Im wondering if there is a replacement Airport Extreme for a Early 2011 MBP with Yosemite. Id like to take advantage of the wireless ac network router I have set up.
Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro8,1
Processor Name: Intel Core i5
Processor Speed: 2.3 GHz
Number of Processors: 1
Total Number of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB
L3 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 16 GB
Boot ROM Version: MBP81.0047.B2A
MacBook Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.1)
The review here is very positive.
http://www.macworld.co.uk/review/hardware/quickertek-qcard-3-review-3590972/
I don't see it as being a difficult upgrade. It would just be a matter of getting a new type card made with older interface.
The type of job those folk in China do so well.
The cost of the upgrade should be balanced on real need.. and how much it would cost to buy a newer laptop with AC card and sell off the old one. That is where putting extra money into an older machine never pays off.. it simply doesn't make the older machine worth any more.. and the card cannot be removed and used in a later machine.
Apple would not have released one.. that is for sure.. and the problem with apple is they keep changing the interface design.
2011 airport card has this interface.
Available AC mac cards look like this.
and this
Therein lies your problem.. Apple wants you to buy a new computer.. this is not like a pc with a standard slot.. all of these cards are unique.. and changed on each model.
If you could find adapter it might work.. but I suspect that is unlikely.
You might find a wireless USB stick of AC type that works.. I have tried a few but yet to find a working one..
Anyway USB sticks are ugly and hamper you usage.
And finding ones with drivers that actually support your OS can be hard.
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/TRENDnet/TEW805UB/
Problem is drivers.. says up to 10.8 so maybe it will work on yosemite and maybe not.. certainly some mediatek wireless have really horrible drivers even when it is supported.. so really you want a genuine apple card.. not a 3rd party.
Conclusion .. buy a new Mac..or use ethernet.
There is of course a whole community that does conversions to certain other types of computers..
Or this special conversionl from Russia (no love!!)
I thought I would include those just for extra info as the pinouts are known.
You could whip up a converter cable in your spare time.
Actually after all that googling there is one..
Have anyone seen a QuickerTek uCard 4 in real life ? That are taking orders now but
I have not seen any indication of anyone having testified they own one and it is working ?
2011 MBP Replacement Airport Card
