Mac Daniel's Advice
WiFi CardBus Adapters Compatible with PowerBooks
- 2009.03.11
Popularity: ![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
This page covers CardBus WiFi hardware that is compatible with Mac OS X. CardBus uses a 32-bit data bus that's faster than the 16-bit bus used by PCMCIA/PC Card devices, which are covered in WiFi PC Cards Compatible with PowerBooks Running Mac OS X. Any PowerBook with a card slot that's supported in OS X can use CardBus devices.
USB, ethernet, PCI, and other WiFi hardware more suitable for desktop use is covered in WiFi Hardware Compatible with Desktop Macs Running Mac OS X.
This information is adapted from Mac OS Wireless Adapter Compatibility List by permission of the author, who gives a "nod to the linux-wlan.org Adapter List for doing the heavy lifting."
| Vendor | Type | Product ID | Interface | Chipset | OS Support | Driver(s) | Comments | |||||
A |
||||||||||||
| Alfa | 802.11g | AWPC006G | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Asante | 802.11g | AL5403-XG | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1 and up | ||||||
| Aztech | 802.11b? | WL830PC | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
B |
||||||||||||
| Buffalo | 802.11g | WLICBG54 | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | ||||||
D |
||||||||||||
| D-link | 802.11b/g | DWL-G650X | CardBus | ? | 10.2-10.4 | D-link | ||||||
| D-link | 802.11a/b/g | DWL-AG650 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| D-link | 802.11g | DWL-G650 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | HW Rev B1 only | |||||
E |
||||||||||||
| Elecom | 802.11a/b/g | LD-WL5411A/B | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Elecom | 802.11a/b/g | LD-WL54AG/CB | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Eusso | 802.11b/g | GL2454-01 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
F |
||||||||||||
| Farallon (see Proxim) | ||||||||||||
| Fujitsu | 802.11a/b/g | E5454 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Fujitsu | 802.11a/b/g | E5454/CB | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Fujitsu | 802.11a/b/g | FMV-JW481 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
I |
||||||||||||
| IBM | 802.11a/g | 31P9101 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
J |
||||||||||||
| JAHT | 802.11b/g | JWN-5108P | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare |
K |
|||||
| KCORP Lifestyle | 802.11b/g | KLG-520 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
L |
||||||||||||
| Lancom Systems | 802.11a/b | MC-54ab | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Lancom Systems | 802.11a/g | MC-54ag | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Lancom Systems | 802.11g | MC-54g | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Linksys | 802.11g | WPC54G | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | ||||||
| Linksys | 802.11a/g | WPC55AG | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
M |
||||||||||||
| Macsense | 802.11b | WPE-800 | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | ||||||
| MacWireless | 802.11g | ? | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | ||||||
| Melco (see Buffalo) | ||||||||||||
| Microsoft | 802.11g | MN-720 | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | Add Vendor ID string | |||||
N |
||||||||||||
| NEC | 802.11a/b/g | WL54AG | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Netgear | 802.11g | WG511T | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
S |
||||||||||||
| Samsumg | 802.11g | SWL5200N | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Sitecom | 802.11g | WL-100b | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | ||||||
| SMC | 802.11a/b/g | 2336WAG | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| SMC | 802.11a/g | 2536WAG | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| Sonnet | 802.11b/g | G54CB | CardBus | Broadcom | 10.2-10.4 | AirPort 3.1-3.3; 3.4 and up native | Aria Extreme | |||||
| Sony | 802.11g | PCWAC300S | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
T |
||||||||||||
| 3Com | 802.11a/b/g | 3CRPAG175 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
| 3Com | 802.11a/b/g | 3CRWE154A72 | CardBus | Atheros | 10.2-10.4 | OrangeWare | ||||||
Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.
Recent Mac Daniel columns
- WiFi Hardware Compatible with Desktop Macs Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. USB, ethernet, PCI, and other wireless hardware compatible with Mac OS X.
