PowerBook G4 Wi-Fi card options

[JohnKCG]

As the title implies, I'm trying to get more info about PowerBook G4 WiFi cards, I read here that since the airport card is terribly outdated (can't do WPA2...) users used cardbus options for getting G and N WiFi along with WPA-2, now, my two questions are:

What's the best cardbus WiFi card for these machines? Since I will be using Linux instead of OS X compatibility with Apple's OS isn't a hard requirement...

Hasn't anybody tried to use the airport card interface on the Motherboard (whatever interface it is.. I doubt it's Mini PCI or something like that...) To slot a more modern card? Like a MiniPCIe or even M2 WiFi card with an adapter so it can be used on the propiertary WiFi card interface? If you use a cardbus card and don't have use for the airport, can't you repurpose the airport slot for something else in case a mpcie card isn't a viable option?

Thanks in advance for your answers...

 

[netsrot39]

Which PowerBook G4 are we talking about? I guess you are referring to the PowerBook G4 Titanium because if I recall correctly all aluminum PowerBooks can do WPA2. Either way, I know a lot about the early PowerBook G4s and the later ones since I upgraded and own a bunch of them. The way I connect to a modern network on my TiBook is by using a mini WiFi dongle that I attach to a USB2 port (which you can get with your TiBook by buying a NEC based PCMCIA/Cardbus USB 2.0 card). The important thing is that the WiFi dongle is based on Realtek chips (for OS X at least). The Edimax 7811un works great with Tiger and Leopard but an additional driver is required (which can easily be found online or is provided on CD with older versions of the dongle). Do not buy the V2 version of the Edimax 7811un because it is not compatible with older OS X versions (I can't verify that but that is what I read online, what I can verify though is that the earlier versions work like a charm but so will other RTL8188 or RTL8192SU based dongles I think). Unfortunately I can't say anything about Linux compatibility since I don't really use Linux on my PowerPC machines. I'm pretty certain there are drivers for those dongles out there but I don't know if they were ever compiled for PowerPC. Btw Initially I've also looked for an internal option (i.e. hacking something inside the machine) but I couldn't come up with something feasible.

 

[JohnKCG]

the Powerbook is this one:

PowerBook G4 1.67 17" (DLSD/HR - Al) Specs (17-Inch DL SD, M9970LL/A, PowerBook5,9, A1139, N/A): EveryMac.com

Technical specifications for the PowerBook G4 1.67 17" (DLSD/HR - Al). Dates sold, processor type, memory info, hard drive details, price and more.

everymac.com

And about the internal hacking I believe that the starting point is knowking what the connector/interface name is... Is it MiniPCI? A propietary apple interface or something else entirely?, if we at least know what the interface name is we could search if there are apadters for slotting a MPCIE or even M2 wifi card in there, in any case, thanks for your answer.

 

[netsrot39]

AFAIK no PowerPC Mac provides MiniPCIe or MiniPCI slots, at least I haven't seen any inside the ones I have worked with I am familiar with the PowerBook you have, in fact I have the same machine but it is dead (GPU failure). I recently purchased the previous version of that machine (A1107) and transferred the LCD of the A1139 to my fully working A1107. I ran into the problem that I couldn't keep the Airport Card inside the A1107 because the antenna of the A1139 display assembly is incompatible with the older AirPort Card. The A1139 uses a Wifi/Bluetooth combo card which surprisingly has the same connector as the AirPort card of the A1107 (meaning the socket where you plug in the WiFi module on the logic board is identical on both the A1139 and A1107, at least physically, because I tried swapping over the A1139 module to the A1107 and after plugging it in the A1107 seemed to be brain dead (upon starting the machine the fans went full blast and nothing happened after that). As soon as I removed the A1139 card the laptop was working again. Long story short, if we can find out what the socket is called on the logic board (interface) we might be able to attach another WiFi module but it would be a long shot considering the A1107 even refused an Apple branded card from the not so different A1139.

Full story (of my 17" PowerBook): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/club-17.1959812/post-29962446

 

[Dronecatcher]

the Powerbook is this one:

Your Powerbook has Airport Extreme built in as standard and it's WPA2 compliant both in OSX and Linux.

