Intel's built-in 802.11n Mini PCI card gets official
By Darren Murph 
posted Jan 23rd 2007 5:12PM
posted Jan 23rd 2007 5:12PM
We realize that Intel has probably waited about as long as it possibly can on this not-yet-ratified 802.11n deal, but on the very day we see some rare signs of life in the 802.11 task force, Intel is making its own draft-spec 802.11n Mini PCI card official. While we've known that Intel would be backing the protocol for some time now, the company has just announced that the 4965agn card (backwards compatible with a/b/g networks) will be replacing the existing 3945abg card and should be shipping on most Vista-equipped laptops. Intel claims that its new card will offer up "five times the performance, twice the range, and greater battery life" than its predecessor. Additionally, the firm launched the "Connect with Centrino" campaign, which will force vendors such as Asus, Belkin, Buffalo, D-Link, and Netgear to pass Intel's own line of testing in order to receive its coveted seal of approval, which is just begging to cause inoperability problems whenever 802.11n goes final. Users interested in getting the latest WiFi chip in their Centrino package can look for that (probably large) palm rest sticker signifying that it's certified starting this week, and if you're 
I bought a dell (inspiron 6400, core 2 duo) yesterday, did i but too early?
well, you bought a dell, so yes, you bought to early...
Wonder if this'll be a drop-in replacement for the airport extreme card on Powermac G5 computers, since it also uses a miniPCI interface.
I wonder...maybe I can buy this for my MacBook Pro and pay Apple $1.99 for the "upgrade" software.
*that* is not a Mini PCI card. Mini PCI
Perhaps it's a Mini-PCI Express card?
Doesn't that card look very much like it would fit in the Mac Pro?
The pin design and the mounting holes looks very similar.
What about the price?
That is a Mini-PCI-Express card, it will NOT work with older mini-PCI motherboards. It will work with the MacBook Pro and any Core2Duo/CoreDuo laptops out there currently.
Dell offers the 1500 card as an option currently, which has the same 802.11n capability, although it is a broadcom chipset, not Intel. I have 3 of those running in a MacBook Pro, a Toshiba Portege M400, and a Dell XPS M1705, all off a Linksys 802.11n router. Let me just say that 270 Mbps is NICE, especially with the NAS and network backbone at gigabit.
Ah yes it is a Mini-PCI Express card, but does the mac have divers that work with it? What chipsets are the Macs using?
Another innovative new tool from Intel... I'll be keeping track of its development... Mr Moreno does a fine job on how the application works...
- airbutchie
Yet another marketing hype for a substandard wireless card. I wonder if the throughput for the intel cards are still as bad as the 3945 and 2915 models giving only maximum 3Mbit performance on 54Mbit networks while other brand name cards can perform its maximum speeds on 54Mbit networks.