Possible to upgrade to bluetooth?

I'm pretty happy with my vostro 1400, but I find myself wishing I had gotten bluetooth so that I could carry a wireless mouse around. I noticed when I was shopping for laptops a lot of places bundled wireless card + bluetooth support together (Dell was the exception). This makes me think that there must be cards that you can buy that are a 2-in-1 bluetooth and wireless card.

Is the wireless card in the vostro 1400 upgradeable? If not, can bluetooth be added separately? If so, is it just a normal PCI-X card stuck in somewhere not visible, or is it special hardware? If it matters, I opted for the intel wireless g card instead of the dell one for linux compatibility. I'd prefer not to have to ship this beauty back to Dell...

 

You could upgrade it, but I'd recommend against it as BT devices are rather unfriendly to your battery life of the notebook and the mouse.

Instead...
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3858

 

The Bluetooth in the 1400 is a seperate piece of hardware from the wireless network. Check the owner's manual, it shows you how to access the BT module.

 

Thanks for the advice. That mouse looks awesome! I can't believe how small the receiver is... Will a usb attachment really deliver bettery battery life than bluetooth though? I know that bluetooth is reputed to not be battery life friendly, but I don't see why the usb mouse would be better.

Oh, and since they're separate, is the wireless upgradeable as well? Wondering in case N becomes widespread in the future.

 

The wireless card can be upgraded without any trouble. The cards Dell uses are in a standard format (Mini PCIe I believe). Most Draft-n cards are three antenna designs, and your laptop will likely come wired with a two antenna setup if you order it with a 802.11g card.

I am am not sure what the performance hit of running a 802.11n card with one less antenna (or if it even works correctly).

One more thing, I am waiting on my local Best Buy to stock those Logitech VX Nano mice. I have some store credit there waiting to be spent...

 

I got the BT dell Travel mouse for my 1420 and its great. I don't know how much battery life it takes but I don't care since I have both the 6 and 9 cell batteries. I am sure it takes some power but the Dell BT travel mouse is really nice. Best mouse ever. Ergonomics, and functions are top notch. Has back, forward buttons, and scroll and regular left/right click. Excellent range and responsiveness. This beats those crap USB mouses any day without stuff sticking out the side ready for breaking! Also got the S9 Motorola BT (pic on another thread) headsets and they work alongside with the BT travel mouse. BT is the way to go. USB is better suited for external HD's etc.. I even connect my printer on the WIFI network. I don't have anything dangling
on this 1420.

 

As an update to my earlier comments, the Vostro 1400s are prewired with a 3 antenna setup.

 

Sweetness

I think the bluetooth module is the 355, that's what somebody on ebay was touting was inside the vostro they were selling. I wonder if the 350 would also work?

 

I am also thinking about purchasing it... $19 from dell

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=430-1795

using w/ my treo 650 to get INTERNET ACCESS =)

 

Class 1 BlueTooth transmitter :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833203014

Dell internal BT's are class 2. The Dell solution is cheaper, but why not add a stronger radio while you're at it.

 

What exactly does a stronger bluetooth radio give you? I thought it was for short range devices.

 

The limits indicated on any radio's capabilities are theoretical, or at the very least taken at ideal/lab conditions (ie no interference). Factor in real-world WiFi, cell phone, electrical noise, etc. from multiple users, and you're going to want the strongest radio to maintain the strongest connection. If there's anything WiFi usage has taught any of us, a stronger and more stable signal almost always translates to higher throughput.

Your results may vary and your peripherals will be different. Come to think of it, maybe getting the least expensive option is better, only upgrading when you absolutely have to. You'll know.

For what it's worth, weak WiFi usually manifests as slower throughput, weak BT signals manifest in headphones as choppy signals, BT mouse as "lagged" movement, etc. Well, you get the point.

Good luck,
P

 

Bluetooth 2.1+EDR cards that are coming soon. They will use less power than the current 2.0 cards: http://www.bluetooth.com/Bluetooth/Learn/Technology/Core_Specification_v21__EDR.htm

Or Blutooth 3.0 coming in early 2008: http://www.crutchfieldadvisor.com/ISEO-rgbtcspd/learningcenter/home/bluetooth.html?page=3

 

What do you base this on?

I use my logitech bluetooth mouse constantly and there is no excessive power drain. The same cannot be said for WIFI.

BTW, bluetooth is also great for phones and GPS units.

The real advantage is no need for any USB dongle.

-LQ

 

I think I might get the VX Nano. I wish they made a bluetooth one

 

whats so bad about a USB receiver sticking out from the back or something?
if you are in a place that can use the external mouse, that means your laptop is on a large flat surface of some kind so how can you possibly break the USB receiver while on a desk or something similar.

 

1) If you wear the USB port out, you have to replace the Motherboard
2) Just one less thing to lose/plug in/break

-LQ

 

Installing the bluetooth module into a 1400 is as easy as fliping it over and taking off the memory module cover. And consider it only costs $19, it is a no brainer.

I'm using my Microsoft bluetooth Intellimouse with my 1400 right now and I wouldn't have it any other way. Adapters are easily lost, other than the initial setup, all I have to do is turn on my mouse and it works, no adapters to plug in or lose. And it really doesn't have a noticeable impact on battery life. I have used the laptop with the bluetooth module disable and my run times haven't changed.

 

Did you disable the bluetooth module in the BIOS or some other way? I have a wifi toggle but not a bluetooth one. Unless it shuts off both?