1 Topic by wrybread (edited by wrybread 2009-08-14 14:26:01)

  • Registered: 2008-03-05
  • Posts: 119

Topic: External USB wifi recommendations?

One of the places I use my Chumby has pretty weak wifi, and the Chumby loses connection constantly. With iwconfig I can see that the signal strength is really weak. Using a laptop next to the Chumby I get pretty good reception though. So I was wondering if there's another USB wifi adaptor that will work with the Chumby out of the box?

From a little research I see that this is the current internal wifi card:

http://xterasys.com/product/xn3135g.htm

I gather that it uses the Ralink chipset, so could I use another Ralink wifi adaptor? If so, any tips on disabling the internal card and activating the external card?

I see from this thread that I might be able to just remove the riser card to get better reception, but for various reasons I'd prefer an externally mounted wifi card:

http://forum.chumby.com/viewtopic.php?id=3519

You can see pictures of the riser card here, as well as the internal wifi card:

http://broo2.blogspot.com/2008/01/naked-chumby.html

This thread has some recommendations for a wired adaptor (http://forum.chumby.com/viewtopic.php?id=2585), but I can't find anything on mounting a USB wifi card to one of the rear USB ports of the Chumby, ideally without removing the internal card.

Thanks for any help.

  • Registered: 2008-06-27
  • Posts: 518

Re: External USB wifi recommendations?

I don't think the rt73 driver copes well with multiple cards, to the point where it might panic.  And there's no software control to turn off the internal USB port.

So you'd want to at least unplug the internal wifi card, if not remove it.  If you do decide to go that route, you'd probably want to unplug the riser from the board, rather than pulling the card out of the riser, because on some models the wifi card is actually glued into the riser to prevent it from popping out during shipping.

  • Registered: 2009-03-20
  • Posts: 27

Re: External USB wifi recommendations?

I think this would be incredably useful feature.

Is it possible that it could be built into the control panel?   Currently the Chumby will detect if I have my ethernet adapter plugged in, and then use that.   

I know that it is a little more complicated to disable the onboard wifi but is it possible?   

I would like to use an extender if needed... and still keep my internal all ready to rock the next time I use it!