If I install a high speed wireless PCMCIA card (802.11g) will this actually work at “high speeds” or will the speed be limited by the hardware on TR (adapter)?

Will there be any conflict issues if I install one? i.e. the wireless LAN switch on the front (OFF/ON) will that work with an installed Card?

Bottom line: Is it worth it to get a G card or will I get a bottleneck due to the limitations on the laptop anyway?

Thanks

You should be fine with a 802.11g PCMCIA card. The only real limitation is the range of the PCMCIA card. Usually, the antenna on a PCMCIA is weaker than the built-in antenna of any given laptop. Be prepared for that. In some cases it’s noticeably weaker…but it varies from brand to brand. The reason is that the antenna is only available on one side where it’s sticking out of your system. Built-in antennas typically line the entire top of the LCD screen giving it far better coverage.

802.11g specifies 54Mbps transmission. In reality, the actual transfer speeds with a full signal are around 22Mbps without security turned on and roughly 15-18Mbps with security features turned on.

802.11b is 11Mbps transmission with an actual of around 5.5Mbps. As with the faster spec, security features slow down the connection a little depending on the brand of the adapter.

FWIW, neither of these specs burden the TR and any other modern notebook. The PCMCIA controller is connected to the PCI bus which has 133MBps (over 1000Mbps) of throughput. So, there’s plenty of room to spare for the measly 20Mbps needed.

The LAN switch only works on internal wireless. You’ll need to physically remove the PCMCIA card if you want it to not use any battery or you’ll need to disable it from within Windows. There may be a utility to turn off the card but that varies from vendor to vendor.

The worth of the update depends entirely on your needs. If you’re simply web browsing, downloading stuff, e-mail, and even streaming video then 802.11b is more than enough in most cases. The reason why is that most broadband carriers only give up you 6Mbps types of connections. In most cases you’re lucky to get 1.5-3Mbps of actual throughput. 802.11b is giving you 5.5Mbps max throughput. It more than covers you actual throughput needs.

If you typically transfer lots of files within your own network then 54Mbps (or up to 22Mbps) will make a difference. Of course, nothing beats a direct 100Mbps (actual or close to it) ethernet connection if you really need to move a lot of files.

Thanks groovy, as always.

Groovy,

One more q,

If I do end up installing a G card on my TR, can I just turn the “off” switch to turn off my internal wireless card, but if i need to can i then take out my G card and switch the internal one back on?

i.e. will installing a G card disable my internal card forever?

thanks

[quote author=“agoodfella”]Groovy,

One more q,

If I do end up installing a G card on my TR, can I just turn the “off” switch to turn off my internal wireless card, but if i need to can i then take out my G card and switch the internal one back on?

i.e. will installing a G card disable my internal card forever?

thanks

If you install the PCMCIA card, you will have two wireless connections available. I’m not sure which one takes preference but both will be on. If you use the switch then you can physically turn off the internal wireless while you’re using the PCMCIA card. When you remove the PCMCIA card you can simply switch the wireless back on and the internal will kick in.

You da man… thanks