Wifi AC + Bluetooth 4.0 mini card compatible with T61?

[Backslashnl1]

I tried to install a mini pci-express wifi AC + bluetooth 4.0 card in my T61 FrankenPad, but the machine refused to boot.
The card is the AzureWave AW-CE123H, because it is compatible with OSX.

The display stays black, and I heard a strange humming sound. I made a short movie clip and posted it on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/UqlLc7sU1gg

I reinstalled my old Wifi card and everything worked fine again.
I thought the Wifi card was defect, so I returned it to the seller. He tested the card in his own laptop, but it seems to work without a problem.

So my question is; is the T61 mainboard incompatible with these newer mini pci-express WiFi AC + BT 4.0 cards?

[ajkula66]

FWIW, I've had no problems with Intel 7260AC in the respect of booting. Middleton's BIOS is a must, of course.

No idea about the card that you're referring to since I've never tried it.

[axur-delmeria]

Have you tried the other mini-PCIe slots?

[Backslashnl1]

No, unfortunately not I didn't realize I could use another slot.
Why should it work in the other slot?

[axur-delmeria]

No, unfortunately not I didn't realize I could use another slot.
Why should it work in the other slot?

Well, for one thing the mini-PCIe slot for WWAN has USB signals for the Bluetooth portion of that card.
Most Wifi + BT card are implemented using a PCIe wifi chip + USB bluetooth chip, or a single chip that combines the two.

Another possible course of action is to cover Pin 20 of the card (using a small piece of tape).

[Shredder11]

For some reason the WWAN slot in my Z61p (same model as T60p) does not work with my Broadcom BCM70015 video decoder card, and yet it works perfectly in my X61 WWAN slot. So in my Z61p could I simply swap the WiFi card into the WWAN slot and put a BCM70015 in the WiFi slot, or is there another way of using the BCM70015 card?

[axur-delmeria]

Shredder11,
In your case, the Z61p's WWAN slot is probably like the one in the X60 and T60 where only the USB signals are wired to the slot. All three Thinkpad models use the Intel 945 chipset.

[Shredder11]

When I install the Broadcom BCM70015 video decoder card in the Z61p WWAN slot, the computer does not detect it or ask for drivers. Shame really as that would have made it perfect for watching 1080p video, which is currently a little jerky and CPU intensive.

[axur-delmeria]

Shredder11,
1. The BCM70015 is a PCI Express device.
2. I've just checked the schematics of the Z61, and will confirm that the WWAN slot does not have the PCIe signals, only USB.
This is exactly the reason why the BCM70015 card is not detected when you install it in that slot.

The only workaround is to install it on the WLAN slot, then use a Cardbus or USB wifi card, or find a miniPCIe wifi card that is connected via USB instead of PCI Express.

[Backslashnl1]

No, unfortunately not I didn't realize I could use another slot.
Why should it work in the other slot?

Well, for one thing the mini-PCIe slot for WWAN has USB signals for the Bluetooth portion of that card.
Most Wifi + BT card are implemented using a PCIe wifi chip + USB bluetooth chip, or a single chip that combines the two.

Another possible course of action is to cover Pin 20 of the card (using a small piece of tape).

Wow, that indeed sounds like a good chance it will work in the WWAN slot. I will order one again and try it out

[Backslashnl1]

I received another unit on Friday and installed it today. I first tried it in the regular pci-express slot, same result as before.
Now I tried it in the WWAN slot, and it worked! No problem with booting, and in Windows it recognizes 2 devices, the network adapter and the bluetooth adapter. After installing the (Lenovo ) drivers it works like a charm! It also works perfect under OSX Mavericks after some kext installations.

The only problem I faced during installation is that the antenna cable coming from the right side is too short to connect Fortunate I added a third antenna cable some time ago when I was installing my LED display I never used that third antenna cable before, but it seems that it is doing its job so far.