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I8600c with TrueMobile 1450: Bad reception

post #1 of 10
2/2/05 at 5:01pm
Thread Starter 
It seems that the new card only solved half of my problem.
I've set up a wireless network using a US Robotics 9106 54 Mbit/s WLAN router, WEP & SSID broadcast enabled.

I have two notebooks, an Acer Travelmate 4001WLMI with Intel 2200 bg and my new Inspiron 8600c with Dell TrueMobile 1450 abg card.

Sitting at the same spot in my living room gives me perfect reception (54Mbit/s) with the Acer and the Intel 2200bg, but poor reception (between 54-26Mbit/s) with the Inspiron.

Is the Intel card just superior to the Dell TrueMobile?
Could there be something wrong with the internal antenna of the I8600c?
Where's the antenna actually located? Inside or around the screen?

Thanks for your answers
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post #2 of 10
2/2/05 at 5:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kingpin
Is the Intel card just superior to the Dell TrueMobile?
Could there be something wrong with the internal antenna of the I8600c?
Where's the antenna actually located? Inside or around the screen?
I don't believe the antenna in in the lcd cover. It goes through the motherboard and ends on the left side. Anyway, that's how it is on the 600m. Try to look at the pictures in the service manual.

Oh and I heard that the a/b/g intel version is unreliable and people switched to truemobile.

My 1450 connects at full speed ("Excellent connection") within 100 ft 3D radius. My router (Linksys B) is downstairs and I'm upstairs always connecting at 11 Mbs which is little more than 1.25 MBytes.
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post #3 of 10
2/2/05 at 7:05pm
Thread Starter 
Using the Dell Wireless WLAN Card Utility, and placing the notebook next to the router, my signal changes between -50 and -36 dBm permanently.
Again, my Acer notebook shows full Signal quality with no changes.

I think there must be someting wrong with the antenna, i've checked the connections, they are both fine.

Think i need to call Dell once more and tell them to send a service guy to check that out.

Bummer
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post #4 of 10
2/2/05 at 7:46pm
Try running Custom Tests in Dell's diagnostics on things such as sensors, System Board, Management, etc. Personally, however, I don't know of anyone who's gotten an error using Dell's diagnostics - it might just be a placebo for the cutormer.
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post #5 of 10
2/3/05 at 6:58am
Thread Starter 
@mich43l: Just to confirm that my readings are too weak:
Could you please post your signal strenght (in dbm) with your 1450?
Thanks!
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post #6 of 10
2/3/05 at 8:39am
I have Dell 1450 in my 9100, wireless router is about 25ft away, no walls, I'm getting signal strength of -37dBm and noise of -89dBm.
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post #7 of 10
2/3/05 at 10:18am
Thread Starter 
@geo: is your signal level at that location constant or does it change?
Cause mine changes constantly from -32 to -50 and back.....
Thanks for your reply!
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post #8 of 10
2/3/05 at 5:21pm
Its pretty much constant, changes only 2 or 3 dBm at the most.
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post #9 of 10
2/4/05 at 1:10pm
-27 for signal & -99 for noise; this on a TrueMobile 1450 connected to a TrueMobile 2350 approx. 20 feet away in my attic (one level above me), using Channel 11.
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post #10 of 10
2/25/05 at 9:14am
I have a I8600 with the Truemobile 1450, and I am using the drivers that came with it, in the box, original system had Intel 2200 BG, had many drop problems, so after reading comments here I got the 1450, uptodate this has been great. I am connecting to a Netgear WGT624. Here is my question ? What would make the connections all of a sudden drop from 54 to 1 mbps, I have tried all the drivers, and after burner which did nothing, set preamble to long preamble, check all connections and antenna connects and everything is fine. Turned WEP 64 bit off and on. Now as of typing this post in the forum , connections are back up this morning. Its really frustrating at times. Is there a router that is more compatible with the 1450 than others? Also with that question, I really dont want to have to install seperate software for the router to talk to the 1450 .

Thanks ahead of time, hope this all makes sense to someone that can shed some suggestions on this whole thing.

Michael
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