Dell Mini 9 hacked for 3G use with some difficulty
By Donald Melanson 
posted April 13th 2009 5:54PM
posted April 13th 2009 5:54PM
Folks discovered some time ago that Dell's stock Mini 9 just wasn't made for 3G, but that doesn't look to have stopped MyDellMini forum member Jingo5, who saw an opening on the netbook's motherboard and ran with it. As you might expect, however, that didn't exactly prove to be the easiest course of action to take, with it involving a modified 855u Sierra USB adapter, a good deal of soldering, and a fair measure of skill to ensure that the whole thing didn't backfire. He was also apparently able to pull an antenna off the LAN card to improve reception with little consequence, and even get it working under OS X using Sierra's own 3G app. Feeling brave enough to try it yourself? Then hit up the read link below for the complete details.
[Via Hack a Day]
[Via Hack a Day]
I bought a Lenovo with express card specifically so I wouldn't be tempted to do stuff like this.
Oh, well aren't you cool.
My thoughts exactly.
Why go through all this trouble?
Hey,
Thanks for posting us :)
Hi person with the same name as me.
My name starts with a capital letter.
Capital Matt: 1
Mini 9 Enthusiast Matt: 0
That's because Matt respects himself.
Fixed it for ya.
Capital Matt: 1
Mini 9 Enthusiast matt: 0
Ive had 3G data usage in my dell mini 9 since i bought it. Well it was a Vodafone one, so it was expected.
I would think being able to run MacOS on a Dell Mini 9 is quite a feat in itself, no?
Dell Mini 9 runs osx86 perfect, all hardware supported
No, that's old news. Though most of what I've seen says you need a 16GB drive to do it.
Which 3G? Just saying "3G" is worthless by itself. Which network is it for?
sierra wireless?
its not like it says it right in the text or anything.
If it said in the text, I wouldn't have brought it up. Maybe you should take another look:
"it involving a modified 855u Sierra USB adapter"
Yep, that's the brand of USB adapter, not the phone network standard in use. Any article talking about a "3G" device needs to tell us what kind of network it works on, as in one of the following.
* W-CDMA also known as UMTS
* CDMA2000
* TD-CDMA / TD-SCDMA
* UWC (often implemented with EDGE)
* DECT
* Mobile WiMAX[8]
If you google the specs for the Sierra Wireless 885u modem (obviously a typo by Engadget there is no such thing as a 855u) you will find the full specifications in about 30 seconds.
it uses AT&T
Apple could think to put sim entrance in their macs!!
They are losing there.
Oh well... I'll just have to use one of the external ones :S
WTF are you talking about?
I WANT TO BUY YOUTR SHROOMS PLZ
How can you not understand what he was talking about? Are you a moron?
Anyway, Vodafone in Australia has Mini9's with built in 3G. I nearly got one but I didn't have the cash :(
I just want to know if that additional mini pcie slot can be used to add an additional drive? I have asked on every board about it, but no one seems to answer. I don't have as much use for mobile data, I do have a use for more storage in that little dell.
This dude rules!
At first, I thought having built-in 3G/EVDO sounds good, but then I don't think I want to spend money on an internet service that I can only use on 1 computer. A USB dongle sounds more practical in the long run as you can use it on any computers you want.
I agree. Efforts like this sort of confuse me. Is the extra effort here to have the 3G modem internal to the netbook, or do common USB 3G modems not work with the Dell Mini 9?
In practice I personally think (as someone that lugs around a USB modem) it would be convenient to be able have the modem internal- I've always thought I'd use it on multiple PCs but it has never been connected to anything but my T60. However a Mini 9 isn't nearly as flexible as a T60 or other full-size laptop. I'm guessing most people that would have WWAN and Mini 9s also have another more powerful portable computer.