Suddenly Macbook Wifi has got weaker and dropping out...

Is there a HOW-TO to replace the antennae on the WEB somewhere?

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Installing-MacBook-Core-Duo-Airport-Card/287/ 1

I bought the card here: http://shop.ebay.com/?from=R40&_trksid=m38&nkw=BroadComBCM94321+BCM94321MC+802.11ABGN+WiFi+CardV5

Got it quite fast, I think 2 weeks or something. And they are very responsive, informing about the shipping time and so on.

About the rogue firmware... You can never be certain, but I don't suspect he will ruin his good marks on ebay for that.

Just to show you the results, this is from a railway station where I first couldn't find any access point: http://goo.gl/7ueA

edit: Oh, and you also get wireless n with the new card. So that is another bonus

EarthBased,

To replace the antenna, I followed the iFixit instructions that are to replace the LCD panel. The antenna is housed in one of the sides of the metal framing surrounding the LCD panel (the antenna cable is soldered to the antenna itself).

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Repair/Installing-MacBook-Core-Duo-LCD-Panel/311/1

Skip steps 53, 54, 55 & 56 that are to remove the black cable behind the LCD.

From steps 57-60, only remove the three silver Phillips screws along the mounting bracket that has the antenna, and the one silver Phillips screw that secures this edge to the iSight holder (this will be enough to free the edge that has the antenna -- no need to remove the whole metal framing around the LCD).

I got the replacement parts from eBay, "MacBook A1181 13.3" LCD Brackets + 2 WiFi Antennas", for $18.

For anyone who has replaced the wifi card, this procedure should not be too difficult; it will just take more time and patience.

HTH.

I found this wifi card at a store that's not in China at a good price, it's the correct model, right?
http://www.alancomputech.com/416371-002.html

Also, is there a way to determine if it's the airport or the antenna? Right now the symptoms are that it acts like it has very little signal strength and if it connects, its with only a bar or two, and that's while being near the wifi router. Sometimes, like after a reboot or coming out of sleep, it will act correctly, giving a full signal like it use to. This is a new issue and no software or firmware has been upgraded recently.

I tried using firewire target disk mode with my other mac and have determined that it is a hardware issues... just not sure which component.

Any thoughts?
Thanks.

Message was edited by: fallenturtle

I would also be interested in knowing if one can tell if it is the Airport Card or the Antenna. I am experiencing the same thing and also suspecting a hardware issue.

If this is an antennae issue it should be covered under extended warranty like a car's induction manifold cracking (happened to many cars).

I have found myself having some of the same problems. I have been scanning through all of the posts (its quite a lot to read) and it seems that most people are getting weak or no signals everywhere.

My big problem is that I can find wireless signals everywhere, and when I connect my computer has full bars. But once it connects it just drops.

But the strangest curiosity is that my computer won't do this for ONE specific signal. And it's at my parents house. I have no idea why my computer favors one particular wireless router, anybody else facing this?

My MacBook is doing the same thing. I have an Airport Extreme and I cannot get signal unless I am right on top of it. Also the signal is very slow. Apple should fix this.

For what its worth, I installed this card and so far my wifi is working again.
http://www.alancomputech.com/416371-002.html

It occurred to me one way to test if its the card or the antenna maybe fairly simple... thus it probably has a logical flaw 🙂

Obviously if you are getting no signal at all no matter what, it could be either the card or the antenna. If the signal goes in and out or changes without moving the computer, particularly the lid, it's probably the card. If the signal only changes if you move the lid around, it could very well be a loose wire or a problem with the antenna.

Good luck, y'all.

Message was edited by: fallenturtle

I am having the same problem as of 2 days ago. Now all of a sudden, my wifi is very unreliable where there were no problems before. Sometimes it starts off fine but invetiably the signal strength declines into nothingness. The only time the signal is strong is when the computer is right next to the router..and honestly, what's the point of having wireless when you can only use it in the same room as the router!?

I have tried reconfiguring the wireless settings, thinking there was some sort of interferrence, but after doing this several times, I have concluded its not the problem. I have found that resetting the SMC helps, but the problem returns in less than 5 minutes. I'm not especially computer savvy, so there are very few things I can try to fix this problem.

I've made an appointment at a GeniusBar, but by virtue of where I live its a bit of a hassle to get to it.

Does anyone have any suggestions before I schalp all the way to an Apple Store?Thanks!