T61 and prior T series ThinkPad Laptops

[#1]

I have a T23 that is not the wireless model. I have no intention of dismantling it to install any internal wireless gizmo's, so I am considering 2 options... 1. Sierra GSM PCMCIA 2. ZTE USB Broadband GSM Stick I have just purchased a GSM data plan from an ISP but I am confused over what hardware is best for the T23. I am concerned about the power pull on the T23, but not sure if I should be. Also, would there be a performance difference that I should consider, re: USB versus PCMCIA solution? NB: My T23 has USB 1.1 ports, but I own a Sabrent USB 2.0 card bus...if this helps with the recommendation.

[#2 · Accepted solution]

Well nobody seemed interested in helping me out on this, so I decided to take a chance with a USB dongle (Rogers Rocket stick).

• On the Sabrent USB 2 card, the dongle did not work.

• On the T23  USB 1.1, the dongle worked but it was not happy there. Slow response times when on the internet.

• Got a Sierra 881 PCMCIA card (cheap now) and it worked great. Better than the dongle by far and the Watcher software that comes with the Sierra is far superior to the Rogers Communication Manager.

So anyone looking to using an old T series on the new Rogers Hi-speed GSM network, the Sierra would be my recommendation.   I use the dongle on my desktop and it works very well there.