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One of the things I was most excited about when Apple announced TVOS 17 at its Worldwide Developers Conference this year was that the latest Apple TV operating system would finally support native virtual private network applications. At last, I’d be able to use a VPN to enhance my streaming experience on Apple TV. Now that TVOS 17 has been available for a few months, VPN providers have been slowly rolling out their apps for Apple’s streaming device. So when ExpressVPN -- CNET’s Editors’ Choice best overall VPN -- released its Apple TV app this month, I was eager to try it.
Based on my initial experience, using ExpressVPN's Apple TV app was easy enough, but its streaming performance was a bit of a headache. And that's disappointing, because the main reason I would use a VPN on Apple TV is for streaming.
If you don’t have an ExpressVPN account already, you’ll need to purchase one before setting it up on your Apple TV. Also, you’ll need to ensure your Apple TV is running TVOS 17. Once you’ve done that, you can download the app to your Apple TV by searching for ExpressVPN in the App Store.
You can sign in by manually entering your email and password, but I used the QR code option to sign in with my phone, and it took all of 10 seconds to get into my ExpressVPN account and connect to a server. The app is easy to use, but it’s extremely bare-bones. There are no options to change the protocol (it uses ExpressVPN’s proprietary Lightway protocol) or activate the kill switch, split-tunneling or advanced protection features like on its Fire TV Stick app. The only functionality that really exists on ExpressVPN’s Apple TV app is the ability to select a server, connect to it and disconnect from it. But that functionality is smooth, and connecting to a server takes a fraction of a second. I was impressed with how good the app looks and how simple it is to use. If accessing streaming content is your only concern, then you can mostly do without all the extra bells and whistles.
The setup and connection process went as smoothly as I could imagine, but the road started getting bumpy as soon as I fired up Netflix to start streaming.
Right out of the gate, Netflix flashed an error message telling me that “a problem occurred” and said to “try again later.” The error message elaborates that “an SSL error has occurred and a secure connection to the server cannot be made.” Evidently, the issue is so common that ExpressVPN has a dedicated help article suggesting things like force quitting the Netflix app, watching something else or trying again in 15 minutes.
It was a rough start and not at all what I expected from ExpressVPN, considering that its Amazon Fire TV Stick and Android TV apps work flawlessly for streaming. I tried servers in locations like the US, UK, Germany, France, Australia and Japan. Sometimes it worked just fine, but I got far more error messages than I had expected. I had to jump around and try different servers to finally stream something on Netflix. And when I tried a server in Japan, Netflix flew completely off the handle and logged me off. Only after I disconnected from the VPN could I log back in.
ExpressVPN worked fine with other streaming sites I tested, such as Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus and Hulu. I was able to watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation on Hulu without any issues using ExpressVPN’s Apple TV app. But the issues I faced trying to stream Netflix content on Apple TV using ExpressVPN were frustrating, almost to the point of feeling like a useless endeavor. Maybe the issue has to do with ExpressVPN’s Apple TV app being so new, or perhaps it has something to do with certain limitations or restrictions within the recesses of the TVOS operating system. I reached out to ExpressVPN for insight, and my contact there told me that it shouldn’t be an issue. However, the fact that the provider has a help article dedicated to the issue tells me I'm not alone. Either way, I hope ExpressVPN can resolve it sooner rather than later.
In comparison, I also tested the Apple TV app for IPVanish, one of CNET’s other top VPNs, and had no issues accessing Netflix content. IPVanish’s Apple TV app is functionally similar to that of ExpressVPN, but currently has far superior Netflix streaming capabilities. If you’re a Netflix user wanting to use a VPN for Apple TV, I’d recommend IPVanish over ExpressVPN at this time.
