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    AOL announces that it will discontinue Dial-Up internet services on September 30th

    While most Americans enjoy either high-speed broadband or fiber internet services, some less fortunate areas are still being served by antiquated Dial-Up internet services even to this day – particularly certain rural areas that are too far from civilization for telecommunications companies to invest in the infrastructure.

    Having said that, we thought it important to mention that AOL will be discontinuing its Dial-Up internet services effective September 30th, which means anyone still using these services will need to find different internet service to continue staying connected.

    AOL announced the discontinuation of its Dial-Up internet service in a support page shared on its website this week.

    Dial-Up internet, which was popular in the 90s, sports a maximum throughput speed of 56kbps, but other factors like noise and bandwidth throughput can ultimately yield slower results. Many of our readers aren’t old enough to remember the days of Dial-Up, but for reference, here’s what it sounded like:

    Did that ring a bell for you? It did for me.

    Comparatively, modern internet services like cable, broadband, and fiber internet offer throughout speeds of 10mbps and higher. Some fiber internet services even offer gigabit speeds, highlighting consumer demand for faster internet in an age in which video streaming and game consumption reigns supreme.

    As Dial-Up connections begin winding down in a modern era that now considers it to be obsolete, non-serviced areas will need to consider alternatives like SpaceX’s Starlink internet, which can provide up to 350mbps over satellite. It’s an excellent option if you don’t have access to cable, broadband, or fiber internet options in your area, and you can even take it everywhere you go for mobile internet if you have the right type of plan.

    Moreover, an increasing number of cellular providers like T-Mobile and Verizon are starting to roll out 5G Home internet in areas where wired internet isn’t an option. But if you’re too rural, satellite may still be the way to go.

    Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/08/11/aol-discontinuing-dial-up-internet-services/

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    iOS 26: Listen to the new “Little Bird” ringtone and 6 new variants of “Reflection”

    Apple’s iOS 26 operating system brings seven new iPhone ringtones, six of which are variants of the default “Reflection” ringtone, plus a new one called “Little Bird.”

    Illustration showing iPhone with a tone icon on its screen

    Apple today released a sixth beta of iOS 26 and its other “26” operating systems launching this fall. Seven new iPhone ringtones are present in iOS 26 beta 6.

    Six ringtones are various versions of the standard “Reflection” ringtone, but there’s also a brand-new ringtone, called “Little Bird,” and you can listen to them below.

    iOS 26 brings new iPhone ringtones

    The six new versions of the “Reflection” ringtone are named “Buoyant,” “Dreamer,” “Tech,” “Pop,” “Reflected,” and “Surge.” The “Reflected” version is the same as the “Alt 1” ringtone that appeared in the second beta of iOS 26.

    These new ringtones are in addition to the classic “Reflection” ringtone, which continues to be available and is still set as the default iPhone ringtone. But as mentioned earlier, there’s also a new ringtone, called “Little Bird,” that sounds quite nice. Listen to the new ringtones below, as shared by Aaron Perris on X (Twitter).

    If you have the latest beta installed, you can listen to these new ringtones in Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Ringtone. Apple created “Reflection” as the default ringtone for the iPhone X, which was introduced in 2017. Since then, “Reflection” has been the default iPhone ringtone. Before “Reflection” came along, “Opening” had been the default ringtone option on iPhones since iOS 7, which was released in 2013.

    A new way to add ringtones to your iPhone

    iOS 26 also brings a new way to add custom ringtones to your iPhone without using GarageBand for Mac or the built-in Music app for that. Now you can select a 30-second or less MP3 or M4A audio file in the built-in Files app and select More > Use as Ringtone to add it to the list of selectable ringtones in the Settings app.
    Like before, you can also get iPhone ringtones in other ways, including from the iTunes Store and third-party ringtone apps and websites. Apple continues to sell 30-second music ringtones for $1.29 each on iTunes Store.

    Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/08/11/apple-brings-new-ios-26-iphone-ringtones/