Aspire 1410T/Gateway 1803U WWAN??

Hi, I own both of these models(I know, I know-they are essentially the same-I'm getting rid of one-lol). Anyway, I would like to be able to have wwan so that I could purchase sims while travelling in asia to access email etc. Anyway, acer tech support chat told me it's not avail for the 1410T. The 1803u is off warranty so they wouldn't talk to me about it . On gateway's site they listed the drivers for download for the 1803u and one of them was Qualcomm gobi 2000. Would this mean I could get wwan on it? Any help would be appreciated. Maybe there are external wwan options too?

Thanks from a newbie

 

Hi,

if the laptop did not come with WWAN from factory, then it's better to buy a USB WWAN modem or one of those new WLAN connected 3G routers.


This laptop series has been available in configurations with WWAN - but for the versions without WWAN, Acer left anything away that would be have been useful for installation of an internal WWAN device:
- no PCIe connector
- no SIM cardreader
- no antenna
I am also not sure if the WLAN switch would have to be replaced also.

That said, if you are not a soldering artist (there is a thread about this mod here in that forum), you are better off with external devices.
( Examples on newegg.com - ouch, pricey compared to European level )
Make sure, you buy an unlocked device. Perhaps a purchase in Asia (where you want to travel) makes a better deal.

Michael

 

Thanks a lot! Guess I will check out external devices or think about buying a netbook with wwan built in....

 

I think, these WLAN/3G gateways are a very interesting option.
Advantages:
- no additional energy demand of the laptop (if active, the WWAN device of my 1810 decreases battery life by ~30%)
- position can be varied in order to optimize 3G reception
- (almost) any WLAN enabled device can be connected
- in most case not tied to access providers

Disadvantage:
- another box (plus PSU) needs to be carried around

The price of such a device is in the same order of magnitude as the WWAN option of a laptop.

Michael