X23 and adding internal Bluetooth

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schiesz · #1 Post by **schiesz** » Thu May 03, 2007 10:26 am

I see on the thinkwiki that the stock internal wireless card for a X23 that was equipped with it is the BDC, but I have a BMDC-2 card that I used with my t42 for a while and wanted to see if anyone had tried to get this to work.

For that matter, I wondered if anyone had added Bluetooth (using any of the CDC cards) to a x23 that was not equipped with it from the factory, since I have read that there was a switch that was used on those machines to turn it on and off.

Thanks,

ragefury32 · #2 Post by **ragefury32** » Thu May 03, 2007 12:31 pm

Um. Yes there is. You can use AccessConnections to turn it on/off via software, just like the X3/T4 series machines, so that button is somewhat useless. I upgraded my X24 from Bluetooth to Orinoco + EDC, and that button doesn't do anything.

schiesz · #3 Post by **schiesz** » Thu May 03, 2007 6:22 pm

I'll try this BMDC-2 card when the x23 comes, but since its not intended for the X23 i'm not all that hopeful that it will work. It is good to know that I will not need the hardware switch, since i'm pretty sure that will be next to impossible to find and/or install in a X23 that didn't come with it.

schiesz

schiesz · #4 Post by **schiesz** » Fri May 11, 2007 5:58 pm

Bluetooth II card works great with the x23!

I think its the II, it was identified as the III, but they appear to use the same driver so i'm not sure. I've lost the ethernet that was on the CDC card, but thats fine, I just want wireless and bluetooth so i'm very happy. This card has a modem in it, but i'm not sure if I could get that to work or not, and really don't care.

This turned out great for me, i'm really supprised it worked so well. I'm connected to my phone as a modem right now!

teetee · #5 Post by **teetee** » Fri May 11, 2007 6:44 pm

I am interested. Could you tell me the part number(FRU or MFR) of the card? Does your X23 detect it automatically (on the system device manager ) before you turn it in the AccessConnections software?

#6 Post by **underclocker** » Sat May 12, 2007 8:25 am

schiesz, it sounds like you're having some fun with that X23.

That is a great discovery, I can't believe that the switch isn't needed for Bluetooth. Did you use one of the two WiFi antennas for the Bluetooth - or add a third?

schiesz · #7 Post by **schiesz** » Sat May 12, 2007 8:08 pm

I AM having fun with the x23! It was a little strange getting it working. First, I installed the BDC drivers, even though I knew it was the wrong ones for the card, it is the right one for the x23. Not sure why I did that. Well, it didn't work. So next I uninstalled the BDC drivers, and installed the BMDC driver. When I did this, it started recognizing things left and right and installed a bunch of devices. Still did not appear to work though. So then I installed the AccessConnections and it saw the bluetooth device. I was able to turn it on with Access Connections, and everything seems to work great now. I do have to turn it on each time with Access Connections, but that is probably a good thing for the battery drain.

I had a short 4-5 inch antenna especially for bluetooth, so I kept both the wireless antennas intact. The short antenna was routed right over to the left side of the base, just above the PC card slot. Seems to work well with my phone, but I haven't tested range yet.

This laptop is perfect for me right now. Thanks Underclocker!

I'll look at the exact FRU later tonight if I get a chance to pull the keyboard off. I can take a picture of the antenna routing if someone wants it then also.

teetee · #8 Post by **teetee** » Sat May 12, 2007 10:29 pm

That would be great! I thought it was impossible to get the bluetooth working when I first got my X24. I couldn't find any info on putting the BMDC card in X2x which didn't come with one. I was wondering if there is a hardware switch onboard to turn it on and it turns out the switch is controlled by software. This is totally new and exciting to me!

schiesz · #9 Post by **schiesz** » Sun May 13, 2007 10:02 pm

Range is pretty good, I used it about 15 feet away from my phone, through an exterior wall, but it wouldn't go 25-30 feet to the table on my deck. I call it quite sufficient. I don't know any way to test signal strength with it yet.

The exact FRU is 91P7319, originally found in T42's, R41's and x40's.

schiesz · #10 Post by **schiesz** » Wed May 23, 2007 9:28 am

I see someone is selling this same card in the BST section here.

X23 and adding internal Bluetooth

X23 and adding internal Bluetooth

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