The Option Icon 451 USB 3G modem includes a new feature which Option have dubbed 'uCAN'. Essentially the device is not only a Quad-Band high-speed HSPA modem, but also comes pre-loaded with a suite of 'portable' applications that can be run from the device itself, using the host PC's hardware resources, but not leaving any trace on that PC.
You can read more about the new feature on the Option web site here - http://www.option.com/en/products/products/applications/ap4010/

The Icon 451 also ships with a 2GB memory card allowing you to store documents on the device, providing a portable office in your pocket. The application suite currently includes (for Windows):

• 7-Zip - file compression utility
• OpenOffice - free Microsoft-compatible office suite
• Pidgin - cross-platform instant messaging client
• VLC - media player
• ClamWin - anti virus
• MSN Messenger
• Firefox - web browser

On the Mac platform currently only Firefox is available.

Installation is quick and easy, when inserted into the PC you will be prompted to specify whether or not you want to use the uCAN feature, or whether you want to just use the device's modem functionality.

Windows

Insert the device into the PC, the device will be detected as a CD-ROM device and will autorun - depending on your PC's settings you may find you need to browse to the device in My Computer and launch the uCAN.exe file:

Once the required driver files are installed, Windows will then detect further new hardware and install the device as a USB modem. You may be prompted to reboot once this process has completed.

Once rebooted, the uCAN dashboard will be displayed, and inserting the device into the PC from now on will launch the dashboard:

The left-hand pane displays a list of available portable applications. The uCAN Store icon opens an Explorer window and allows you to browse the contents of the storage card memory.
The right-hand pane displays status information about the mobile connection and allows you to initiate and disconnect the Internet connection.
The unit will automatically configure itself with the correct connection settings for your mobile operator, but should you want to edit these settings manually, you can do so by clicking on the Settings button:

From here you can select from available mobile networks:

Configure APN connection settings:

And select frequency bands:

Diagnostic information is also available:

Mac

When inserted into a Mac, the installation procedure is very similar: the device will be detected as a CD drive:

In the Extra folder is the necessary driver package for the Icon series.
NOTE - the driver package that comes pre-loaded on the device (at the time of writing at any rate), is only compatible up to MacOS 10.5 (Leopard). Should you be running 10.6 (Snow Leopard), you will need to manually download and instal updated drivers - http://blog.brightpointuk.co.uk/installing-option-icon-range-usb-modems-...

Running the driver installer is a straightforward process, follow the on-screen instructions:

MacOS 10.5:

MacOS 10.6:

Once the drivers are installed, you can run the uCAN application, which again will prompt you to specify whether you want to use this feature or just use the device as a modem:

The uCAN application then appears, with the same interface as that used by the Windows application, but with only the Firefox application listed:

The same settings are available: