Network management Toolkit

Win a black Vodafone USB modem and MacBook

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If you're out of the office, but need to have access to company systems and have heavy email and internet usage, a fast, reliable connection for your laptop makes life a lot easier. Vodafone's Mobile Broadband USB Modem promises to deliver fast mobile broadband with an easy set-up — and we're giving you the chance to win one, plus an Apple laptop.

Normally, Vodafone's USB modem comes only in white, but we've got two black versions to give away, out of only eight in the UK. And one winner also gets a matching black MacBook, courtesy of Vodafone UK and ZDNet.co.uk.

The slim modem, previously sold as the Vodafone Mobile Connect USB Modem, plugs via cable into a USB port on any computer. With Windows PCs, it self-installs quickly the first time it's connected. With Macs, the installation software comes on a separate CD. There's a slot for your SIM card and a mini-USB connector, but no power cable — the laptop supplies the juice. (A SIM card is not included in the prize.) The device can be shared among multiple users and PCs, which means it can act as a backup to a company's fixed network.

As for speed, the HSPDA-compliant device can provide access to the internet and email at mobile broadband rates, with average connection download speeds of up to 1Mbps all over the UK. It has tri-band GSM, GPRS and 3G wireless connectivity, adding up to roaming coverage in more than 100 countries.

The black MacBook up for grabs has a 13.3-inch TFT widescreen display and a 120GB hard drive. At the heart is a 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, with 1GB of DDR2 SDRAM. There's also an Intel GMA 950 graphics processor, which shares 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM with the main memory, plus a built-in iSight camera.