Not your usual GPS problem :: X200 Tablet :: Still searching for solution :: Desperate for your help!

A bit of background: I recently ordered a X200 Tablet, only to discover after the fact (through these forums and elsewhere) that a mobile broadband card is required for native GPS service, even though it need not be activated to use. I tried having Lenovo stop the order to make the upgrade, but apparently three days notice was not enough to get it off the assembly line (in their defense, the sales rep was helpful and as surprised as me that the stop order did not go through; a bit of a mixed blessing too, as it means they beat their estimated ship date by roughly one week). So my new laptop is somewhere between China and my terminally ill Dell, but once it arrives I absolutely want to install GPS functionality.

My first consideration was for ordering the part they could not upgrade in time, namely the "AT&T 3G BroadBand Option." Strangely though, this card is priced at $103.20 to purchase separately from their online store, whereas it was available as an upgrade for $25.50. The sales rep was a bit confused by this as well, and noted that the card listed in the online store (Part # 43R9152) had a different part number than the one configurable on computer purchases. However, she thought the slight numbering difference was best explained by their different places of sale, that they were in fact the same cards, but that the discount reflected an agreement with AT&T, and regardless to any of this, Lenovo could not ship out the card at the lower price .

Despite all this, I didn't raise give much resistance to these obstacles, and think I could probably find a Lenovo representative with the authority to make things right, but the cost savings was about the only lure to this option. I have no need for the Internet aspect of a mobile broadband card; I do not currently have such service and will likely not be signing up for it anytime soon. Secondly, I have to wonder how well this card stacks up against dedicated GPS cards? I believe I found the underlying model number for the AT&T card, F3507g (Ericsson HSDPA Wireless WAN Adapter), but even the data sheet (.pdf) has no technical information for GPS performance (SiRF generation, noise floor, etc.). I throw out such terms with little understanding, but I am hoping someone might compare these values to the option below.

The top Google search results for "Mini-PCI GPS" include the COMMELL MP-954GPS. Other models show up, but the aforementioned one gains the most results, although I am very much open to any and all product recommendations (atleast for something that goes inside the tablet). For $156.40 you get:

"COMMELL introduces the Mini PCI Module MP-954GPS with the latest SiRF StarIII high performance chipset, which meets the industry`s toughest challenges, allows acquisition in only seconds even at low signal levels and can support 20-Channel GPS. The unit is ideal for navigation systems, vehicle location systems, geological equipment, boating location and other related applications.

Besides the GPS function, the MP-954GPS includes two integrated RS-232 ports, Each UART channel is the fastest available PC-compatible UART, offering data rates up to 15Mbps and 128-byte deep transmitter and receiver FIFOs and each UART is software compatible with the widely used industry-standard 16C550 devices.

Features

• SiRF StarIII high performance GPS Chipset
• Compact size: Mini PCI Type IIIB (59.75mm x 44.60mm MAX.)
• Very high sensitivity (Tracking sensitivity:-159dBm)
• Extremely fast TTFF(Time to first fix) at low signal levels
• Supports the NMEA-0183 data protocol
• Supports 20-Channels GPS
• 0.1 second reacquisition time
• Hardware compatible with standard SiRF GPS software
• Integrated two RS-232 ports
• Antenna information, connector: MCX, impedence: 50 ohms."

​

Is it fair to assume that this is an improvement over the broadband card? There are threads somewhere on this forum that qualitatively assess the WWAN's GPS, and what negatives I can remember were having to wait upwards of a minute for connection and spotty service indoors. On the latter count, that might be true of any card, but for the former and the COMMELL specs in general, are there qualities which will really stand out in real world use (speed, accuracy, etc)?

