Jessica McArdle Web Editor of Top 10 Broadband has spend the past 2 weeks reviewing 3's new Huawei E169 mobile broadband USB stick. Below she tells us how how going mobile went for her...

3’s new Huawei E169 USB stick has all the slick-looks and spark of a posh lighter and it’s just as easy to use. All I had to do to get set-up was remove it from the box and plug it into my laptop – no technical know-how needed.

As a home broadband user, I was wary of dipping my toe into the unknown waters of mobile broadband. Considering the discrepancy between speeds advertised and obtained in home broadband, I feared that 3’s “up to 2.8Mb” package would be a flashback to the days of dial-up.

Luckily, the connection was all broadband – no dial-up. Though speeds were slower than with home broadband (average download speed was 1.19Mb) the convenience that having access to broadband on-the-go made it was worth it for me.

One area where 3 were lacking was in the upload speed department. Upload speeds of just 0.06Mb meant that uploading pictures and email attachments was unbearable at times.

Overall I have to say I am a mobile broadband convert - at just £15 a month for 5Gb download allowance on 3’s mobile broadband plus tariff - it is a steal.