Mobile network (3G) card for laptop

[Odd135]

Would it be possible to replace the default network card in my laptop (Lenovo P500, with Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2230 card by default) with one that allows me to use it with my phone's wireless network? I know that you can buy external adapters, but it's tempting to just get something like this:

https/www.amazon.com/Lenovo-THINKPAD-60Y3297-0A36319-04W3786/dp/B01D9KE1FC/ref=pd_sim_sbs_147_4?ie=UTF8&dpID=51VP7YEOwmL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=G5YYBZW2FKDGRQH86ZRZ

Is there any reason nobody's running out there and throwing these into their laptops instead of paying a few hundred bucks extra on the original device? Seriously, I've looked into the prices of laptops that come with the option for a 3G connection, and it's a lot more than $30.

If I don't get any response to this, I'll probably just get it to see; I can just send it back if it doesn't work. I'm just worried that amazon will get tired of me buying stuff and sending it back so often (maybe this wouldn't have been a problem if I was always sent stuff that worked properly, or if the sellers fleshed out their descriptions a bit...)

 

[Solandri]

They use the same connector - miniPCIe. However, laptops which come with WWAN capability have two miniPICe connectors. One for the WLAN (wifi) card, one for the WWAN (cellular) card. If your laptop is one of the models which came in a WWAN version and the manufacturer didn't bother to make different motherboards for the WWAN and WLAN-only versions, then you may already have this second slot and can just buy the card and add it to your laptop. You'll probably also need to figure out a way to insert antennas for the WWAN. The wifi antennas are probably the wrong length.

But if your laptop only has one miniPCIe slot, then you have to give up wifi in order to get cellular Internet. That's a trade most people aren't willing to make.

Have you considered rooting your phone and enabling its cellular hotspot capability? The hotspot feature actually comes standard in Android. It's just that all the cellular carriers (except T-Mobile) disable it. The hotspot will allow your laptop to connect to your phone via wifi, and use the phone's cellular data plan for Internet.

 

[Odd135]

Thanks. I'll take a look into my laptop, and see. I can't root my phone; it's an NEC Terrain, so the only way to use my phone's network is to use a usb cable to "tether" it to my pc, and that both manages to be cumbersome and drain my phone's battery faster than it can charge, which I did not think was possible before I tried it.