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The UG802 is a USB thumb drive-sized computer-on-a-stick. It has a Rockchip RK3066 dual core processor, 1GB of RAM, 4GB of storage, HDMI and USB ports, and runs Android 4.0 software. You can pick one up for under $70, plug in a monitor, keyboard, and mouse and use it like a cheap desktop computer.

But if you want to get a little more out of your device, Mindbuntu has instructions for rooting the UG802 and installing ClockworkMod custom recovery.

Rooting the UG802

When you root an Android device, you gain access to files, folders, and settings that wouldn’t otherwise be available. This lets you do some nifty things like creating detailed backups of all your system data as well as apps (including saved games or other important data).

Mindbuntu notes that you can use a modified version of SuperOneClick to root the UG802, following instructions from SlateDroid for a device with similar hardware.

One of the things you can do once you’ve rooted the UG802 is apply a Google Play Store fix so that you can access all the apps in Google’s app store.

Mindbuntu has instructions for applying that fix — but bear in mind, if anything goes wrong, it could cause your UG802 to behave in unexpected ways (such as not booting).

Installing ClockworkMod

ClockworkMod is a custom recovery utility that replaces the default recovery service that comes with your Android device.

Once installed, instead of booting directly into the Android operating system, you can boot into ClockworkMod to install operating system updates, software patches, or make other changes. You can also wipe your system, delete your cache, or perform other cleaning actions.

ClockworkMod also lets you make a complete backup of your device. It’s a good idea to do this before making any major changes, because if anything goes wrong, you can always restore from that backup snapshot (assuming you can at least boot into recovery).

Mindbuntu has instructions for installing ClockworkMod on the UG802.