Thinkpads Forum

Hello!

I'm thinking about buying a WAN card for my X61T without having to flash a non-whitelisted BIOS. I know the Sierra MC8775 is supported on the X61T, but i'm more interested to know if the MC8775V or the MC8780 will work. The MC8775V has my interest because it has a GPS feature, and is practically the same thing as the regular MC8775. Alternatively, is it possible to somehow enable GPS for the regular MC8775, since it's the same chipset and all?

Any info on this is appreciated.

Nprod wrote:... I know the Sierra MC8775 is supported on the X61T ...

Welcome to the forum!
Only FRU #42T0931, a Lenovo-branded MC8775 will work without a modified BIOS -- not just any MC8775, and not the other cards.

Isn't there something like a firmware hack for the 8775V to show up as a Lenovo-branded MC8775?

Nprod wrote:Isn't there something like a firmware hack for the 8775V to show up as a Lenovo-branded MC8775?

If you don't mind non-standard firmware, then why bother putting any effort in the outdated and slow MC8775 (down 3.6Mbps/up 384Kbps)?! Far better to use a readily-available perfectly stable modified X61T BIOS which permits any WWAN card, and then use whatever WWAN card you want, preferably a newer/faster card.

If you don't mind non-standard firmware, then why bother putting any effort in the outdated and slow MC8775

Well, i'd rather brick the network card instead of the X61T motherboard It's obvious now that the regular 8775 is the cheapest and most adequate option. There is standard firmware for it that enables HSDPA support for 7.2Mbit downlink. As for faster uplink and GPS i can already use an external USB/PCMCIA Aircard if i need it.

I have flashed tens of X6x/T6x laptops with Middleton BIOS and no problems whatsoever.

Is there a version of Middleton for the X61T that has only the no-whitelist feature? I've seen ones with some SATAII hacks put in, and i'd like to avoid having that in since i use a regular HDD anyway. Also, what can guarantee that newer WWAN cards will be able to access the SIM holder properly? Does something like the F3507g require taping pin 20 and can it be turned on/off through the regular switch?

Middleton's BIOS has everything, there are no 'watered-down' versions (unless you make your own BIOS).
Regular hard disks are also SATA and would benefit from faster SATA II speed.

What about data integrity? Doesn't the SATAII mod make it a little uncertain since it hasn't been thoroughly tested? The warnings about no responsibility at the Middleton download post aren't exactly reassuring.

My T61's and X61's are all working fine since the modded BIOS, I guess many many people in this forum and other forums as well have also done this and their TPs are still running strong.

I flashed the Middleton Bios a couple weeks ago to my x61. Absolutely zero difference in using it. No issues at all. I'm just prepping for an SSD and an upgrade of the WiFi card. I'll report back if I have any problems, but I doubt I will.

Nprod wrote:What about data integrity? Doesn't the SATAII mod make it a little uncertain since it hasn't been thoroughly tested? The warnings about no responsibility at the Middleton download post aren't exactly reassuring.

He has to protect himself from people who don't know what they're doing. It's really *that* simple.

"Hey, I bricked my laptop while updating it with your BIOS, now I'm suing your a$$..."

Meanwhile, a media drive has been sickly for the past three years but the owner never bothered replacing it...

Hats off to Middleton. Without him our FrankenPads would still be stuck at SATA I speeds...

If he would only come back to modify the BIOS on *30 series so we could use the proper keyboards on them...

Nprod wrote:Is there a version of Middleton for the X61T that has only the no-whitelist feature?

Yes, there is. Read the PM (Private Message) that I sent you.

EOMtp wrote:Yes, there is. Read the PM (Private Message) that I sent you.

EOMtp - MANY thanks! Just one thing - are there any versions based on 1.25?

It's kinda funny, being able to install any card means i'll have to find and install an AUX antenna, since the only one present is the MAIN (bump on the screen assembly)... I suppose any random adhesive Wifi antenna will do fine, but i'll have to figure a way to attach it properly to the lid.

Nprod wrote:... any versions based on 1.25? ... i'll have to find and install an AUX antenna

No, sorry.
The AUX WWAN antenna (FRU #93P4388) is the top item shown in the picture below. It mounts on the front right, under the palm rest, rotated 90 degrees clockwise from the way it is shown in the picture.

