WiFi Underperformance

[hkelley]

I am enjoying my fourth Thinkpad...a new T60 8347CTO widescreen w/ 2gb, 7200 rpm HD. However, I am having some doubts about the Intel Pro 3945abg wireless card's receive signal sensitivity. Even my old X20 with a two year old Linksys PCMI card sticking out the side sees more signals than my three-antenna T60.

I am curious if others are experiencing under performance with thier Intel wireless card? Is there a remedy for this?

[tomh009]

The Atheros (e.g. "ThinkPad a/b/g") wireless cards tend to have more signal strength than the Intel. Whether the Intel has enough for you to be acceptable is something only you can determine, though.

[hkelley]

What model Atheros are you suggesting? I assume Lenovo does not sell this alternative card.

[tomh009]

I use the Atheros 11a/b/g ... it's available from Lenovo as an option, or as an aftermarket accessory. Part number 73P4301, $65. An excellent card, as most readers of this forum will attest.

[pinesol]

What model Atheros are you suggesting? I assume Lenovo does not sell this alternative card.

I use Atheros 802.11 b/g/n, which is also available through Lenovo.

[marlinspike]

Do you have Vista installed on your computer? There have been reports of Vista hurting the wireless performance. My thought it is that it's just a driver issue that we'll see fixed as Vista gets older.

[ms]

What model Atheros are you suggesting? I assume Lenovo does not sell this alternative card.

I use Atheros 802.11 b/g/n, which is also available through Lenovo.

Are you using it since the beginning or did you upgrade from g? If the latter, do you have to change the built in antenna?

[Alltweed]

My rep said she could not configure my t60 using Atheros N (a,b,g,n) unless it had XP PRO

[hkelley]

Now I am bit confused. Is the "Thinkpad a/b/g" an Atheros card or is that a different card?

Is the Atheros a/b/g/n 73P4301 a different card than the "Thinkpad" card.

In other words, are there three cards to choose from: Intel 3945, Thinkpad a/b/g ($45) and the Atheros (73P4301) a/b/g/ ($65).

Also, when I do a lookup on the 73P4301 it is listed as an a/b/g but no indication of "n".

Also...what is the difference between a mini-PCI express adapter (Intel and Thinkpad versions) and a mini-PC adapter II (which is the Atheros)? Are they interchangeable?

[johhn14]

They are not interchangable.

Mini PCI Express are newer and are for T6x Z6x,

Mini PCI are for older models (like the T43).

Both are Atheros.

[hkelley]

Thanks John14... However, is the Adapter II the same as an Express?

[tomh009]

Now I am bit confused. Is the "Thinkpad a/b/g" an Atheros card or is that a different card?

OK ... "ThinkPad" wireless is the same as Atheros. Lenovo uses "ThinkPad" as the marketing name for the Atheros cards as "Atheros" doesn't have a lot of brand recognition outside thinkpads.com.

Atheros cards come in b/g, a/b/g and (draft!) a/b/g/n variants. Depending on what you will be using it for, I would recommend at least the a/b/g card for added flexibility. The "n" provides greater performance, but since the standard is not yet final, it may yet prove to work with only some "n" access points. Caveat emptor. And anything "a" or "g" will be faster than any Internet connection you can find.

Finally, the Mini-PCI vs Mini-PCI Express: your T60 will need the latter. My mistake in giving you the standard Mini-PCI part number. The correct number for the Atheros a/b/g Mini-PCI Express card is 40Y7026 ($49). The a/b/g/n version does not yet appear to be available as an accessory.

Sorry about the confusion!

[claudeo]

Before you waste too much time and money on this, don't believe the signal you "see". The bars lie. Believe the signal you actually get, e.g. by measuring actual file transfer speed, since the speed will drop to compensate as the signal gets worse.

[hkelley]

I am not so much concerned about the truth-in-signal-reporting as I am in seeing all the signals that might be available to me. The IBM 3945 seems anemic in performance compared to a Linksys card sticking out the side of an old ThinkPad X20.

[robegusn]

I have been using a T60 - my first Thinkpad - and there seems to be no problems with the wireless and signal strength.

[evanr76]

Anecdotally, I can confirm that in an A/B test, I experienced fewer drop-outs/association problems with the Thinkpad a/b/g (Atheros) mini-PCIe, when compared with the Intel 3945ABG.

The reported signal strength was also higher, although as someone else pointed out this can be misleading.

Mine is not the first anecdotal report of the Atheros-based card beating the Intel 3945ABG, nor should it be taken as conclusive.

At the same time, though, I have never read a report of better performance being achieved (in any dimension except perhaps power saving) with the Intel 3945ABG.

My sneaking suspicion is that the newer Intel adapters trade off sensitivity for reduced power consumption (even on AC power). This would certainly be in line with Centrino mobile goals.