Remember the days when you’d get an AOL CD in the mail, promising a free trial of dial-up Internet?

You’d pop in the CD, hook up your computer to the phone line, and cover your ears in preparation for that awful grinding fax-machine noise that would come spewing out of the modem.

Ah, memories.

But for some people, it turns out that this experience is no bout of 90s nostalgia: It’s just how they go online. AOL recently reported that 2.1 MILLION people are still using their dial-up service!

You probably remember how slow your AOL connection was, the way that pictures would slowly load from the top, line by line filling out over the span of 4 minutes. That 56K connection was bad enough back in 1995, but it’s actually far worse now.

Why? Because modern websites assume you’ve moved past dial-up. The vast majority of sites have more than just pictures on them now: They have auto-playing videos, programs like Flash or Adobe Reader built in, interactive ads with clickable buttons, and more. Just to read this article, you’d probably have to wait 15 minutes on a dial-up connection.

And even worse, people are still PAYING for AOL. Sometimes as much as $20 a month.

Why do people still bother? Some are just stuck in the past, unwilling to look into upgrading. Some people think they can’t afford broadband. Others live in areas where dialup seems like the only option.

But the truth is that almost everyone has options other than AOL. This is just one example of how easy it is to get stuck with old, inefficient, and expensive IT that just doesn’t fit your modern needs. AOL continues to make money off people who just don’t know any better.

Are YOU spending money on IT that doesn’t actually meet your real needs? Many businesses don’t spend their IT budgets wisely, and they waste hard-earned dollars on technology that’s behind the times. The team at Raleigh IT Support Company and IT Services Provider | CSP Inc. serves as your outsourced IT department – we work as an extension of your business, advising you on wise IT solutions that produce real results and give good returns on your IT investments.

Contact us at (919) 424-2000 or info@cspinc.com to find out how easy IT with the right team on your side.