Yeah, but that's only on the regular X61. The X61T's AUX looks like this, in the lower right corner:



I doubt it can be done without needing a little DIY It's also possible to borrow the third Wifi antenna (bigger white square on the top left) and use that as AUX for the WWAN, if i can find one of those.

Regular X60/X61 aux WAN antenna works on the Tablets also.

Seriously? That would save me a lot of trouble... Where do you put it? My motherboard has a connector in the way like in this picture. But you did give me the idea that i could use one of these cheapo WWAN antennas that stick onto the card:



It would be located under the plastic palm rest and not under the keyboard so the signal can get through. Bonus points for no possibility of cable pinching at the hinge - thanks!

Nprod wrote:Seriously? That would save me a lot of trouble... Where do you put it?

Look at the bottom right of the picture below:
http://i.ebayimg.com/t/IBM-Lenovo-X60s- ... Jw~~_3.JPG

EOMtp wrote:Look at the bottom right of the picture below:
http://i.ebayimg.com/t/IBM-Lenovo-X60s- ... Jw~~_3.JPG

Yes, but the X61T has a cable and connector in that area (picture) - it may or may not get in the way. There is no certain way to find out unless i try it directly. The antenna type i showed in my previous post seems like a much better alternative (and it's cheaper too).

The X61 aux antenna has soft pads under the antenna PCB that you can trim smaller in order to clear the connector.

OK, after reading a bit more about the benefits, i decided install the full-featured Middleton BIOS. Should hopefully be able to get a Sierra MC8781 working now.

Raceboy wrote:The X61 aux antenna has soft pads under the antenna PCB that you can trim smaller in order to clear the connector.

That's nice to hear. Is there any particular advantage of the stock X61 antenna compared to the U-shaped MC8781 AUX antenna i showed in my previous posts?

New question - so, the card can connect through Sierra's Watcher app with the SIM card inserted, but it can only find the service provider that the SIM card is for. Is there any way to check what other networks are available without connecting? As in, something similar to how you locate WiFi networks.

Hello,

Is it any way to use Sierra Wireless MC5720 Qualcomm 3g CDMA FRU #41W1177 in x61s? WHen I putted into my (CTO) x61s I have error in bios. "forbidden wwan card"

What should I do?
I can modify the bios if it is safe

Did anyone know any good and cheap source for antennas?

You should flash Middleton BIOS for it - that's what i did. I wasn't sure about it before, but it's actually better than the factory BIOS on my machine. The important thing is to have it on AC power while flashing.

This is the antenna i bought - [link] very cheaply, but it's for the X61 Tablet. There used to be a bunch of cheap X61S ones on eBay awhile back but they're gone now, so keep an eye on it. The cheapest currently available are around 23$.

Not so related - after adding the new WAN antenna i noticed that my hinge cap is broken. Does anybody know if hinge caps from an X41T would work? They appear to be exactly the same, except for neater looking IBM'ish texture on the X41T cap. I'm asking because since the X41T is an older machine, prices for spare parts are usually cheaper.

Update: A heads up for anybody looking for a replacement hinge cap for the X61T - an X41T one fits perfectly.

Thank you for your reply,

I have checked Google and I can't find Middleton BIOS for x61s machines?

What is your opinion about replacing native WWAN antennas by spare(additional) WLAN antennas?

rychuu wrote: have checked Google and I can't find Middleton BIOS for x61s machines?

Check the post here

X61s BIOS: http://forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo/ ... ost6501443

rychuu wrote:What is your opinion about replacing native WWAN antennas by spare(additional) WLAN antennas?

You can use the two Wifi (WLAN) antennas with the WWAN card to test out the connection. It works, but i'm not sure how the signal quality compares to real WWAN antennas. I'd advise you to do this temporarily just to see how well it works. Usually with Wifi you have two or three little squares, whereas for WWAN it's a big one for MAIN and a small one (or none at all) for AUX. The Sierra MC5720 uses 2 antennas, so you will need a minimum of 4 if you want both Wifi and WWAN to work.

I saw this blog in Chinese where someone used two AUX antennas to add WWAN support to an X61 by taping them to the back of the LCD module - [link]