CF20 with Wifi, want to add WWAN card

Hello everyone,

So I bought 3 CF20s that did not have a WWAN card. Then I bought lenovo EM7455 and installed it in the CF20s but it does not get recognized. I was reading that lenovo 4g lte cards are locked to lenovo and it may not unless I flash them.

So my question is, is it possible to add WWAN on my own or it should be done by heartland/panasonic?
Any help is appreciated.

Thanks.

 

You have to use a Panasonic card. Lenovo card won't work. It will auto disable when in Windows.
Steve

 

Ah I see. I currently have these which are the lenovo EM7455's: https://www.cdwg.com/product/lenovo...roadband-wireless-cellular-modem-4g-l/4523530



https://www.cdwg.com/product/sierra...-lte-300mbps-embedded-cellular-module/5333387
These should work right?

 

I cannot tell if the CDW card is for a Panasonic. I know this one will work. https://customrugged.com/product/gobi5000-4g-lte-multi-carrier/

 

I've been researching multiple CF20 models and they all have Sierra Wireless EM7455.
CDW has those in stock and I am pretty much limited to CDW and Amazon for tech purchases.

 

Whichever one you go with just make sure its a Panasonic branded card. I know Proton Computer in Illinois sell on Amazon. Worst case you can contact him and he will point you to the correct listing. If he doesn't know just ask for his manager.

 

I bought a dell card em7455 and i had to flash it to generic to make it work with my CF-20.The process will be similar for Lenovo branded ones.
There is some information from me on this thread;

http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/some-cf-20-internal-photos.827359/

 

Panasonic branded cards are the Gobi cards? If I buy one of those, will I have to flash them?

So does every card have to be flashed in order for it to work?

 

They are oem Panasonic pulls so no flash needed.
Thanks

 

https://www.amazon.com/EM7355-Gobi5...ywords=EM7355&qid=1566398392&s=gateway&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Sierra-Wirel...ywords=EM7355&qid=1566398392&s=gateway&sr=8-4

I need something that would be available on amazon, and there's so many on amazon but the descriptions say for HP or Dell or Lenovo only.
CDW only has sierra wireless https://www.cdwg.com/product/sierra...-lte-300mbps-embedded-cellular-module/5333387 but not sure if it would work.

 

Sorry I have no idea. You have to contact the sellers.
Steve

 

If it is a Lenovo or Dell, it must be flashed or it will fail to initialize. Just follow the guide and it will work in your CF-20(you only need to do it once and it will work forever).

On the pictures i posted on my thread you can see it is a dell card that shows up as generic sierra.

Also if you plan replacing the wifi card later on, the new intel ax card does not work in it.

 

The problem with asking a seller if it will work is if that seller does not know Toughbooks like we do you are going to get a card that does not work. This has happened so many times it's not funny. It does not matter if the model number is the same. All manufacturers have the same models but they are "flashed" to there laptops ONLY. This is the reason why we say "Buy a Panasonic Toughbook card" only. For the average member to try to figure out how to flash a card it's just to hard for them and some find it easy only because they know there way around a laptop. With that being said if you want to flash a non Panasonic card then read post #4 here.... http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/some-cf-20-internal-photos.827359/
If you find that flashing the card is too hard for you then you will need to buy a OEM Panasonic "branded" card. I know they cost more but they work.

 

Flashing a WWAN card is NOT as simple as some posters here are inferring.
I trashed 3 Dell cards trying to flash one.
Just an FYI.
I do have about 30 years of experience with computer repair.

Maybe the posters who successfully flashed a card can post a DETAILED step by step instruction thread on how to flash a WWAN card.
Posting every step in detail and avoiding vague links.
I know I would appreciate someone taking the time to create a proper How to crossflash a WWAN card.

Thanks

 

I remember you trying to flash them so I figured if it didn't work for you I surely wasn't going to try it.

 

Probably a good choice Blair.
Until we get proper instructions.

 

I followed the instructions on the link from the other topic and i added details about what else needed to be done to make it work, what more do you need? It worked fine for me and it is most likely less risky than older models as it is designed to be flashed/upgraded. I knew nothing about flashing those, followed the instructions as best as i could but even though it failed to flash many times until i got it right it never bricked it(i added the info so you won't waste time like i did). I'm very confident that unless you are deliberately trying to brick it(like removing power while it flashes), it will be fine.

So you can either try or waste your time/money getting a different card that might not work either without flashing it. Enjoying my flashed Dell em7455 in my CF-20 right now.

 

I am not trying to offend anyone here. Please don't take this that way.
While I am glad it worked for you, It did not work for me.
I was not trying to brick it. That IS an insulting comment. It flashed the first half but would NOT flash the second part. It would not flash both parts at once. Might be a syntax error??

Very sadly your response comes off the same as so many from Linux people when someone asks for help or a more detailed instruction set.
"If you can't do it you must be an idiot because it works fine for me"
"It is simple and I do not want to be bothered to help you"

I do not feel copy/paste and describing the crossflash line by line is THAT difficult to do when someone politely asks for help.
I run Linux on 3 or 4 of my machines. I am very familiar with Linux.

 

I see it has to be flashed on Ubuntu. The CF20s have LTSB image and it does look fairly complicated with posbility for the cards to fail.
I will need to research to find a panasonic card instead cuz it seems that's the easiest route. We got other CF20s that came with 4g WWAN cards so I guess I need to open one of those up to see what exactly they have in them. That would definitely simplify this whole mess I got myself into.

Thanks for everyone's help as well. You all have been super helpful. I will definitely have more questions down the road.

 

Proton (ABCDcomputers) sells on Amazon and has used and new:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B016YJSJK8/ref=dp_olp_all_mbc?ie=UTF8&condition=all
I would call them first. One of the cards is a working pull from a CF-C2
Flashing a card that is less expensive sounds interesting:
https://www.amazon.com/HP-Qualcomm-...GTBD6816WWB&psc=1&refRID=0H99PN0RKGTBD6816WWB