Is ISDN the same as Dial-up?

Question

I don't want to sound ignorant but I don't know much about computers.

Answer 1

It's improved Dial-up; ISDN service from a telephone co. gives you 2 lines in one; allowing you to be net-connected, while receiving calls or faxing through one single jack. When the 2nd line is not in use, your computer can aggregate both lines for faster access. Each line can give about 56-65kbps. There is a signaling channel included which is used to set up and tear down calls to your line(s), which can also be aggregated giving you an additional 8-16kbps.

Answer 2

No, it's not the same. It is a dial-up service but uses special ISDN terminal adapters, not ordinary modems. ISDN is an old technology that is rarely used for broadband access any more. It's been relegated mostly to backup scenarios or phone trunking today. ISDN PRI (Primary rate interface) is used for dedicated network circuits and sometimes internet access in enterprise systems but not for consumer broadband.

Contrary to what another poster stated, it does not use ordinary phone lines in the manner that DSL does although it normally is provisioned by the local telco. Ordinary phone lines and DSL are analogue technologies. ISDN is purely digital, end-to-end.

Answer 3

Yes, ISDN is a dial-up. They are a little faster than a normal line but you still have to dial-up, they are NOT on all the time.

Answer 4

I believe that ISDN is slower than DSL but faster than dial up... its a slow DSL

Answer 5

Nope. DSL and ISDN are ways to obtain high speed connections over plain telephone lines.

Answer 6

It's a little bit faster, but it uses the same lines as phones and dialup modems as far as I know.
Think the hardware/modems are a little different.