RAKsmart’s “Happy Shopping Sunday” promotion introduces a Silicon Valley Zone 2 VPS in the United States for just $9.9/year (less than $0.85 per month). With its ultra-low annual price and 5Mbps unmetered bandwidth, it has quickly become one of the most cost-effective entry-level US VPS offerings on the market.
RAKsmart Official Website: www.raksmart.com
🕒 Promotion Period
- US West Coast (San Jose) Time: Sunday 00:00 – 24:00
- Beijing Time: Sunday 15:00 – Monday 15:00
The promotion runs all day Sunday, with limited stock available on a first-come, first-served basis.
🔥 Promotion #1: Flash Sale VPS Starting at Just $9.9/Year
For this week’s Happy Shopping Sunday event, RAKsmart has selected several high-value VPS plans, with the entry-level package available for only $9.9/year.
| Datacenter Location | Configuration | Original Price | Sunday Flash Sale Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 Silicon Valley Zone 2, USA | 1 vCPU / 1GB RAM / 50GB HDD / 5Mbps Bandwidth / Unmetered Traffic | $50/year | $9.9/year Purchase Link |
| 🇺🇸 Silicon Valley Zone 2, USA | 2 vCPU / 4GB RAM / 50GB HDD / 5Mbps Bandwidth / Unmetered Traffic | $87/year | $19.9/year Purchase Link |
| 🇺🇸 Silicon Valley Zone 2, USA | 4 vCPU / 4GB RAM / 50GB HDD / 5Mbps Bandwidth / Unmetered Traffic | $10.1/month | $2.99/month Purchase Link |
| 🇺🇸 Silicon Valley Zone 2, USA | 4 vCPU / 8GB RAM / 50GB HDD / 5Mbps Bandwidth / Unmetered Traffic | $14.1/month | $4.99/month Purchase Link |
1. Configuration Overview & Basic Information
The VPS reviewed in this article is the lowest-tier package from the RAKsmart Happy Shopping Sunday flash sale ($9.9/year version).
| Specification | Details | Notes |
| CPU | 1 Core @ 2.2GHz (Intel Broadwell) | Entry-level configuration suitable for lightweight workloads |
| Memory | 1GB (990.9 MiB) | Standard allocation for a 1GB VPS |
| Storage | 50GB HDD | Officially labeled as HDD, but real-world performance is excellent |
| Bandwidth | 5Mbps Dedicated / Unmetered Traffic | Main selling point for users in mainland China |
| Operating System | Debian GNU/Linux 12 (Bookworm) | Latest stable Debian release |
| Location | Los Angeles / Silicon Valley, California, USA | West Coast location with excellent connectivity |
| IP Type | Datacenter Native IP | Beneficial for certain streaming and application scenarios |
The VPS IP address is 107.149.161.102, with ASN belonging to PEG TECH INC (RAKsmart), confirming it as a West Coast US datacenter IP located in the Los Angeles region.
2. System Performance Benchmarks (CPU & Disk I/O)
1. CPU Performance (SysBench)
This VPS uses a single-core Intel Broadwell processor running at 2.2GHz.
| Benchmark Item | Result | Evaluation |
| Single-Thread Score | 745 Scores | For a $9.9/year entry-level single-core VPS, this performance is reasonable and sufficient for blogs, lightweight web services, or small development environments. |
| Memory Read/Write | Read: 14.81 GB/s / Write: 10.16 GB/s | Excellent memory throughput performance. |
2. Disk I/O Performance (FIO)
The VPS is officially advertised with a 50GB HDD, but real-world benchmark results are surprisingly impressive.
| Benchmark Item (Mixed R/W 50/50) | 4K Block Size | 1M Block Size |
| Total Read/Write Speed | 430 MB/s | 2.46 GB/s |
Analysis: Although the specifications list the storage as HDD, the FIO benchmark results — especially the GB/s-level large block throughput — strongly suggest the backend storage is actually high-performance NVMe SSD or enterprise RAID storage with aggressive caching acceleration. This is a major advantage for user experience, as application startup and execution speeds are far beyond traditional HDD performance.
