T400 3G SIM Card Issue / GPS?

i received my t400 a few days ago (upgrade from a tired t42) and have been setting it up. the t400 i have is set up w/ the intel 5100 a/g/n network option and also, at least from what i understood, the option to insert a sim card into it and have something like att 3G service. the laptop does have the sim card slot underneath/in front of the battery, so it is there.

now comes the problem. i have been using a att pcmcia 3g card (sierra wireless aircard 860) for a few years in the t42 and was under the impression that i could take the sim card out of that pcmcia card and put it into the sim card slot in the back of the new t400 and be good to go. unfortunatey when i put the sim card into the slot, nothing happens and i get the error of "no mobiel broadband device found" in the thinkvantage mobile broadband connect window.

in device manager in the network adapters i have -1394 net adapter, intel 82567lm gigabit network connection and intel wifi link 5100 agn, in the modems area i have thinkpad modem adapter only.

i have opted for the online assitance and really don't find anything, but in case this info is needed, here are the rig specs:
thinkpad t400 7417-tuu
windows xp pro sp3
p8400
1GB ram
160GB 5400 rpm hdd
14.1" 1280x800 lcd
intel x4500hd
cdrw/dvd
intel 802.11agn wireless
modem
1GB ethernet
ultranav
secure chip
6c li ion

everything has been updated and still this problem persists. the machine shipped w/ a white piece of plastic in the sim card slot. so, does this laptop support integrated mobile broadband and also gps or do i still need to use the pcmcia card?

please assist as i have spent many hours w/ this single issue - the only issue i have encountered

tia,
bob

 

Any options in the Bios to enable?

 

bios shows all radios on, both wan and wimax, but i don't think i have wimax....

 

Your machine is only WWAN upgradeable, which means that it comes with all the necessary antennas, interconnections, SIM card slot etc. but does not contain the actual Mini PCIe WWAN card. You'll need to buy this part separately from Lenovo and install it yourself inside your laptop (not complicated) or have it installed. The part you need for AT&T is 43R9152.

 

This is correct. You need a GSM WWAN module. My x200 Tablet has an Ericsson F3507g installed that I can use with a AT&T or similar SIM.

This would have been a relatively inexpensive (I think I pad $40) if you got it when you configured your laptop. Unfortunately, I think the WWAN module is $170 if you get it aftermarket.

You will need to remove the keyboard and put the WWAN card into an empty mini-PCI slot. You will also need to connect the antennas in the screen. There should be some connectors by the open mini-PCI slot for this purpose.

 

i bought it through a authorized lenovo distributor but brand new. i was told it was "Wireless Broadband (WWAN): Cellular wireless ready" so i figured, after looking over the lenovo site, all pieces were there and after receiving the unit and the sim card slot was there, all was g2g.

no way i am going to pay $170 for the add-in since i already have the pcmcia card (and i only paid $660 for the laptop out the door shipped), just thought i could get rid of the pcmcia card and its antenna sticking out the side.

so i am assuming that there is no gps i can get to work too then.....

seems like i got played w/ semantics. i will still complain to the seller but i am not going to return it since i spent all the time setting it up and moving all the data from the t42 over to it....just a bit pissed about the wording. i mean, i wouldn't expect a car to have a gas receptacle w/out a gas tank.

sorry for the rant, but thank you guys for giving me the info i needed
bob

 

The semantics can be annoying, but WWAN upgradeable or "Ready" is the way business works. Other things are the same way to, I have an HD-Ready TV set (no ATSC tuner), and even cars come "floor mat ready" or "Satellite radio ready". Just for future reference, ready≠included.

That being said, even without WWAN you got a great laptop for a great price.

 

man, still p!ssed about this. anybody think lenovo would allow me to buy the add-in card for the $30 it is on the website? i can put it in myself, no problem there, but i feel i got ripped off. how is lenovo customer support - i have never had to deal w/ them as my t42 has worked very well.

i know i need to talk the seller about this, but i would pay the $30 that is on the lenovo site, but the $170 is ridiculous imho.

or should i talk to att - anybody know who is offering the price break when built w/ it already installed? just don' understand that seperate it is $170 and installed it is $80-$50(instant rebate), so $30....

tia,
bob

 

That is the way every system builder is. It is cheaper to buy it with it than add it later. Thats how they get you to add more.

 

If you talk to AT&T you may be able to get a price break by signing a new contract (subsidize the hardware), but there aren't any guarantees about this.

 

all of the cards i see on att are external...any link to an internal one? i don't have a problem signing another contract w/ att as i have 4phones and the seperate unlimited data plan setup w/ them and they have always been good to me.

 

Boy, I am in the same boat. I ordered my T400 and it shipped last night! Unfortunately, I didn't spend the extra $30 to add the AT&T card WITH GPS functionality and, as posted before, I can in no way justify $170. Shoot! I did ask the sales chat at Lenovo about getting it for that same price but the best they would do is 10% off the regular, aftermarket price. I haven't tried to call AT&T about it but it would be so simple to install if I could get it at the right price!