What is it?
3G HSDPA is Third Generation High-Speed Downlink Packet Access - a 3G mobile telephony protocol, which offers increased data transfer speeds and capacity of up to 1.8 Mbps on the downlink and up to 348Kbps on the uplink, under ideal conditions. The 3G HSDPA technology was built to deliver throughput speeds of up to 1.8 Mbps for downloads, but expect to experience speeds between 400 Kbps and 800 Kbps with peaks of approximately 1.2 Mbps - offering you instant Internet access.

How does it work?
To access the Internet or email while you're on the move, you'll need an access device which is mobile broadband capable, such as:

* A 3G or 3G HSDPA cellphone,or
* A Desktop or Laptop and the Vodafone Mobile Connect USB Modem, or
* A Laptop and the Vodafone 3G Broadband Mobile Connect Card

When you sign a 24-month data contract, you'll receive a new 64KB SIM card, which should be inserted into the SIM card slot of the Vodafone Mobile Connect USB Modem. The Vodafone dashboard software is provided with these devices for installation on your PC. The Vodafone dashboard software allows compatibility with the Vodacom network and lets you perform the most common actions; like connecting to the network, by clicking on the relevant button on the dashboard. When installing the software ensure to choose "3G" as the preferred network, and you'll be able to connect at speeds that are up to 30 times faster than a 56K PSTN modem dial-up connection, provided you within in 3G HSDPA coverage. If you find yourself in an area without 3G HSDPA coverage, you'll connect to Vodacom's GPRS/EDGE network at download speeds of up to 256 Kbps.

The intuitive on-screen Vodafone dashboard software allows you to:

* Access the Internet
* Monitoring your data usage

The volumes of data transmitted (sent and received) are presented on the Vodafone dashboard software enabling you to control data usage

Please note that this product is subject to a 24 month contract