USB On-the-Go, commonly referred to as USB OTG or OTG, is a specification that allows some Android smartphones and tablets to act as a USB host, allowing you to connect other USB peripherals, such as keyboards or flash drives, to them. Here's what to know about USB OTG, how to tell if your device supports it, and how to take advantage of this handy functionality.

You’ll see a USB OTG label on devices that can connect and control external USB peripherals or that connect to another device and act as a USB peripheral. According to USB.org, these devices achieve this functionality using a single USB port.

We typically think of USB connections as starting with a computer (the host) and connecting to another device, usually a peripheral such as a printer, mouse, keyboard, or USB flash drive. A device that supports USB OTG can function as either the host or the peripheral.

Android smartphones are a popular USB OTG implementation. When you connect an Android smartphone to a computer, the computer is the host and the phone acts as a peripheral. You would likely use your computer to manage files on the phone.