top highlights from Nintendo’s console event, all of the games we’ve heard about so far (including new titles, Nintendo Switch 2 Editions and GameCube games coming to Nintendo Switch Online) and all of our coverage so far. You can also check out our Nintendo Switch 2 live blog for even more updates about the Switch 2 as we learn them.

Nintendo Switch 2 console

The Nintendo Switch 2’s specs saw a noticeable technical bump over the Switch. The Nintendo Switch 2 has a 7.9-inch, 1080p resolution LCD that supports a 120Hz refresh rate — matching what we now see on most Android phones. When the Switch 2 is docked, compatible games can run in 4K resolution. The new dock also includes a cooling fan.

The Switch 2 comes with 256GB of internal storage, and the new Switch 2 Game Cards will load games faster. For digital libraries, however, the Switch 2 will only work with microSD Express cards, which are different from the microSD cards that are compatible with the prior Nintendo Switch. Nintendo will have a Software Transfer feature available to help move games and data from the original Switch to the Switch 2.

The new Joy-Con for the controllers will support mouse controls, and a new C button will be part of a new GameChat communication feature that allows both voice and video chat. There’s also a Nintendo Switch 2 Camera, allowing players to see each other.

The Switch 2 also adds a second USB-C port to the top of the system, which Nintendo says can help connect its new camera accessory or charge the console when playing in tabletop mode. Nintendo also revealed a new Switch 2 Pro Controller with the C button and customizable GL and GR buttons on the back.

Following the presentation, Nintendo unveiled the system’s price of $450 in the US. It will also sell the Switch 2 bundled with a digital version of Mario Kart World for $500.

Mario Kart World

Mario Kart World removes its traditional boundaries and lets drivers roam freely across an entire world of race courses. The game will get its own Nintendo Direct later this month, where we’ll see additional details, but we already know it’ll include traditional races and a Free Roam mode, much like in the Forza Horizon series.

Getting the game bundled for an extra $50 on the cost of the Switch 2 might be the move if you are interested in the game, because Nintendo announced on its website that standalone copies of Mario Kart World will cost $80.

Joy-Con 2 C button and GameChat

Nintendo’s rolling out its new C button across several new Switch 2 controllers. The button will be used for the new GameChat communication features without a headset. The button will be used alongside a microphone on the console itself, which Nintendo says can be used whether it’s docked to a TV or in handheld mode.

In its teaser video, Nintendo promises the microphone will be able to cancel out loud background noises. GameChat will also work with a Nintendo Switch 2 Camera, allowing video chat and various camera-based game modes in supported titles. GameChat will be free at launch through March 31, 2026.

Nintendo Switch 2 Edition games upgrade titles

The Nintendo Switch 2 will play three types of games: original Switch games, Switch 2 games and Switch 2 Edition games that will receive substantial enhancements. For many of these Switch 2 Edition games, you’ll need to buy an upgrade pack if you own the original for Switch. Many of them will get more than just enhanced graphics in the upgrade; for example, Super Mario Party Jamboree will get new games that support the new Joy-Cons’ mouse controls, audio recognition and video camera gameplay options through the Switch 2 Camera.

Other Nintendo Switch games that are getting Switch 2 Edition options include The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Metroid Prime 4 Beyond and Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Enhancements vary: The Zelda games will start working with a companion phone app for maps and sending schematics to friends, while Kirby will get a new story that’s exclusive to the Switch 2 Edition. On the third-party side, Civilization 7 will get mouse controls.

Nintendo did not announce what upgrade packs will cost. However, some Switch games will get free updates that will improve performance or enhance features when playing them on the Switch 2. The Switch games getting these updates include:

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is a new game set in the world of Zelda that tells the story that leads into The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. This appears to be similar to how Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity told the story of a war that led to the events of Breath of the Wild. The teaser shows Zelda discovering that she’s arrived in the past of Hyrule, and the game will expand on how she gets involved in the corresponding Imprisonment War.

Nintendo Switch 2 games

Several other first- and third-party games were spotlighted during the Switch 2 Direct. These include Donkey Bananza, one of the first 3D platforming games featuring DK since 1999’s Donkey Kong 64. Kirby will also return to the racing genre in Kirby Air Riders, which comes more than 20 years after the GameCube racer Kirby’s Air Ride. DragXDrive will use mouse controls to control a futuristic wheelchair basketball game in which players will simulate push and pull motions to control their character.

An onslaught of Switch 2 third-party games were quickly shuffled through during the Direct, which I list below. An unnamed James Bond game is in development at Hitman studio IO Interactive, as is a darker title from Elden Ring creator FromSoftware called The Duskbloods, which will be exclusive to the Switch 2.

The full list of announced Nintendo Switch 2 games includes:

Borderlands 4
Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster
Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition
Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion
Deltarune
Donkey Kong Bananza
Drag x Drive
EA Sports FC
EA Sports Madden NFL
Elden Ring Tarnished Edition
Enter the Gungeon 2
Fast Fusion
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade
Fortnite
Hades 2
Hitman World of Assassination — Signature Edition
Hogwarts Legacy
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
Kirby Air Riders
Kirby and the Forgotten Land — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition and Star-Crossed World
Kunitsu-Gai: Path of the Goddess
Mario Kart World
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
NBA 2K
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour
Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition
Pokemon Legends: Z-A — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
Project 007
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S
Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
Sid Meier’s Civilization 7 — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
Split Fiction
Star Wars Outlaws
Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions
Street Fighter 6
Super Mario Party Jamboree — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition and Jamboree TV
Survival Kids
The Duskbloods
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom — Nintendo Switch 2 Edition
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4
WWE 2K
Yakuza 0 Definitive Edition

Among these titles, you can see the full list of June 5 Switch 2 launch day games here.

Nintendo GameCube library coming to Switch 2

The Nintendo Switch Online game library will add GameCube games to the Switch 2. On launch day, these games will initially include The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, SoulCalibur 2 and F-Zero GX, with each game getting enhanced graphics. Online multiplayer will also be added to certain titles. Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario Strikers and Luigi’s Mansion are among the games set to arrive later. At launch, Nintendo will also sell a GameCube controller, which will be wireless and include a C button for GameChat.