Retro Wi-fi Upgrade

[jimbim]

I have a couple laptops -- one with wi-fi and an older one without. I want to add it to the older one.

Have heard about wi-fi receivers that can be plugged into USB ports.

Anyone want to recommend a good wi-fi upgrade sold in Thailand.

cheers and thanks

[Gimbo]

I have a couple laptops -- one with wi-fi and an older one without. I want to add it to the older one.

Have heard about wi-fi receivers that can be plugged into USB ports.

Anyone want to recommend a good wi-fi upgrade sold in Thailand.

cheers and thanks

Anyone will probably do just fine. If unsure, just look for a brand name one, and try to find the most speedy you can get.

[Guest Reimar]

Ok, USB maybe fine. But I would go for an PCMCIA solution, even to keep the limited USB pots on an Laptop free!

A good one is the Level one 108 Mbps. You can find tham at Pantip or other IT Malls.

[Veazer]

You might also check to see if your laptop has an internal 'minipci' slot available. My gf's laptop had the slot and the wifi antenna already in place, we just needed to order a minipci wifi card off ebay.

This typically applies only to laptops that had a wifi option originally.

[Guest Reimar]

You might also check to see if your laptop has an internal 'minipci' slot available. My gf's laptop had the slot and the wifi antenna already in place, we just needed to order a minipci wifi card off ebay.

This typically applies only to laptops that had a wifi option originally.

The problem with older Minipci WiFi is that nearly all of them just run at 12 Mbps which is very slow! And they much more expensive too!

[GungaDin]

Ok, USB maybe fine. But I would go for an PCMCIA solution, even to keep the limited USB pots on an Laptop free!

A good one is the Level one 108 Mbps. You can find tham at Pantip or other IT Malls.

Hi Reimar,

"Level one108 Mbps Wireless PCMCIA Adapter wpc-300"

$60 in Aus, $25 from NewEgg.com

For $60 what would you suggest? (from the USA) I get delivery in 5 days.

Asus Pro 31 series, Vista Home Premium.

Cheers GD.

[nikster]

PC Card (PCMCIA) is nicer because you can leave it in, with just a small piece protruding. I had bought a Linksys one for a friend, worked just fine.

USB is easier just plug it in and go. It's also cheaper and readily available everywhere.

[Veazer]

You might also check to see if your laptop has an internal 'minipci' slot available. My gf's laptop had the slot and the wifi antenna already in place, we just needed to order a minipci wifi card off ebay.

This typically applies only to laptops that had a wifi option originally.

The problem with older Minipci WiFi is that nearly all of them just run at 12 Mbps which is very slow! And they much more expensive too!

Her's was just $15 and supported 802.11g, not too pricey or slow. Very few of them on ebay are 802.11b any more, they are primarily 802.11g

The only problem I've heard with them is that some laptop manufacturer lock the bios to only accept a few brands of minipci wifi cards.

[Guest Reimar]

You might also check to see if your laptop has an internal 'minipci' slot available. My gf's laptop had the slot and the wifi antenna already in place, we just needed to order a minipci wifi card off ebay.

This typically applies only to laptops that had a wifi option originally.

The problem with older Minipci WiFi is that nearly all of them just run at 12 Mbps which is very slow! And they much more expensive too!

Her's was just $15 and supported 802.11g, not too pricey or slow. Very few of them on ebay are 802.11b any more, they are primarily 802.11g

The only problem I've heard with them is that some laptop manufacturer lock the bios to only accept a few brands of minipci wifi cards.

eBay is out of any question for me, I would never buy something from eBay again!

The cost of an new WiFi Minipci for HP for example is above THB 5,000!! I had one a Presario 2500 (2598 AT) and the complete Wifi was a little as THB 7,600nand only 12 Mbps!!

And you need to find the one which is supported by your Laptop!

I would go for some I can use in ALL and that is either USB or PCMCIA while PCMCIA is the better solution even is a bit more expensive than USB! But as I wrote before, to use PCMCIA keeps your USB free for use and the ports on an Laptop are limited.

The Level one WPC-300 is fast (108 Mbps) and have a very strong antenna as well for quite long distance reception. I used that for the time and still have one as spare if the built-in from my Aspire will fails.

[Thanh-BKK]

Hello

I used a "Micronet" branded USB-WiFi adaptor to share my ADSL connection on the PC with my boyfriend's laptop. This worked excellent under XP, however when i got Vista this device was not supported natively and the manufacturer (Micronet) didn't release an updated driver for the "old" device (8 months at that time).

If you run XP, grab one of those at Panthip for 650 Baht.

Best regards.....

Thanh

[jimbim]

Many thanks for the suggestions -- will now start googling to learn more about the solutions.

cheers

[GungaDin]

Reeemer, thanks a lot for your help.