 

[JohnKCG]

AFAIK no PowerPC Mac provides MiniPCIe or MiniPCI slots, at least I haven't seen any inside the ones I have worked with I am familiar with the PowerBook you have, in fact I have the same machine but it is dead (GPU failure). I recently purchased the previous version of that machine (A1107) and transferred the LCD of the A1139 to my fully working A1107. I ran into the problem that I couldn't keep the Airport Card inside the A1107 because the antenna of the A1139 display assembly is incompatible with the older AirPort Card. The A1139 uses a Wifi/Bluetooth combo card which surprisingly has the same connector as the AirPort card of the A1107 (meaning the socket where you plug in the WiFi module on the logic board is identical on both the A1139 and A1107, at least physically, because I tried swapping over the A1139 module to the A1107 and after plugging it in the A1107 seemed to be brain dead (upon starting the machine the fans went full blast and nothing happened after that). As soon as I removed the A1139 card the laptop was working again. Long story short, if we can find out what the socket is called on the logic board (interface) we might be able to attach another WiFi module but it would be a long shot considering the A1107 even refused an Apple branded card from the not so different A1139.

Full story (of my 17" PowerBook): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/club-17.1959812/post-29962446

Then it looks like Apple locked those modules to their respective PB models via Open Firmware... And about the GPU damage, don't you know if the PB's GPU uses only thermal pads or can it also use thermal paste? I intent to replace both GPU and CPU thermal components as soon as aI receive it tomorrow.... about your damaged A1139, is your battery in mint condition? I would be interested in buying it if it is

 

[JohnKCG]

Your Powerbook has Airport Extreme built in as standard and it's WPA2 compliant both in OSX and Linux.

After checking, yes, it does, but as there isn't a wifi N Airport card, I think I will stick to a cardbus unit, I'm between those two:

Belkin F5D8013 N Wireless Notebook Card

Based on the 802.11n draft, N Wireless enables multiple receivers and transmitters to send and receive data using Intelligent MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) spatial multiplexing techniques which greatly increases speed, coverage, and the reliability of the wireless network.

www.amazon.com

ZyXEL NWD170N 802.11n Draft 1.0 Wireless Cardbus Card

Boost your network with MIMO-N Technology! This Zyxel NWD-170N 802.11n MIMO Notebook Adapter is the perfect solution for home users demanding cutting-edge, versatile networking devices. Using the Atheros XSPAN EWC Solution, speeds can be boosted up to 300 Mbps! With IEEE 802.11n technology, the N...

www.amazon.com

Since there is more documentation and it also uses a atheros chip (which are usually better supported in Linux) I'm more inclined to use the Zyxel one, but if there is another one which is better (there isn't a top of cardbus wifi cards AFAIK) I would like to know.... In any case, when I receive the cardbus card I will prolly disconnect the airport card since it won't really have an use...

 

[B S Magnet]

In any case, when I receive the cardbus card I will prolly disconnect the airport card since it won't really have an use...

You will also lose Bluetooth.

 

[JohnKCG]

You will also lose Bluetooth.

Since the Airport card also supports Bluetooth, yes, I will, but I never use bluetooth these days......

 

[Dronecatcher]

After checking, yes, it does, but as there isn't a wifi N Airport card, I think I will stick to a cardbus unit

Is there a reason wireless N is absolutely essential? I'm thinking that given the Powerbook's ability to process data for web pages is so (relatively) slow the shift to N speeds is wasted.
Even if you wanted the faster rate for streaming local media, the Powerbook isn't capable of media playback such speeds facilitate.

 

[JohnKCG]

I would like N since most routers on my area support it and also since I will be transfer a lot of data between the PB and a home NAS via wifi its prefered to have the best wifi possible...

 

[Dronecatcher]

I would like N since most routers on my area support it and also since I will be transfer a lot of data between the PB and a home NAS via wifi its prefered to have the best wifi possible...

Makes sense but given the Powerbook's bus speed - even if you have a SSD installed, the increase in moving that data will be fractional - of course, I'm judging from a value for money perspective only.

 

[netsrot39]

Then it looks like Apple locked those modules to their respective PB models via Open Firmware... And about the GPU damage, don't you know if the PB's GPU uses only thermal pads or can it also use thermal paste? I intent to replace both GPU and CPU thermal components as soon as aI receive it tomorrow.... about your damaged A1139, is your battery in mint condition? I would be interested in buying it if it is

I don't know about the 17" thermal solution since I haven't disassembled the machine that far (the thermals of my A1107 are good so I didn't see the need to do that). I know the 15" counterpart uses thermal paste on the GPU because I repasted one of those a few years ago. The battery of my A1139 is mint yes, but I won't be selling it since I'm using it in my A1107 now. See if you can source an aftermarket battery or an original one on Ebay or from another dead machine.

