hp 8710p ... upgrade wireless card? 4965ag to 4965agn?

Hi,
My 8710p came with the 4965ag wireless card. I would like to upgrade to the 'N' rated card....that is the 4965agn.
I'm thinking this should be a no brainer, but I've read where HP blocks some upgrades to wireless.

As a side note...the existing card has 3 antenna connections on it. I thought this was strictly for 'N' cards to begin with!

 

The 4965 is N capable.

 

4965AGN is n-capable. Otherwise yes, the 8710p will be whitelisted preventing use of other HP cards, which would even include newer HP wifi cards. mPCIE workaround for non-whitelist compatible wifi cards and here might be useful if tinkering.

 

Thanks for that.
Why then is my card only rated 4965ag .... and not agn?
Is there a way to enable the 'N'? or do I need to get a card?

 

Do you have a N capable router? Have you installed the latest Intel drivers? Where does it say only ag? Check your Device Manager -> Network Adapters or Wireless Network Connection and tell us the device you have installed (are you sure it's not 3945ABG?).

 

I don't have the N router yet...it is ordered and should be here by early next week. It is a Linksys WRT160N.
Device manager tells me that the wireless card in my laptop is a "Intel(R) Wireless Wifi link 4965 AG".
I'm still wondering about the three antenna leads. Doesn't that indicate that there should be 'n' capability?

 

I wanted to look this up to make sure I gave a correct answer. Intel's paperwork (PDF link here) notes that both the 4965AGN and 4965AG_ have Wireless N, but the AG_ has some features of the Draft-N spec disabled. So, both cards support Wireless-N.

That said, three antennas doesn't always mean N; Intel's 5100 wireless-N card uses only two antennas. And, there are MIMO (Multiple-In, Multiple-Out) wireless-G cards that use three antennas.

If you have a 4965 card, it is not worth upgrading to another card. The only card with better performance is Intel's 5300, and it's not a great leap from one to the other.