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    Is it possible to get WiFi+Mobile+Bluetooth+GPS with only one miniPCIe?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Mr.Koala, Jul 6, 2013.

  1. Mr.Koala

    Mr.Koala Notebook Virtuoso

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    As the title says, if I have only one miniPCIe slot and no express card slot, is it possible to get all those connections without using an external device? Any miniPCIe card out there that can do them all?
     
    Mr.Koala, Jul 6, 2013
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  2. Andy53

    Andy53 Notebook Consultant

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    miniPCIe supports a usb2 and PCIe-x1 lane, so only 2 items at the same time I think, if such a card exist.

    If you can handle a solder iron and you have enough space in it, you can buy a 3G card
    ( if you mean that with Mobile ), "hand wire" usb from it to a small usb hub and connect the other things as usb sticks to it, not Shure if drivers work on a hub.
    3G card must using PCIe.
     
    Andy53, Jul 6, 2013
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  3. tijo

    tijo Sacred Blame

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    Nope, you need at least two devices right now. One for wi-fi and another for mobile+GPS.
     
    tijo, Jul 6, 2013
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  4. H.A.L. 9000

    H.A.L. 9000 Occam's Chainsaw

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    Mini PCIe has USB/PCIe... on certain notebooks. On some it's only a PCIe.

    In the future, if they could put a controller on the actual card, I guess it could be possible to put all those on one card. But none like it currently exist. Realistically, it would need anywhere from 4 to 5 antenna leads attached. Plus that makes for some nasty coexistence issues.

    As a former RF engineer I can tell you that the separate cards are much better. You don't want that on one card. Even SoC's from Qualcomm have all that separated. Samsung even uses discrete Bluetooth and WiFi with their SoC's.

    UNLESS, you have a software baseband. An Icera soft-baseband could give you exactly what you're describing, with a fraction of the power used from all the current discrete parts. But those are still a little ways off from shipping devices.
     
    H.A.L. 9000, Jul 6, 2013
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  5. davidricardo86

    davidricardo86 Notebook Deity

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    davidricardo86, Jul 7, 2013
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  6. tijo

    tijo Sacred Blame

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    And you're going to need 4 antennas going from the picture, so you'd need to either wire one or two extras depending on whether you already have a third antenna or not. The notebooks that have dedicated antennas for WWAN and Wi-Fi out of the box come with the right full height mPCI-E slot for the WWAN adapter anyways.

    In short, looks like it's doable to get WWAN and Wi-Fi with a single mPCI-E device, but it will require a lot more disassembly than just popping the card in.
     
    tijo, Jul 7, 2013
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