PCMCIA to RS-232 adapter

[ziloo]

Hello Folks,

Has anybody had any experience with using PCMCIA-> RS-232 adapters
on Thinkpad machines without a COM port.

1- Is the adapter foolproof and easy to use ?
2- Does it require a driver installation ?

Thank you

ziloo

[RealBlackStuff]

T6x has a special (hard to find) Ultrabay-adapter with serial and parallel ports, but this does not exist for a T4x.
There exist PCMCIA to RS-232 adapters, but I never tried one.
Reason: I always used a handy IBM Port Replicator for the T4x (and other models).

I have some for sale here: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=120891

[ziloo]

Thank you for the info. I looked up a few videos on youtube regarding the replicator. It sure is very handy and practical.

ziloo

[Johan]

T6x has a special (hard to find) Ultrabay-adapter with serial and parallel ports, but this does not exist for a T4x.

The device referenced to is this which is available on eBay e.g. here. Since we know that the R6x/T6x UltraBay SATA adapters (e.g. P/N 40Y8725, FRU 26R9246) will work just perfect in a T4x/p, are you then certain that the T6x Ultrabay Slim Serial/Parallel Port Adapter won't work in a T4x/p?

Update: According to this post the T4x/p's are missing a connector in the UltraBay-interface, compared to T6x/p's. This is true; I just had a look in one of my T42's and one of my T60's. Whether this missing connector (in T4x/p's) however has anything to do with the serial/parallel interface, that I don't know.

A very cheap ("New In Box") T4x port replicator (40Y8139) is also available here.

Johan

[brchan]

I have one of the T6* ultrabay serial/parallel adapters. These will not work in the T4*. I remember that the adapter wouldn't even fit all the way into the T4* ultrabay and would end up hitting the back of the ultrabay cage. T400/T500/W500 also had this connector removed. The T61 would be the last and fastest model to still have this capability.

[RealBlackStuff]

A very cheap ("New In Box") T4x port replicator (40Y8139) is also available here.
Johan

That's not cheap!
That's $20 for just ONE, I offer THREE for a total of only $25

[Kasm279]

I've used a Socket-brand serial port card with no issues, as well as a CFIO GPS receiver in a CF-PCMCIA adapter that presents itself with an RS-232 interface for NMEA sentences. Both worked as expected. The Socket card worked better than USB solutions.

As for the Ultrabay Serial/Parallel Port Bay Adapter:
It does have a special connector that only the T60/p and T61/p has. The connector seems to be paralleled with some of the pins in the docking port as the circuitry is the same as what you find in an Advanced Mini Dock/Advanced Dock. SuperIO chip, DC-DC converter, and an RS-232 driver.

[ziloo]

I've used a Socket-brand serial port card with no issues...
The Socket card worked better than USB solutions.

Hello Kasm,

Does it look like a COM port to the operating system, or
does it need a driver before it can be recognized?

Thank you for your help

ziloo

[Kasm279]

I had to pull the card out to look. The card requires a driver, and unfortunately it's only 32-bit.