A surf stick (O2 Surf Stick) is the term sometimes used to describe a USB modem, which many people rely on daily to access the Internet from mobile locations. Standard surf stick devices utilise Internet protocols and networks to connect individual netbooks and laptops to the Internet. While many new computers come with internal modems for mobile Internet connectivity, surf sticks are still the most common way that people with laptops access online services. There is a growing demand for access to the Internet from mobile devices, with people using a variety of devices to go online. Some of the different devices that can be used to access the Internet include laptops, netbooks, tablets, mobile gaming devices, and smartphones.

While these devices use a number of different hardware technologies to go online, they all utilise the same network protocols and mobile networks. The mobile Internet refers to Internet access from a mobile device, along with the use of integrated devices such as USB modems and PCMCIA cards. Most surf sticks and wireless modems these days utilise the HSPA (3.5G) and 3G networks, although some of the other networks used include GPRS, CSD, and the new 4G. Along with different networks, there are also a number of standards that relate to the mobile Internet, with different standards used to improve the interoperability, usability, and accessibility of mobile web usage. Many of these standards were set up with the Mobile Web Initiative (MWI), developed by the W3C as a way to standardise the mobile web.

There are more people using mobile devices to access the Internet all the time, with huge growth in smartphone and tablet use easy to see around the world. However, there are also millions of people who use laptops and netbooks to go online when away from home, many of whom depend on USB surf stick style modems. Surf stick modems have some advantages over internal modem technologies, especially because they can be connected to external antennas to enable better connectivity. USB modems are widely available directly from Internet service providers, and can also be purchased independently from phone and computer stores.