Thinkpads Forum

Looking for options to upgrade the wifi inside my t60p 14' machine. 2007-84U.

Well, it came out of the factory with an Intel 802.11abg wireless card, probably an Intel Pro Wireless 3945abg. That card has (2) antennas. If you are looking to upgrade to wireless 'N' you'll need a 3rd antenna and a wireless 'N' card. There are many threads on the forum discussing this upgrade. Try a forum search and post back with questions. Here I'll get you started;
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&neww ... =&safe=off

Advanced forum search engine - http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q ... as_qdr=all

Harryc wrote:Well, it came out of the factory with an Intel 802.11abg wireless card, probably an Intel Pro Wireless 3945abg. That card has (2) antennas. If you are looking to upgrade to wireless 'N' you'll need a 3rd antenna and a wireless 'N' card. There are many threads on the forum discussing this upgrade. Try a forum search and post back with questions. Here I'll get you started;
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&neww ... =&safe=off

Advanced forum search engine - http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q ... as_qdr=all

There are some N wireless cards also with 2 antennas (atheros chipsets and probably others). You will need a midified bios then though.

I snagged a N card from 24okbuy on ebay (IBM Atheros AR5BXB72 ar5008 42t0825 T61 X61 T61p card is the title). It was $47.99. I picked up the third antenna from ACS parts online for $20. It comes with the LCD screw covers BTW so you don't have to worry about reusing them. Technically you shouldn't reuse the Thinkpad screws, a screw kit is about $2.50 from Lenovo...the ones on ebay are not all the screws you need usually. However, like most of the IBM suppliers you are on the hook for $10 minimum shipping.

I was using a TrendNet TEW-648UB which is tiny for $20, but they make even smaller ones: http://trendnet.com/products/products.asp?cat=42#15

If you don't mind losing a USB port these are great options...I carry this in my pocket daily (I work in IS) along with a MiFi device. I can get a machine online very easily with these two tools.

I was replacing my motherboard and LCD anyway so it made sense to upgrade at the same time...if you don't have bluetooth add that when you upgrade...they are under $10 on ebay. You won't have the 'icon' for it under your monitor, but if you really wanted to have it you can buy a decal kit for $20. In the kit you get every possible combination of WWAN/WIFI/Bluetooth and T60/T60P.

If I wasn't doing all this work the little USB dongle worked just fine and was cheap.

Currently using an HP Broadcom BCM94322MC wireles N card (BIOS modified) - Can confirm that card is stable and quick - holds connections very well even with AP's that are some distance away!

HP Broadcom 4322AGN 802.11n Wireless Card similar/like Peak2Peak and it's 2 antennas and works very well.

with the 2 wire HP card, you say i will need a modified bios. Where do i get that?

Can our T60s utilize the "Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 AGN" card on the new W series?

I'm looking to get a card that has more range and better connectivity. My T60 currently has the Atheros AR 5008 a/b/g/n but at my school, everyone can get on the Wifi while mine is super slow and laggy. I'm not sure if it's a network/software issue or not though but I've read the range on that 6300 card is much greater than the old cards.

Also, how do I tell if I have 2 or 3 antennas, would that add a bulge to the lid?

If that 6300AGN is miniPCI-e, it should work, provided you get drivers for it.
You may also need a (Zender) modified BIOS to allow a 'foreign' card.
If the card needs 3 antennas, and you have only 2 antenna connections, check if you have an (unused) BlueTooth antenna, and use that as the third one.
You can also get separate 3rd antennas for wifi-N.

...and as the Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 is a Half Height card, you will need one of these: mPCIe half height to full height bracket - as your T60 accepts only full height mPCIe cards.

Asudef wrote:Can our T60s utilize the "Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 AGN" card on the new W series?

I'm looking to get a card that has more range and better connectivity. My T60 currently has the Atheros AR 5008 a/b/g/n but at my school, everyone can get on the Wifi while mine is super slow and laggy. I'm not sure if it's a network/software issue or not though but I've read the range on that 6300 card is much greater than the old cards.

Also, how do I tell if I have 2 or 3 antennas, would that add a bulge to the lid?

The 3rd wifi antenna protrudes from the lower right side of the LCD bezel...if you don't have it you will see a cover that's flush where it goes.