CF18 Mk4 Need help with GPRS

Hello all,
I bought a seimens MC45 and sled from ebay UK and I have put it in my CF-18 Mk4, however the bios is not finding it or the com ports.
Can someone tell me if it should work, or is it only compatable with the Mk1?
Can I mod the sled to work?
My Mk4 had a evdo sled and card which the bios finds fine, but not the GPRS.
I have put my GPS on the GPRS sled, and that works fine.
I have also bought a CF-P2 phone, it works fine, but can't share its GPRS connection over USB!! (CF-18 doesn't have bluetooth)
All I want is a "tough" solution to checking emails over GSM/GPRS whilst camping/travelling using my existing sim card!!

Cheers all,
Fraser

 

Look for dip switches and its combination on the sled. You may try trial and error if you don't have a dip switches guide until you hit the right combination. It will not harm the unit though.

ohlip

 

Thanks ohlip,
I can't say I noticed any, but I'll open it again this morning and have a closer look.

Thanks heaps!!
Fraser

 

Just had a look, no dip switches at all!
It would appear I've been duped :-(
The sled is a DL3UP1281ABA if that means anything to anybody.
Does anybody have any other suggestions?
Are there any EDGE modules and sleds around for the CF-18 Mk4?
Thanks anyway ohlip!
Cheers,
Fraser

 

AFAIK... These aren't "sleds" as in the CF-29 that slides in. The WWAN on the CF-18 needs to be replaced/removed/installed via taking of the bottom plate and installing it as well as the front buttons.

My wife's CF-18 has a Verizon GPRS if you are interested.... I was thinking about removing that and installing an OEM GPS unit with upgraded antenna... Or one of my own systems instead. Please PM me if interested...

 

Try resetting the BIOS to the default settings after you remove the evdo modem, save, power down then install the GPRS modem and check the BIOS to see if it now detects it. I have had to do this with the CF-29 MK4 when changing out the wwan sleds.

 

Thanks for the info Toughbook, I thought the larger Board that carries the GPS, Bluetooth and WWAN was called a "sled", I'm new to CF-18's and am still learning the terminology.
I don't have the front buttons, but the EVDO card that was in it could be set in the bios to turn on and off with the PC, and with software, so I am guessing the GPRS is the same.
Either way it still isn't showing up anywhere in the bios., I'll try what tough-2-go has suggested, but I'm not too hopefull.
Is Verizon a Telco in the US (Is the GPRS Locked to a carrier?) Or could I use it over here in Australia?
If the above advice doesn't work, I'll PM you definately!
Ta
All once again,
Fraser

BTW, I have a EVDO (Sierra EM5625D card) and carrier board(or whatever it's called) that I guess I don't need as we don't have CDMA over here anymore, so if it's of any use I guess it could go to someone who would appreciate it.

 

Okay, put the evdo stuff back in, detected it, went to default, removed it, went to default installed GPRS, went to default, restarted, still no luck!
Either the simcard/holder board is faulty, or the MC45 is faulty, or they are incompatible with the Mk4 bios or something.
Bugger!
Thanks for all your help though!

Fraser

 

I think you need a Siemens Mc75 usb based solution for the MK3 and up. The Siemens Mc45 is serial based and is maybe not compatible with the Mk3+.

Michiel

 

Michiel,
you could be right, but the EVDO card that was in there was serial based, and was recognised fine by the bios, That being said, I cannot find any mention of GPRS in anything but the MK1. I could even have a broken MC45, but I have no way of testing it
My stumbling block seems to be the fact that I want to use an existing SIM card, and not be locked to a network, or have to open a new account with a carrier.
Also Toughbooks are quite specialised, and not a lot of standard notebook stuff is compatible.
Do you know if the MC75 setup takes a SIM card in through the rear SIM slot??

Cheers,
Fraser

 

Hi Fraser,

Yes, it should take the rear slot. But why don't you get a Sierra 850 or 860 pcmcia and make your own cable to the internal antenna? Its not that hard. It has been discussed on the forum. Speed is much better too!... )

Greets,
Michiel

 

I guess I'm just being anal, but I'd like to go for a OEM solution, and get the lights on the front to tell me if I have a text message, etc without turning on the computer!
Just for interest, are you able to source the MC75 kit where you are?

Cheers,
Fraser

 

No, I don't think so. Most of my Toughbook stuff is imported from the US or UK. I've seen them pop-up on Ebay Germany sometimes. You can find both modems in euro oriented Toughbook models. The local market in my country is very small...as is the country...lol..

Greets,
Michiel

 

We're the same, BIG country, very small user base (about 20M I think).
I'll keep my eye on ebay UK and de.
Thanks,
Fraser

 

Well, I gave up on the MC45 and have bought a Sierra 860 (which I think will work on our country areas on 3g, but only on edge in the city (Telstra use 850MHz country and 2100MHz for 3g in the cities I think) but we'll see, I might need to buy a Sierra 850 for use in the cities!
Anyway, it's only for use in the country while camping.
If it works well I'll get a lead to connect to the internal antenna.
Cheers,
Fraser

 

i have a mc75 w/sled, if you still need it. im looking for the verizon version. i have a mk5 cf18, trade wwan sleds?

o yeah, and it takes a sim card below the headphone output jacks in the right rear corner

 

Mark, what do Verison use, is it GPRS or EV-DO?
I'm not exactly sure what it is you are after?


Cheers,
Fraser