Tech Shocks: Chips Squeezed, Hacks Mended & Space Race Delays – Tech News Roundup (Aug 10–11, 2025)
AOL Disconnects Dial-Up for Good: A nostalgic chapter of internet history is closing. AOL, once synonymous with getting online, announced it will discontinue its dial-up internet service on September 30, 2025, after a 34-year run theverge.com. In a quiet statement on its website, the Yahoo-owned company said “AOL routinely evaluates its products and services and has decided to discontinue Dial-up Internet,” adding that the dial-up software and browser “will be discontinued” by end of September theverge.com. The decision marks the end of an era that introduced millions to the internet’s early days. Tech observers noted that while only a few hundred thousand users still cling to dial-up in the U.S., the move is symbolic of how far consumer connectivity has come. “34 years was a good run,” wrote The Verge, pointing out that even as recently as 2019, an estimated 265,000 Americans were still on dial-up theverge.com. The final shutdown serves as a reminder of the rapid evolution of consumer internet services from screeching modems to ubiquitous broadband.
