Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG or Dell Wireless 1490?

Happy day-before Golden Week everybody!

...well, at least for those of us here in Japan

I posted this same question over in the networking & wireless forum, but after a few days w/ no replies, thought I'd try my luck here.

So which is the better option? From what I can tell, the Intel card :centrino: (for lack of a better word) is integrated, but the Dell card :dell: is a mini-PCI job, and so could conceivibly be replaced in a pinch.

I'm leaning toward the Dell, simply for the replaceability factor, but would love to hear your experience working w/ these cards.

Thanks in advance,



HH

 

It all depends on what you are going to use it for. I think the Intel is in the same form factor as the Dell. If you are going to intall linux then go with the Intel. The dell is usually a broadcom chipset which is linux unfriendly. If you are thinking of replacing it (the only reason I can think of is to get a linux compatible) then go with the cheaper one.

 

Well, that's the thing...on the Dell Japan website, they're both the same price. Any preferences? I.e., does one have a better interface than the other? Better range, fewer dropoffs, etc.?

 

I would just go with the Intel because it is Linux friendly.

 

The Intel 3945 ABG is a Mini-PCI card.

I get great range and great speed, but have had trouble with running WPA and WPA2 on it (the connection drops and doesn't come back until I reboot the DLink DI-524 router). The problems may be the router itself though. Once I turned off WPA it was fine.

I don't have any experience with the Dell cards. I'd probably just go with the Intel card if they are the same price.

 

I have the intel and it is very good

 

I have the intel that you were talking about. It's pretty good, way better than my usb card =P

 

I'm not sure about those new mini-pci-express cards, but from my experience with previous generation (mini-pci) cards I would go with Dell/Broadcom. Much less trouble, no connection drops etc.

 

I think intel wireless cards are more battery friendly than dell 1490 , because they conserve more energy depending on the signal that you have especially when using Intel Centrino Technology.

The Intel® Wireless Coexistence System helps reduce interference with certain Bluetooth* devices. Power Save Protocol (PSP) is a user selectable feature with five different power states, allowing the user to make their own power versus performance choice when in battery mode.

 

First, Dell/Broadcom cards also have power saving features.
Second, at least in my tests, a Broadcom card with power-saving features turned off provided same (or even better) battery life as an Intel card with power-saving features on
Unfortunately, at the moment I don't have a broadcom card so I cannot verify/substantiate my claims with real numbers.

 

People,
Hello, when did Dell start actually "making" anything?
The Intel card and the Dell card are EXACTLY the same pieces of hardware, lay both of them on a table next to each other and not a single person from Dell or Intel would be able to tell you which one was which.

I have two laptops bought from Dell, one with the "Intel" wireless and one with the "Dell" wireless. Want to know what the difference is, the Dell one is exactly the same but branded with the Dell logo in the software, thats it.

Your an idiot if you pay more for the 802.11a/b/g card anyhow, there's probably like 2 companies in the world that bought into and still own 802.11a WiFi and if you hapen to be working for one of those 2 ma and pop companies then you better be in the same room as their 802.11a router is because otherwise your not going to get a connection due to the pitiful range the 802.11a offers and hence the reason it's been dropped and why you can't find 802.11a hardware to support it anywhere anymore.

In searching for a new laptop I've even seen the moronic options available for an "802.11g" card or pay more for an "802.11b/g" card, this is the stupidest thing yet. There is no such thing as an 802.11g card that will not also recieve the 802.11b signal and work with it.

Just buy the 802.11g card and ignore who makes it, trust me, thats all you need to know.

 

I don't think anyone in this thread claimed that Dell makes their own wireless cards. It's pretty well known that Broadcom is the manufacturer of the Dell wireless cards. So the Intel and Dell cards are NOT the same...two different manufacturers, two different chipsets. Sure they will look the same, they're both mini-pci cards.

