Are you a dial-up user looking for a faster connection,
but you don’t like broadband prices? If so, you should take a look at a new service called OnSpeed, which has received rave reviews in Internet technology publications.

What OnSpeed ​​does is redirect web pages and email through
their own servers, compressing the data on the fly before sending it to your PC. A small program then uncompresses the data so you can view it normally through your browser or email client.

In my own dial-up tests, with a modem running at rated speed
49kb/s Seemed to get near normal speeds
598 kb/s broadband connection – very impressive. Image quality is often reduced, but the compression for this can be improved, though of course with an adverse effect on speed.

Some types of files like MP3 can’t be compressed yet either. Tea
However, the company is working on these issues and hopes
find solutions soon.

Unfortunately, I was unable to use email in my tests, due to
to a ‘port’ conflict with a spam filter you were using. Tea
The standard advice on the OnSpeed ​​​​site for such cases is to disable the offending program. Not a constructive approach – say
at the very least, so hopefully the relevant instructions will be changed soon.

More significantly, the problem persisted even when
I turned off the OnSpeed ​​app on my PC; in the end I had to remove the program to get the spam filter working again. I hope this glitch can be resolved, but clearly there are issues in this area that need to be addressed.

The software is easy to install and is available for Mac
as well as Windows PCs. In general, the service is amazing.
well, and much cheaper than broadband. Unlike other ‘accelerators’
techniques that adjust your computer settings but result in
small noticeable improvement, OnSpeed ​​really works.

I can recommend OnSpeed ​​for dial-up users who can’t justify the
at the expense of bandwidth, or are not close enough to a
proper exchange. OnSpeed ​​is also claimed to be great for mobile devices
or PDA users, as GPRS (wireless) speeds can be increased by both
like 8 times. It even helps with broadband if you can only get one
reduced service in your area.

My overall rating is 4/5 – very good, but email support needs
be improved.

For more information on OnSpeed, please visit http://www.On-Speed.net. There is a 14 day refund.
guarantee, so you can try the service without any risk.

Copyright © Richard Prosser 2004