Need help with difference in Wireless options.

[SouthPaw42]

Lenovo lists 3 wireless options. But I am having problems finding information on what is best card. Draft N still has so many compatibility problems that I am not worried about it but what else is the differentiation points of each card?

ThinkPad 11a/b/g Wi-Fi wireless (802.11a/b/g)

Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)

Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (802.11a/b/g/Draft N)

[icantux]

First off, the "Thinkpad a/b/g" card is and atheros-based chipset wifi card and has an extra channel available on it which is widely used in the EU but not in North America. If you use linux this card is the better choice since it's much easier to configure and is generally very powerful (holds connections very well). It does, however, run warmer than the intel cards because of increased power output, which, in turn, affects battery life (not significantly - we're not talking about abrupt drainage here, but 10 perhaps 15 minute difference with intel card power draw).

The intel cards (intel chipset - combined with an intel CPU certify the computer system as "Centrino") use less power than the atheros card, thus run cooler in the machine and, therefore, saves battery energy (not a great amount compared with the atheros, but still there is less energy drain). These cards are more difficult to configure in linux as there is less native support for the chipset (blame intel).

Opinions regarding which card holds a better signal and is more powerful will vary greatly among users.

In my case, I have no experience with the Intel 3945abg but certainly have experienced the precursor model (intel 2200) and was not overly impressed with the intel card. It kept losing wifi connections although it did better in terms of power draw on my system (T42) - i.e. used less power. I switched to the atheros card, one of the reasons being that I use linux more often than windows and the atheros card was much easier to configure and was very reliable in terms of wifi connectivity.

[SouthPaw42]

Thanks. I will just stay with the "Thinkpad a/b/g" and do a upgrade later when there is a more Linux friendly card.

[icantux]

It's not to say the intel 3945abg is not linux friendly, some linux distros (Mint, perhaps Ubuntu) require no further tweaking or installation - the card just works out of the box, although some report that to get full use of the card requires ndiswrapper and the windows drivers which makes it a hassle. The 4965 is a completely different kettle of fish.

[Peak2Peak]

I switched to the ThinkPad 11a/b/g (Atheros) card from the Intel 3945 a/b/g - The Intel had problems holding connections on most WLAN routers, while the Atheros holds-on to all connections and seems to be much more sensitive too. (Note: On my previous T43p which had an Intel 2915 a/b/g I experienced the same problem of losing connections) - I'm using the ThinkVantage Access Connections software which is a little more kinder and flexible than the standard Windows wireless utility - I can not comment on the power consumption between the two cards as I am mainly run the ThinkPad on the Mains and very rarely on battery.

As it stands if you are have a T60(p) the Lenovo Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN card won't work out the box due to BIOS restrictions, but due the forum member: Zender's work, you can flash the BIOS and use virtually any WLAN / WWAN vendors card you wish