Imagine not playing computer games, logging onto Facebook or checking your email. It's hard to imagine because the Internet has become a part of everyday life for many Americans. DSL and dial-up are two common ways to connect to the Internet, but their speeds vary widely. In addition to local availability and price, the speed of your connection will help you determine which service is best for you.
General Dial-Up Information
Dial-up Internet is hardwired and connects your computer to your telephone line. One cord goes from your modem to the computer and another cord goes through the phone jack to the modem. In this way, your computer is connected to the phone and your computer makes a call to access the Internet.
Dial-up Speed
Standard speed for dial-up is much lower than DSL or other alternative forms of Internet. Dial-up speeds are less than 56 Kbps for standard operation. It takes dial-up about seven seconds to load a standard page, according to the Help With PCs website. Loading pages with a lot of graphics makes the dial-up speed even lower.
Factors that Affect Dial-Up Speed
Several factors affect the speed of your dial-up connection. The type of modem you use plays an important part in how fast dial-up will run. Invest in the best modem available for a faster Internet connection. Since dial-up operates off your telephone line, faulty or outdated wiring can cause your Internet connection to be slower than that of other users.
General DSL Information
DSL also operates off your phone line, but DSL splits the use of your phone line so that you can still make and receive calls while on the Internet, contrary to dial-up. Two common types of DSL are asymmetric DSL and symmetric DSL. Asymmetric is the most common form of home-based DSL and download speeds are greater than speeds for uploading. Symmetric DSL has about the same download and upload speeds.
DSL Speed
A wide margin exists between the minimum speed and the maximum speed for DSL, but DSL is much faster than dial-up. Speed ranges from 256 Kbps to 20 Mbps per second. Download speed typically ranges from less than a second to a couple of seconds to download a standard page that consists of 50 kilobytes with images. Although DSL is much faster than dial-up, cable Internet is faster than DSL.
Factors that Affect DSL Speed
Similar to dial-up, several factors affect DSL speed. One of the most important factors is the distance from the home or business's location to the DSL provider's central office. Speed can also vary based on the type of equipment that you and your service provider use.
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- Team ITS: Frequently Asked Questions about DSL
- Help With PCs; Internet Connections Explained; June, 2011
- Time Warner Cable: Cable vs. DSL
- ISP Reviews: Dialup vs DSL
- Globalcom: The Battle of Internet Connections: Dial-Up vs. DSL vs. Cable vs. Satellite
- Windows: Why is my Internet connection so slow?
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- Polka Dot RF/Polka Dot/Getty Images
