Upgrading T61 NIC -- 4956agn (n-disabled) -- to 802.11n

I have a T61 7659-12U. According to the Lenovo specs and what I see using Windows Device Manager, this -12U version of model 7659 comes with the Intel 4965agn wireless card (n-disabled). I am therefore only able to use 802.11g wireless connections, not 802.11n.
The basic specs for the 7659 model indicate that it supports several types 802.11n wireless cards; however, I see nothing in Lenovo specs that show whether this capability applies to all versions of the 7659, or only some versions.
Is it possible for me to just buy and install a Lenovo-approved n-level card in my -12U system -- does my system have all the motherboard connections, antenna capabilities, etc. to support an internal 802.11n NIC, or do I need to use an external PCMCIA wireless card to get 802.11n capability.??
Message Edited by nlitell on 03-06-2009 11:39 PM
T410 2522-K4U QuadCore Intel i7 Processor 8GB RAM 320GB SATA HDD
64-bit Windows7 Pro, with Windows Virtual XP (as included under W7 license)
D-Link 655 Wireless Network WEP encryption MAC Filtering
-- Both 802.11b and g adapters on various network components
Solved!
Go to Solution.

I finally got a Lenovo trouble ticket opened on this, and the answer was yes, I could upgrade the NIC to an N-level card. The antenna and software already support n-level operation.
Apparently Intel makes just one basic 4956 chip design, and then cripples the n-level operation on some of them for installation in lower-cost versions of specific computers. The basic T61 7659 box supports a variety of NICs, and the configuration version (12U in my case) just indicates which mix of options (disk size, NIC, etc.) is installed in that particular computer. The 12U just contains a cheaper set of options than other T61s.
T410 2522-K4U QuadCore Intel i7 Processor 8GB RAM 320GB SATA HDD
64-bit Windows7 Pro, with Windows Virtual XP (as included under W7 license)
D-Link 655 Wireless Network WEP encryption MAC Filtering
-- Both 802.11b and g adapters on various network components

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Hardmac.com has post a step-by-step guide on how to
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4) How about this USB adapter? http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Newer%20Technology/MXP2802NU2C/
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4) How about this USB adapter?
5) How about getting a Airport Express and connecting to its Ethernet port?
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badtz wrote:
Today's AEBS release is the full 802.11n spec, shouldn't the older draft 802.11n AEBS' be upgradeable as well?
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Upgrading T61 NIC -- 4956agn (n-disable​d) -- to 802.11n

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