Gps Mini Pci Card Cf-28

hi to all
has someone tried to install the gps in minipci card? model COMMELL MP-954GPS ?

http://www.commell.com.tw/Product/Peripheral/MiniPCI/MP-954GPS.HTM

 

I think it has been mentioned in an old forum thread.. Not sure if anyone ever got around to installing one though!

 

I think we didn't consider it because of the cost of it... Plus they are very hard to get...

 

I think there was also a possible issue with the height of the connector - that it would not fit under the hard drive. But I may be thinking of another mini card.

 

Ken,

I think we're all on the same page. As I recall now... I think I do remember something about that... Like it would only fit in the outer mini-pci slot... And we needed that for the LAN/Modem combo card. It created more problems than it solved...

 

ok i undestand..
very regards
frank

 

Has anyone actually tried to install one of these.

I'm willing to buy and try if nobody has tried it before - but if it's been tried by someone and failed I won't bother.

A search of the forum didn't result in anyone who has actually tried it - as far as I could tell - I may be wrong.

The only problem I could see is the serial port pins - but they can be trimmed down if needed.

 

I say to go ahead and try it.

 

I haven't heard that anyone tried it - just talked about it. There were several cards mentioned in one thread - a USB2.0 card, a SATA card, and this. All seemed to be for use in embedded PC's that had a mini-PCI slot, so the thickness factor wasn't an issue. The USB card also has connectors that are perpendicular to the card, so they may not fit in a slot with the hard drive above it. They could work though with a floppy-to-flash drive boot setup.

 

I am currently in search of a GPS solution for my tablet, and this thread caught my attention. Has anybody here finally purchased the Commell card or heard of someone that has, and how it is working out? I just started a separate thread partially dedicated to learning more about this product, and am going to place my top post at the end of this message, so if anyone can shed led onto this matter, I would be very grateful for you leaving your wisdom in either thread. And please forgive the circular references to this thread that follow:

"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" (I apologize if this does not link through, it is coming off their Contractor Purchase Program website). 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..."

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP

 

Johnny,
Welcome(I think) to the Toughbook forum. I'm just replying to be polite, I wouldn't know a Lenovo if it bit me. The main issues with these types of hacks are room for the card, and feasibility of antenna installation. When this discussion first posted I could see an issue with the antenna connection on that card. Its sticking straight up and any antenna lead plugged into the jack would almost certainly hit the hard drive caddy in the CF-28 which sits directly on top of the card. The part about antenna installation would require a lot of knowledge about your exact computer, I have none. Toughbook owners have to always consider how to get antennas outside the magnesium computer and LCD cases which are pretty radio signal proof. GPS antennas require a view of the entire sky to receive radio signals. I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of room to play with in a Lenovo. You might get lucky and find someone here with knowledge of your computer, I would suggest you sell it and get a CF-18 Toughbook.
CAP