3. Network Connectivity & Latency (Ping & Routing)
1. China Mainland Ping Latency Test
| Region / ISP | Fastest (ms) | Slowest (ms) | Average Latency (ms) |
| All Nodes | 145ms | 268ms | 183ms |
| China Telecom | 145ms | 268ms | 180ms |
| China Unicom | 148ms | 226ms | 177ms |
| China Mobile | 156ms | 249ms | 193ms |
| Hong Kong / Macau / Taiwan | 164ms | 165ms | 164ms |
Analysis: Achieving average latency between 177ms and 193ms from a US West Coast Los Angeles/Silicon Valley datacenter is very impressive. China Unicom performed the best, followed by China Telecom, while China Mobile was slightly higher. Overall, the latency results demonstrate stable and high-quality connectivity to mainland China, suitable for website hosting and data transfer.
2. Return Route Analysis
Return routing (traffic from the VPS back to China) is one of the most important factors affecting user experience. Testing shows that all three major Chinese ISPs use direct premium backbone routing without detours.
| Carrier | Core Path (AS Path) | Routing Quality Evaluation |
| China Telecom (AS4134) | AS54600 -> AS4134 (CN2/163) | Connected to China Telecom backbone directly from San Jose, with stable routing and good latency. |
| China Unicom (AS4837) | AS54600 -> AS4837 (CU169) | Connected directly to China Unicom backbone from San Jose, offering excellent latency performance. |
| China Mobile (AS9808) | AS54600 -> AS58453 (CMI-INT) -> AS9808 (CMNET) | Uses CMI international exit routing, with better-than-expected China Mobile performance and low latency. |
Conclusion: For an entry-level VPS, RAKsmart provides excellent direct routing through China’s major ISPs (or at least highly optimized backbone routing), which is arguably its biggest networking advantage.
3. Bandwidth Speed Test (5Mbps Verification)
China mainland speed tests clearly confirm that the VPS bandwidth is accurately capped at 5Mbps.
| Speed Test Node | Upload Speed (Mbps) | Download Speed (Mbps) | Latency (ms) |
| Suzhou Telecom | 5 | 4 | 222 / 225 |
| Shanghai Unicom | 5 | 4 | 304 / 259 |
| Suzhou Mobile | 5 | 0 (Fluctuation During Test) | 366 / 635 |
Analysis: Domestic speed test results clearly verify the officially advertised 5Mbps bandwidth cap. While the speed itself is modest, it is an acceptable tradeoff considering the unmetered traffic and ultra-low $9.9/year pricing. It is sufficient for low-traffic personal websites and basic applications.
4. Final Verdict & Purchase Recommendation
RAKsmart’s Happy Shopping Sunday Silicon Valley Zone 2 VPS at $9.9/year delivers an unexpectedly impressive overall experience considering its extremely low price point. NodeQuality link: https://nodequality.com/r/5iq6lpos9niivw8N8qaSGpctD9K84AAa
✅ Key Advantages
- Outstanding Value: At only $9.9/year, the pricing is almost unbeatable in today’s VPS market.
- Excellent China Routing: All three major Chinese ISPs (Telecom, Unicom, Mobile) use direct backbone routes, ensuring stable connectivity and decent speeds for mainland China users.
- Impressive Disk Performance: Despite being labeled as HDD storage, real-world disk I/O performance reaches enterprise SSD/NVMe levels.
- Native IP Address: A relatively rare native IP, beneficial for certain services and applications.
- Unmetered Traffic: 5Mbps unmetered bandwidth eliminates traffic usage concerns.
❌ Limitations
- Average CPU Performance: The single-core CPU with a score of 745 is only suitable for lightweight workloads and not recommended for high-load applications.
- Bandwidth Limitation: The dedicated 5Mbps bandwidth may become a bottleneck for large downloads or high-definition streaming.
🎯 Recommended For
This VPS is highly recommended for the following users:
- Beginners or users with an extremely limited budget.
- Users needing a stable, low-latency US West Coast VPS for personal blogs, static websites, or lightweight development/testing.
- Users who do not require high bandwidth but value stable networking performance (such as overseas relay or proxy/jump-server scenarios).
Purchase Reminder: This product is available only during the weekly flash sale, starting every Sunday at 15:00 Beijing Time.
