Linux Tails Review2022: Stay Safe and Anonymous Online

Linux Tails Review: Stay Safe and Anonymous Online

Curious about the new breed of online dog foods? Take a look at our tails.com review and see if it's worth the change. We discuss nutrition, quality, and value for money before giving our verdict.

Tails.com is a brand of dog food that has only been around since 2013 but in that relatively short time has managed to convert millions of owners to a new way of feeding.

Competing with brands such as Pedigree which have been around for decades, the tails.com rise to the top has been impressive.

Created by veterinary surgeons, canine nutritionists, and engineers, tails.com offer a customised approach to dog foo

A major selling point is that the food is actually delivered to your doorstep, so no more pesky shopping trips needed when you run out. You can also decide what you want and how often.

But Tails are more than just a dog food provider; they offer advice on feeding issues and other nutritional queries.

A team of dedicated doggy-lovers, tails.com now delivers millions of meals to pampered pooches every single month.

Read on to see how tails.com reviews with our team!

What Range of Foods Do Tails.com Offer?

Tails produce both wet and dry food, with many dog-owners opting to mix both together for meals that their pooch will love.

With formulas for puppies, adult dogs and seniors, you can get a blend of nutrients that’s perfect for your dog’s stage of life.

In a nutshell, the food varieties on offer are:

1. Customised dry food kibble

2. 15 varieties of wet food

3. Treats

You can choose all 3 types together in your plan or pick and choose as you please.

For the wet food, there are jellies, gravy and pates available. Take a look at the current menu below.

Tails dry food is slightly different as you will answer a questionnaire about your dog’s likes and dislikes. If there’s a particular ingredient you’re keen to avoid or include, now’s your chance to say!

Based on your answers, Tails will create a custom kibble for your dog to try.

The best part of all is that if you don’t like it, you can feedback to Tails and they’ll tweak the recipe until your canine is gobbling it up!

Related: Looking to help your dog feel better, reduce allergies, and have more energy? Check out our guide to grain-free dog food for premium canine health.

How Does it Work?

The whole service is pretty straightforward and should be easy for even the most technophobic dog owners.

The website is clear and simple to navigate. They've obviously put some work in here and it shows with a very intuitive system in place.

Upon clicking the 'Sign Up' prompt (make sure you get 75% off using our link!) you'll be presented with a short questionnaire. 

The questionnaire consists of a series of questions about your dog's background (type, size, age), dietary requirements, and likes and dislikes. The only information that we didn't know offhand was our dog's weight (in kilograms).

You can see a sample of the questions you can expect below.

It doesn't take long to get through the questions but we were surprised with the level of detail on offer. You're even asked what food textures your dog prefers (should you know)!

Upon finishing the questions you're presented with the custom menu that tails.com has created to suit your dog's dietary needs. 

Here's a sample of what was suggested for our young labrador Maxwell.

What are the Beneficial Ingredients?

Although Tails offer a customised service to give your dog food tweaked to their individual tastes, there are some ingredients that are integral to all of their recipes.

Each ingredient is handpicked for its nutritional value, and for how it supports and promotes maximum canine health.

Some of the top ingredients you’ll find in Tails food includes:

Meat and fish - including lamb fat, lamb gravy, chicken and salmon

Vegetables and grains - peas, sweet potatoes, oats, carrots, brown rice, white potatoes, beet pulp

Vitamins and minerals - prebiotics and glucosamine

The benefits of these ingredients are manifold, but include:

Lamb fat - energy-dense and high in essential fatty acids for a glossy coat

Salmon - high in omega-3, vitamins B and D, selenium and potassium. Also contains the antioxidant astaxanthin, vital for supporting your dog’s brain and nervous system

Chicken - low in fat, high in protein and contains omega-6 and amino-acids

Beet pulp - excellent source of protein and increases satiety

Carrots - beta-carotene, anti-oxidant and helps your dog produce Vitamin A

Sweet potatoes - high in vitamins A and C, and a good source of slow-release energy

Brown rice - easy to digest and high in manganese and fibre

Peas - high-fibre, anti-oxidant, high in vitamins B1, C and K, plus folate and manganese

White potato - high in carotenoids, potassium and vitamins B3, B6 and C, helping to promote energy

Prebiotics - to promote good gut health

Glucosamine to support the joints

Each mouthful that your dog eats has been cleverly designed to provide maximum taste together with balanced nutrition to provide a shiny coat and optimum health.

Recommended: If you’ve been looking for a good quality dog food, you may be curious about the popular Wainwright’s dog food. Learn about it here.

Is Tails Dog Food Good Value?

Of course, nutrition isn't the only consideration. Any good dog food has got to fit within budget. This is how Tails.com reviews when it comes to money.

Here's a rundown of average monthly prices depending on the size of your dog. These prices were taken from their website in March 2021. I'd counter that they probably represent the more basic menus too.

Toy - £10.44

Small - £14.74

Medium - £20.57

Large - £29.54

Giant - £39.03

The price is obviously dependent on the volume of food you require but also on 2 other criteria:

Ingredients - some ingredients are more expensive than others.

Supplements - some dogs might require extra nutritional support.

There's really no simple answer to how much it will cost you personally. The prices are completely dog dependent.

However, almost every Tails dog food review describes it as excellent value, sitting in the mid-range of the prices.

