Thanks - I might get one of their approved models, but after fiddling with a virtual VPN (connecting the Roku to my kid’s laptop with VPN installed), I realized it must be Roku that is blocking the VPN. Cause I get the US Amazon site on the laptop, but the Roku connected to the laptop still gets the overseas Amazon. Roku must be blocking the IP of the VPN. So it might not work even with a new router.
I can report that it worked, I bought an ASUS AC68U v3 router and installed Express VPN’s custom firmware on it. Now everything connected to the router runs through their VPN. Amazon, HBO etc work now. Was very easy.
You can select which devices using the router connect to which country.
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Not VPN solution to geo-restricted content
I want to post another possible solution which I personally use and it’s compatible with almost any router and can also be used by any device individually which allows DNS servers to be changed. It is an alternative to always on VPN.
Full plan (40USD/y) is needed to proxy geo-restricted websites.
e.g. I can just watch ZDF (German TV geolocked) and BBC iPlayer (UK geolocked) on any devices without VPN. Only those domains used by those services will be proxied. Not all my traffic, unlike when using VPN, which results in slower internet. I also use it on all our mobile phones, so works out of the house too.
There are a ton of services preconfigured, which can be easily blocked or redirected.
Many more features like ad-domains blocking, malware domain blocking.
One can also set up own block lists. Schedule based block lists (time based content moderation for kids).
Analytics will be released this week (edit: released today!), where one can look into the domains opened to block those annoying ad domains which slipped through, etc.
This is all based on DNS, so won’t work with YouTube ads, as those are delivered from same domains as the content.
Also Netflix and other services are actively after services which circumvent their geo-restrictions. From time to time they can block the domestic proxy server IPs until those are changed.
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