As far as your opinion on 802.11a, there are more than 2 places in the world that use this for wireless. Keep in mind that 802.11a operates at the 5 Ghz range, where as 802.11b/g operates at the much more crowded 2.4 Ghz range. It's true that because of the higher frequency that singal reach is not as strong with 802.11a, but at the same time it has a better ability to handle a higher density of end users (say in a corporate environment), while also avoiding interference from the 2.4Ghz range. But you are correct, there is a much higher percentage of 802.11b/g equipment out in the field than 802.11a.

In a nutshell, if they both cost the same, why wouldn't you pick the one that has the added ability to also do 802.11a?

 

Both cards do 802.11a

 

I didn't realize that...so then it's a toss up...flip a coin.

 

I don't think anyone's interested in the way the cards look. After all, you can't see 'em. Unless, of course you claim their innards are identical as well and in that case, do you have any proof that the 2 cards have the same chipset?

 

Broadcom makes the Network adapter card, not the wireless card, there is a difference between the 2 pieces of hardware, a network adapter card and a wireless card are not the same thing. Intel makes the wireless cards for Dell, both cards are the same.

 

I'll have to dig it up later, but I'm fairly sure that gkurcon is correct. I think Broadcom did develop the chipset for the Dell branded mini-PCI cards (1390, 1490, previous generation as well), not Intel.

I don't honestly know if Broadcom actually manufactures the cards themselves, or if it's supplied from other contractors though.

 

http://www.modem-help.com/mfcs.php?mid=29&nid=14699

http://www.broadcom.com/press/release.php?id=390357

And this taken from the 1490 driver .ini files:

HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "RadioUIVisible", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "QuickLinkStatus", 0x00010001, 0
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "CCKMUIVisible", 0x00010001, 0
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AllowManageChange", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "StatusUIVisible", 0x00010001, 0
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "LogUIVisible", 0x00010001, 0
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AutoImport", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AutoImportManage", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "ImportCurrentVersion", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AutoImportReinitAdapter", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AllowAdhocPnMovment", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "UserOptExport", 0x00010001, 1
HKLM,"Software\Broadcom\802.11", "AllowCompCertAuth", 0x00010001, 0

It's definitely a Broadcom card

Your right about the onboard 10/100 fast ethernet however, it's also a Broadcom NIC...B440x I think.

 

The Intel 3945 and the Dell1490 might look the same, but they aren't. Two different chipsets for sure. One works well with Linux, the other does not (at least not easily).

I did have connection issues with my older intel 2200 and 2915 cards, but the 3945 in my e1505 has worked quite well and I notice none of the problems of the older intel cards.

I say get the intel card.

 

With respect, I know the difference between a network and wireless card. Also, why do you insist that the 2 wireless cards are identical?

 

The web site your referencing is also dated 2003, 3 years ago is an eternity in computer systems.

The new B130 I bought in December 2005 from Dell came with the Intel wireless card. The new D820 I bought came with the Dell card. Lay both cards on a table next to each other and there is no difference between them.

 

If you download the Dell 1490 drivers from the Dell website, and look at the .ini files with notepad you'll see all the references to Broadcom.....it's not an Intel card, there's just no question about it.

 

The Dell cards definitely have a BROADCOM chipset on them. I have a 1390 and you can clearly see the BROADCOM chip on it. My Intel 3945 uses an INTEL chip on it. The two are NOT identical at all.

I don't know what mutation Dell sent you for a WiFi card, but if it says DELL on it, it ain't INTEL inside!!!

One other proof they aren't the same. Put a DELL card in the notebook and you WILL NOT get the Centrino logo at startup. Put the Intel card in, and you WILL get the Centrino logo. If they were identical, they would BOTH give CENTRINO!!!!!!

 

I don't know for the Intel card but it's right for the Dell one that it isn't so easy ... I didn't succeed. So, as you said that "at least not easily", do you have a how-to or some guidelines which can help me to run my Dell card on linux (especially Fedora 6) ?