Tails provide a measuring scoop with the food so you know exactly how much to give your pooch, a great way to save money and prevent over-feeding.

The other benefit is that because you’re able to create a custom kibble, you won’t need to worry about waste, even if your dog is a picky eater. Getting dog food that they’re guaranteed to love saves lots of money in the long run.

Recommended: Harrington's dog food is really popular but does it deserve all the attention?

Are There Any Negatives to Choosing Tails?

The Tails dog food reviews are generally glowing, with owners reporting that they loved being able to pick the right blend for their pet.

Not all combinations are possible; for example, it’s not possible to exclude both grain and chicken and still receive dry kibble. For most though, a good combination could be found that was accepted by the dog.

Related: See how the Tails subscription service compares to the competition in our guide to tailor made dog foods.

The biggest problem reported with Tails is the delivery. Some of the couriers used for the delivery weren’t particularly careful when they left the parcel.

Obviously, this varies from one area to another, and in many cases, there were no issues at all. Much depends on the delivery services in your area.

The other issue is that with Tails you’ll need to plan ahead. Many customers reported getting a speedy service when needed, but even with this, you’ll need to allow several days.

If you realise your pooch’s food is about to run out tonight, you can’t just run out to the store and top up. Tails is only available via mail delivery, which won’t suit all.

We'd also consider the service reasonably expensive. Certainly, there's a lot on offer here but it's priced accordingly

Recommended Reading: Don't miss our Forthglade dog food review and learn everything you need to know about whether this could be a good choice for your pet.

What You Should Know About Tails

Tails has been around for years, but its creators are anonymous. That only seems appropriate for an operating system that insists on anonymity.

The latest version of the OS is Tails 3.12.1, but keep in mind that the system gets regular updates to ensure a maximum level of safety for each user.

Considering that its primary focus is on safety, Tails is a somewhat specific Linux distro, especially when compared to other most popular distros available out there.

A Live Operating System

When we call an OS live, that means you can run it directly from a bootable drive, such as a DVD or USB. That means you can run it on any machine in this world and it will work. And we do mean any PC because Tails is not a demanding operating system.

An even more important thing is that it won’t store any data on the computer where you are using it. Exceptions can be made only if you ask for them explicitly.

Stay Anonymous While Browsing the Internet

Linux Tails allows you to head online via the Tor network and the internet browser of the same name. Tor is considered the safest internet browsing software out there as it keeps you as anonymous as possible online. It is vital to mention that your cybersecurity also depends on your actions, but the Tor network will do everything in its power to keep you safe.

Additionally, Tails has a set of encryption features and tools for secure communication over the internet. When you are using an instant messenger or sending an e-mail, these tools will keep the transferred data safe.

It is interesting to notice that Edward Snowden relied on these cryptographic features for the sensitive data he leaked. So, if NSA wasn’t good enough to break the encryption, the chances are your data will stay safe, too.

Is Tails the Right Choice for Me?

Tails is not your everyday operation system, but the newbies shouldn’t have any problems using it. However, if you are expecting maximum security, keep in mind that will also depend on your actions. Even an OS safe like Tails cannot protect you at all times, especially if you make mistakes that leave you vulnerable.

Keep in mind that the official website of Linux Tails has all the necessary instructions and documentation on how to use this operating system. We advise you to check out the warnings so that you are aware when the OS won’t protect you. If you feel like you know enough about this system and you still want to install it, follow the simple guide below on how to that.

How to Install Tails

As we already mentioned, Tails is a live operating system, which means you run it directly from a DVD or USB. Everything that this OS needs from a computer is in the RAM space.

When it comes to installing Tails, you have a couple of options at your disposal:

Installing from another Tails – if anyone you know has Tails, you can quickly clone it with a USB stick.

Install from Windows – you can download the system from the official website and mount it on USB or DVD to install it.

If you are an expert user, you can also consider using a virtual machine to run Tails.

Overall, it shouldn’t take more than 30-60 minutes to get your distro to run. If you want to see a similar process check out our guide on how to install Ubuntu on desktop.

What Tools Do You get with Tails?

Linux Tails comes with a window manager in the form of Gnome 3 to make the system more user-friendly. When it comes to pre-installed software, we already mentioned Tor for browsing websites. However, it is vital to note that Tor comes with plugins like AdBlock Plus, HTTPS, NoScript, and Torbutton.

Apart from that, you will also get a network manager and I2p network. The preferred e-mail client is Icedove while the preferred office suite is LibreOffice. Simple Scan and other safety tools, such as MAT and LUKS, also comes pre-installed. You can also find a password manager and a generator to ensure your passwords are secure.

It is worth mentioning that you will also get a default Bitcoin client called Electrum. Those of you that are into cryptocurrencies are surely familiar with that program.

Wrap Up

Overall, Tails is a useful operating system if you are afraid for the safety of your data or anonymity while browsing online. The very fact it is an amnesic OS that doesn’t leave any trace on the computer where you use it is an excellent feature. Apart from that, encryption features and the safest Tor browser are also included.

Working with Tails is also fairly simple, and even newbies shouldn’t have a problem with it. However, keep in mind that only installing this OS won’t protect you. It will increase your initial protection and the chance to stay anonymous, but you also need to be careful and make smart moves to maintain that anonymity.