Mini PCI cards with antenna

I'm currently using a cardbus wireless g card. I have seen some mini PCI
atheros b/g cards recently on ebay that come with an antenna and a couple of
plastic bits (brackets?).
I had always assumed that mini pci cards connected to some integral antenna
and that with my laptop (Dell Inspiron 5000E) I would not be able to just
remove my pci modem and replace with a wlan pci card.
Can the cards I mentioned above be fitted to any laptop as long as there's a
mini pci slot? If so, where would you route the antenna?
Thanks for any advice.

You route bothantenna up the back of the screen. One to the top middle and
one lower down at one side.

Quite worrying the first time you do it as it feels like brain surgery. The
next time it's no problem.

On some Dells you have to be careful about the card. Some ex Toshiba mibi
PCI cards stop the CD working. The Intels are OK but some IBM branded Intels
sometimes will not switch the radio on in Dells as the IBM Thinkpads use
different switching contacts on the cards.


"Dean" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:45d210b2$0$8744$(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> I'm currently using a cardbus wireless g card. I have seen some mini PCI
> atheros b/g cards recently on ebay that come with an antenna and a couple
> of
> plastic bits (brackets?).
> I had always assumed that mini pci cards connected to some integral
> antenna
> and that with my laptop (Dell Inspiron 5000E) I would not be able to just
> remove my pci modem and replace with a wlan pci card.
> Can the cards I mentioned above be fitted to any laptop as long as there's
> a
> mini pci slot? If so, where would you route the antenna?
> Thanks for any advice.
>

On Tue, 13 Feb 2007 23:12:49 -0000, That Bloke wrote:

>You route bothantenna up the back of the screen. One to the top middle and
>one lower down at one side.
>
>Quite worrying the first time you do it as it feels like brain surgery. The
>next time it's no problem.
>
>On some Dells you have to be careful about the card. Some ex Toshiba mibi
>PCI cards stop the CD working. The Intels are OK but some IBM branded Intels
>sometimes will not switch the radio on in Dells as the IBM Thinkpads use
>different switching contacts on the cards.
>
>

Thanks for the help. So does this mean the antenna has to go through the
hinge?

On Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:26:48 +0000, Dean <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
<45d210b2$0$8744$(E-Mail Removed)>:

>I'm currently using a cardbus wireless g card. I have seen some mini PCI
>atheros b/g cards recently on ebay that come with an antenna and a couple of
>plastic bits (brackets?).
>I had always assumed that mini pci cards connected to some integral antenna
>and that with my laptop (Dell Inspiron 5000E) I would not be able to just
>remove my pci modem and replace with a wlan pci card.

Depends on whether your laptop has a built-in Wi-Fi antenna or not --
does it?

>Can the cards I mentioned above be fitted to any laptop as long as there's a
>mini pci slot? If so, where would you route the antenna?

If you're willing to sacrifice some radio performance, you can use
small Wi-Fi antennas anywhere near the mini PCI card that they are
behind plastic (not metal).

--
Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://Wireless.wikia.com>
John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi>
Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>

On Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:50:17 GMT, John Navas wrote:

>On Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:26:48 +0000, Dean <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
><45d210b2$0$8744$(E-Mail Removed)>:
>
>>I'm currently using a cardbus wireless g card. I have seen some mini PCI
>>atheros b/g cards recently on ebay that come with an antenna and a couple of
>>plastic bits (brackets?).
>>I had always assumed that mini pci cards connected to some integral antenna
>>and that with my laptop (Dell Inspiron 5000E) I would not be able to just
>>remove my pci modem and replace with a wlan pci card.
>
>Depends on whether your laptop has a built-in Wi-Fi antenna or not --
>does it?

I'm fairly certain there is no built-in antenna. The laptop is quite old
and came with the mini pci slot occupied by a winmodem.

>>Can the cards I mentioned above be fitted to any laptop as long as there's a
>>mini pci slot? If so, where would you route the antenna?
>
>If you're willing to sacrifice some radio performance, you can use
>small Wi-Fi antennas anywhere near the mini PCI card that they are
>behind plastic (not metal).

Will the sensitivity be noticably poorer than say my DLink cardbus cards'
built-in antenna? The type of mini pci card I'm referring to are the ones
on Ebay that to be compatible with most notebooks and invariably come with 2
short lengths of wire (about 10").

On Wed, 14 Feb 2007 18:37:03 +0000, Dean <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
<45d35696$0$8749$(E-Mail Removed)>:

>On Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:50:17 GMT, John Navas wrote:

>>Depends on whether your laptop has a built-in Wi-Fi antenna or not --
>>does it?
>
>I'm fairly certain there is no built-in antenna. The laptop is quite old
>and came with the mini pci slot occupied by a winmodem.

Another important factor is the BIOS. Some machines will refuse to boot
if the BIOS detects a "foreign" Wi-Fi card.

>>If you're willing to sacrifice some radio performance, you can use
>>small Wi-Fi antennas anywhere near the mini PCI card that they are
>>behind plastic (not metal).
>
>Will the sensitivity be noticably poorer than say my DLink cardbus cards'
>built-in antenna? The type of mini pci card I'm referring to are the ones
>on Ebay that to be compatible with most notebooks and invariably come with 2
>short lengths of wire (about 10").

Hard to say. Might be a bit better. Might be a bit worse. Depending
on how good and well placed the antennas are.

For better performance, consider a PC Card or USB adapter with pop-up or
external antenna; e.g.,
http://www.buffalotech.com/products/...ebook-adapter/
http://www.buffalotech.com/products/...ebook-adapter/
http://www.buffalotech.com/products/...sb-20-adapter/

--
Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://Wireless.wikia.com>
John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi>
Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>