20/08/2010

The USB Dongle is a small hardware device which slots into the USB port of a computer, PDA etc. The dimensions of the Dongle is in the region of "70mm x 25mm x 12mm". The original use of the USB Dongle was as a storage device. Supporting Microsoft Windows, Mac OS and Linux, the original USB Dongle could store in the region of sixteen megabytes of data.

As time passed the storage capacity of Dongle's increased, with up to one hundred megabytes of storage. Not all computers originally supported the Dongle. Drivers needed to be installed for compatibility. But, as the technology increased in popularity, virtually every computer developed in the past five years came with support for a USB Dongle.

Other computing devices, such as the Xbox, PS3 consoles and PDA's supported the Dongle. To call the Dongle a simple storage device would not do it justice. Stored programs can be executed from the Dongle. Which means you can run your favourite 'small' applications on the move from any PC. As long as the computer contains the same operating system as the stored program.

In recent years the USB Dongle's functionality has increased. Support for bluetooth was provided. The most recent development has been a Dongle with a modem installed. The purpose of the modem is to connect to the 3G mobile broadband signal. The Dongle simple plugs into a laptop, desktop, games console etc, and then connects to the 3G mobile signal to establish an Internet connection.

A Dongle's modem can provide a 7.2Mb download speed and a 2Mb upload speed. The one issue with a 3G Dongle, is the lack of nationwide coverage for the 3G service. Many rural areas cannot access the signal, or the signal strength is exceedingly poor, meaning very slow download and upload speeds.