T42 wont turn on the wireless adapter

[upsie223]

I have recently aquired a T42 2373-4tu. When I attempt to turn on the wireless FN F5 the wireless light does not come on. I have tried downloading several different drivers with no luck. Any thoughts?

[RealBlackStuff]

What is the brand/model of that wifi card?
If it is not an approved-by-IBM card, it usually does not switch the LED on.

[ajkula66]

Welcome to the forum!

ThinkPad T42 (2373-4TU)
P M 735, 512MB RAM, 40GB 5400rpm HDD, 14.1 XGA(1024x768) TFT LCD, 32MB ATI Radeon 7500, 24x24x24x/8x CD-RW/DVD, Wireless upgradeable(MPCI), Modem(CDC), 1Gb Ethernet(LOM), UltraNav, Secure Chip, 6 cell Li-Ion battery, WinXP Pro

Your machine shipped with no wireless card installed, but with antennae in place. You'll have to install the card yourself.

[upsie223]

Thank you all IF there is no card in it (it was advertised as being wifi ready) what would you recommend as an affordable replacement? Secondly is there any guidance videos or simple instructions on how to get to the card space?

[Neil]

The hardware maintenance manual for your machine will guide you through all that.

http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/guides- ... fault.page?

Hint: The wireless adapter goes in the mini PCI slot under the middle of the palm rest. So you will have to remove several screws that hold the keyboard and palm rest in place. It's a very easy operation, just a bit tiresome removing about twenty screws.

[richk]

"WiFi Ready" often means it has the antenna wires but not the card. I have some inexpensive cards. pm if interested.