MY O2 3G DONGLE is the fifth most valuable item of technology in my current life. It is powering my internet connectivity during the current Christmas holiday season because of broadband failures with Gaelic Telecom. On the upper levels of my home, it gives me connectivity of up to seven megabits per second. On the ground floor, I won't get anything better than EDGE connectivity but outside my home, the O2 dongle normally sees 3G mobile broadband speeds. I first started using my black O2 3G dongle in a pub in Kilkenny and it worked well as a connection to Online Meeting Rooms. In the middle of Dublin, I've used the O2 3G dongle during academic classes, getting better speeds directly to internet assets than through a proxy and border manager. I prefer the USB cabled connection to my black 3G dongle over a USB stick because I can attach a three-meter cable to the dongle and elevate the little black antenna towards the nearest 3G mast. I pay no more than EUR 30 every month for my 3G data service with O2-Ireland and I normally use an average of two gigabytes of data every month. Service has been consistently good at home, on trains, and in mobile office locations. For these reasons, I cite my O2 3G dongle as one of the top five most useful items of technology this year.
See screenshots of my mobile broadband speeds.