[AndrewP]

OK, I know that this is a strange one....

I have a 15"PB but am finding it just too big for mobility (I typically carry a laptop everywhere). I also have one of the Verizon Wireless PC-5220 (PCMCIA) wireless modems. It works great in the 15.

I'm seriously considering the purchase of a 12" PB to carry around. Unfortunately, I'll lose my PC Card slot and not be able to use the Verizon card anymore. Kind of a bummer...

So, has anyone ever heard of (or seen) a USB based PC Card adapter. In other words an external device with a PC card slot that is self-powered and can plug into a USB port?

[Drakino]

I haven't personally seen one, but does Verizon not offer another connectivity option like USB or Bluetooth phone?

As long as my phone is nearby, I can hop on the internet at any time via Bluetooth. GPRS isn't the fastest data solution, but at least it is a worldwide standard with more companies making devices to support it.



My Powerbook enjoying the internet connection onboard a cell phone signal amplified ICE train in Germany.

[kafoochy]

I also haven't heard of any such device. This isn't a very helpful post, but to second what the previous reply said, I do well using my Bluetooth phone and GPRS with T-Mobile. I only pay $4.99 a month and it works fairly well for the data service. Goodluck in your search, but I'm not sure how fruitfull it will be for you.

[minton7]

Wellll, the market for something like that is going to be real small, pretty much limited to people who bought ibooks or the 12" powerbook and who are tired of craning their necks trying to locate the pc card slot. Interestingly enough, many of the larger usb-802.11b devices are actually just pcmcia cards grafted onto a usb bridge and sandwiched into a plastic housing ( http://www.sdwug.org/proximusb.0.html). The type of converter that you're looking for theoretically exists (http://www.zcomax.com/htm/xi700.htm), but theirs is a niche market whose time has past and you're only likely to find them at Goodwill amid the TRS-80s and 5-1/4" floppies.

As Apple has forced my hand with my 12" ibook (which I think should have a pc card slot -even the $600 garbage celerons have 2 slots), I've resorted to putting my high-powered wifi card into a dinky handheld computer (I use a fujitsu stylistic tablet - 8" display, no keyboard). That card goes in one port and an ethernet card goes in the other port. Then, in windows, I turn on internet sharing and connect it with an ethernet cable to my ibook. There are a few of these types of computers still available for relatively cheap (less than $200) - certain Librettos and the first generation Vaio picture books also come to mind (make sure the slots are cardbus compliant). You don't need anything faster than a pentium as all it's doing is relaying a network connection, though you'll atleast want windows 98se to ensure driver compatibility.

I think the 12" powerbook is a joke precisely because of the missing pc card slot - yes, people will say they couldn't fit it in (yet other laptops fit it in with even less space [ dynamism.com]) or they'll say you can use usb and bluetooth to get the same functionality, but unlike a cell phone, an aircard is a sleek gadget that integrates into the body of the laptop, and while I would hate to tote around the belkin usb wifi black blob, my engenius high powered 802.11b card hooks in discretely at my laptop's side as it whispers to the internal airport card rumors of networks blocks beyond its reach. Look for me at your nearest coffeshop - I'll be the one with the 15" pb with two small purple rubber antennas popping up along the side (you know, right where the pc card slot is.) It's certainly better than being the one with the $1700 12" laptop that has enslaved a 1997 model for something that should be standard in 2004.

[AndrewP]

Thank you for all of the replies... to answer some of the points mentioned:

1) I don't have voice service with Verizon, just data and I don't plan on getting data service with them. I'm pretty committed to T-Mobile. I can (and do) use my bluetooth handset to connect to the internet, but the speed difference is enormous. T-Mobile does bandwidth limiting on their GPRS connections so the actual speed is around 30Kbps (rather than the advertised 56). The speed on the Verizon connection is 300 - 500 Kbps. Verizon does not yet have a phone handset that supports 1xEVDO much less bluetooth. If they did I could pick one up and just put a data plan on it, but that would mean another set of batteries that I need to charge.

2) The PC Card is really just a wireless modem with a USB interface that is interfaced to the PC Card interface. I sure wish they had a product that bypassed the middle man.

Thanks for the zcomax link...!

-Andrew