Dial-up

Example: "Before switching to DSL, the family connected to the Internet using a dial-up connection."

A dial-up connection uses a modem to connect to an ISP or another computer. It uses standard analog phone lines to transfer data up to 56 Kbps. Before the year 2000, dial-up was the standard way to connect to Internet. However, most users now connect to the Internet is via a DSL or cable modem connection.

Both cable and DSL services provide a constant connection and support data transfer speeds over 100 times faster than dial-up modems.

First Published: 2009
Last Updated: March 13, 2009