Remember dial-up Internet access? Nearly 35 percent of Internet-connected U.S. households still rely on dial-up Internet access providers. This segment may be stuck in the Internet slow lane, but according to a study by J.D. Power and Associates dial-up Internet users are happier with their service compared to their broadband brethren.

The just released study J.D. Powers found that 51 percent dial-up subscribers are loyal to their ISP, compared to 42 percent of high-speed customers. Satisfaction, in fact, has been improving for dial-up customers increasing 13 points (using J.D. Powers rating methodology) from 2006 to 2007. Meanwhile satisfaction with broadband ISP has declined by 13 points since 2006.

"We are surprised at the trend, more than we are at the percentage changes," says Steve Kirkeby, executive director for telecom and technology for J.D. Powers. Kirkeby points out that satisfaction directly relates to price. Broadband customers who pay more expect more and vice versa. Top gripes for broadband customers are outages and network performance, connection problems, and quality of tech support received when it is sought.