 

[JohnKCG]

Makes sense but given the Powerbook's bus speed - even if you have a SSD installed, the increase in moving that data will be fractional - of course, I'm judging from a value for money perspective only.

I bought a pata ssd for very little two years ago, so other than the wifi card, I haven't spent nothing more than the 60$ the owner asks for the PB itself, he says the battery doesn't last as long as it used to, but also he says that he has the original box of the PB and that it is in mint condition physically (which it is judging the photos he gave me), so perphaps the only things this device requires is a battery recalibration (if such thing exist for PBs), buying ram (extremely cheap) and servicing the thermals of the PB, other than that, the 108 mbps of the airport card should be enough as you say... for 80$ to 100$ in total I don't see it as outrageous expensive; given that MintPPC/Debian is a good enough OS for light browsing and light text editing (via libreoffice), I will use it primarily to learn PowerPC (which is, from a certain point of view, related to modern POWER) assembly on the go, with C, java and others, also, for SSH and putty connections between servers and routers, also, given the limitations of the PB itself at gaming and the like, it will be a good distraction free machine.

All of the previously mentioned things require of a Power chip (which the PB uses and, AFAIK, is currently the last "mobile device" to use a Power cpu, yes, there is a project for making a new power laptop, but god know how long it will take to materialize...) for the Assembly part and a terminal (which doesn't really use resources at all....) for troubleshooting possible packages problems, also proper documentation and books, with a lot of masochism and willpower....

In any case, thanks for your answers and time.

 

[Dronecatcher]

In any case, thanks for your answers and time.

Good luck - the 17" DLSD is a great machine - though reliable replacement batteries are getting scarce now.
Be warned, DLSD trackpad support in Linux isn't great - I could never abide by mine.

 

[Project Alice]

Is there a reason wireless N is absolutely essential? I'm thinking that given the Powerbook's ability to process data for web pages is so (relatively) slow the shift to N speeds is wasted.
Even if you wanted the faster rate for streaming local media, the Powerbook isn't capable of media playback such speeds facilitate.

I just wanted to chime in on this.
I run pretty much my entire home on ethernet. I occasionally will sit on my couch with a PBG4 though and browse the web with their built in AirPort Extreme card. I also frequently do so using ethernet (especially if I'm doing a file transfer from my server or playing AOE with someone)

Wifi N is what like 300mbps I think? Our Airport cards are 54mbps I think. I feel that while browsing the web on any of my PBG4s over ethernet is noticeably snappier than while using the AirPort card. It isn't a huge difference by any means but it's enough that I have noticed it. And with local file transfers to my server a G4 can saturate the GigE link or at least the internal IDE bus.

The difference is much more noticeable on my iMac G5.

 

[JohnKCG]

I believe the latest and greatest airport for PowerPC was G wireless (108mbps~) and also true, Ethernet will dance around WiFi any day in stability and speed, but WiFi G is perhaps enough, 5GHZ would be nice of course, but with a little patience 108mbps is also enough.. Do you use linux on your PB?

 

[B S Magnet]

I believe the latest and greatest airport for PowerPC was G wireless (108mbps~) and also true, Ethernet will dance around WiFi any day in stability and speed, but WiFi G is perhaps enough, 5GHZ would be nice of course, but with a little patience 108mbps is also enough.. Do you use linux on your PB?

IEEE 802.11g has a maximum raw data transfer rate of 54Mbps, not 108. In practice, with a data packet size of 1500 MTU, the practical limit of a 20MHz bandwidth is roughly around 31Mbps — nowhere close to 54Mbps.

 

[bobesch]

A simple 15 bucks Vonets WLAN-To-Ethernet-bridge dongle could do fine too.
And it's quite versatile.
(I'm grateful to this clever hint, that I've go in the PPC-subforum, while looking for a wireless-solution for an os9 device)
PS: you can't have enough of them ... e.g. when kids have guests at home it's feels more comfortable to deploy Vonets, than to share WLAN-credentials.