- WiFi PC Cards Compatible with PowerBooks Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. PCMCIA/PC Card hardware and drivers compatible with PowerBooks running Mac OS X.
- WiFi PC Cards for PowerBooks Running Mac OS 9, MetaPhyzx, 03.10. PCMCIA cards and drivers reported to be compatible with PowerBook running the Classic Mac OS.
- WiFi Adapters for Desktop Macs Running Mac OS 9, MetaPhyzx, 03.10. USB, ethernet, PCI, and other wireless hardware compatible with desktop Macs running the Classic Mac OS.
- More in the Mac Daniel index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: Power Mac 4400, Nov. 1996 - Apple does cheap to compete with clones - and nobody is impressed.
- Group of the Day: Puma List is for anyone using Mac OS X 10.1.
- November 7 in LEM history: 00: PowerBook Lite dreams - Our first Macs - 01: OS 9, OS X, or Linux? - 02: Xserve for the classroom - 03: Panther on slot-loading iMacs - High capacity Lombard/Pismo battery - 05: Clean keyboard residue from laptop screen with ROR - SeaMonkey - 06: Dan Bricklin, inventor of the spreadsheet - Turn any Mac into a gameshow buzzer - 07: The transforming PowerBook 1400 - PowerBook 540 on Compact Flash
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Quad-Core CPU Makes Sense in MacBook Pro, OS X 10.6 Causing Overheating, Overseas Power, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.06. Also Late 2009 MacBook reviewed, how to add RAM to new MacBook, 18.4in Acer notebook used Intel i7, and SanDisk SSD chosen for Sony VAIO X.
- Dumping Macs for Google Apps, SSD in iMac, Late 2009 iMac Performance Problems, and More, Mac News Review, 11.06. /newsrev/09mnr/1106.html
- WiFi Paranoia, iMac-O-Lantern, Magic Mouse Does Click, Free Clipboard Managers, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.05. Also strange time stamps, problem with ColorIt on Intel Mac, and the story behind OS X 10.5.4 install discs.
- IDE Is Dead; Long Live SATA!, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 11.04. SATA has displaced parallel ATA. While IDE hard drives haven't disappeared, the best deals are in SATA hard drives.
- QuickTime X in Snow Leopard Imports, Trims, and Publishes Video Quickly and Easily, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 11.04. The long, slow process of importing video into iMovie to edit it, then render it to another format, is history as QuickTime X does that much more quickly.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.03. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 8-core. $2,299; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.26 8-core, $2,799; 2.93, $4,999.
- Best iPhone Deals, 11.03. New 8 GB iPhone 3G, $$99; refurb 16 GB 3GS, $149; new, $199; 32 GB, $299.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.03. Used 867 MHz SperDrive, $348; 1 GHz, $499; 1.33 Combo, $298; SD, $559; 1.5 Combo, $448; SuperDrive, $589.
- Best Power Mac G3 and PCI Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used beige 300 MHz, $25; G4/366, $49; blue & white 350, $80; 400, $90; 450, $105; PCI video cards from $15; shipping additional.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used 400 MHz, $50; 733 MHz, $69; 933 MHz, $209; 1.25 GHz dual, $299.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.02. Used 2.0 GHz, $800; 2.2, $900; 2.4, $1,000; refurb 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,949; 3.06, $2,169; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
- Best Mac mini Deals, 10.30. Used 1.33 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.42, $389; 1.5, $419; 1.83 GHz Core Duo, $350; Core 2, $439; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $770; Server, $990.
- Best G4 iBook Deals, 10.30. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $225; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1 GHz, $349; 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz SuperDrive, $498.
- Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 10.30. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.5 CD, $4; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
- More deals in our archive.
About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts
Navigation
Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Video Cards
Email Lists
Favorite Sites
MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System
6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Affiliates
The Apple
Store
Mac
Connection
B&H
MacMall
TechRestore
ExperCom
Crucial
Memory
batteries.com
Advertise
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Mac Connection
B&H
MacMall
TechRestore
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com