The biggest drawback to going right ahead with this is I cannot find any success stories. The one NBR post about this particular card raises concerns about the height of the connectors (not being able to fit under the hard drive, only in the already filled outer Mini-PCI slot), but even people in the thread are not sure they are talking about this particular card, and per my SSD pursuit, would any height issue be mitigated by the SSD's physical space savings? Secondly, while I have no qualms on tearing my new laptop apart, I am a bit fuzzy on all the steps in between. After I finish writing this I am going to take a look at the Hardware Maintenance Manual (and am now aware of the Service and Support Training website), but things that already come to mind:

1. Assuming I can fit it where the mobile broadband card would go, are the antenna cables already going to be there and essentially plug-and-play? Also, does this card sidestep the issue where WiFi cannot be used simultaneously? Although this isn't a dealbreaker, as I will be using Delorme Topo USA National and Microsoft MapPoint.
2. Once installed, will there be a way to turn the device on and off, and what will be the relative impact on battery life in either state, compared to the mobile broadband card?

I'm drawing blanks on the other questions I had, but I will wait to see if anyone bites on this...

 

I don’t know about your model specifically, but you can usually disable wwan and the gps in the bios
When you get it report back on this

As far as performance of your built-in gps ,it will be effected by the quality of the antenna used
Does the gps hardware that you are getting use the Sirf Star III chipset?
I’m not sure in your post if the specs you reported are what you are getting or something you got from the internet

Alex

 

Sorry, to clarify, the specs provided are for the dedicated GPS card I am interested in. I could not find any GPS specs on the mobile broadband cards that Lenovo offers as an upgrade. I don't even have the tablet yet, it is still in transit, and I haven't yet purchased the Commell dedicated GPS card. Before doing so, I was hoping for confirmation on whether this installation was even technically feasible (I will likely be hamstrung by restrictive return policies), and then hopefully a popular vote on what is my best option.

 

I don't think that Commell MP-954GPS card would fit your laptop. It looks that it is MiniPCI, not MiniPCIexpress.

 

Are you sure the tablet does not have a Mini-PCI port? There are some reviews that suggest it does, although upon looking again at the mobile broadband card's data sheet, its format is in fact Mini-PCI Express. However, if this is the case, why didn't the other NBR thread, specifically about this card, immediately flag that issue as a showstopper?

 

MiniPCI is obsolete for a couple of years now, PCI bus got replaced by PCI Express. No modern laptop whould have it. And certainly Intel GM45 chipset on X200 does not support it.

Internet is free for everyone to post their opinion... What do you expect from NBR forums if even pcworld.com writes bull in their reviews, which are supposed to be edited before publishing?

 

We are of the same mind on PCWorld's journalistic integrity, I just wanted to make sure nothing was getting overlooked, even though that was not the best source to link into the question. Thanks for the Mini-PCI deprecation info, I had no idea about that. Does that mean these mini-PCI card listings are EOL products or simply meeting the market for old machines with dead-end technology standards? In any event, I've already started googling away for "Mini-PCI Express GPS". The best results so far are for u-blox PCI-5S / PCM-5S GPS Modules, which were only announced as immediately available at the beginning of this month. Unfortunately, the company looks like an OEM-exclusive supplier, and might never be seen on the retail after-market. Tomorrow, I might try giving their US office a call to confirm these details, or atleast send along an email to the same effect. So at this point, its looking like the mobile broadband card was my best option?

 

I think F3507g is not GPS, but rather AGPS, and thus has hard times getting a "cold fix". If you really want a decent GPS, I would suggest a USB GPS mouse like GlobalSat BU-353.

 

As alluded to in my top post (no worries, I didn't even read it ), whatever I find must be an internal card. A lot of my GPS use will be occurring "in the field," so having any sort of external antenna will be cumbersome, and I will likely snap the protrusion of the USB cable from its port faster than I can wonder aloud why it has stopped working. And to head off ExpressCard suggestions, that is a no-go, as I want to fill that with a SSD card. For my needs, performance is definitely secondary to getting the device inside the case. I put a call into u-blox's sales department, and soon hope to share the scoop with everyone here...