M18x R1/R2 - Creative Use for the Empty Mini-PCI Slot (WIHD socket on systems without WIHD)

In case else anyone is interested, I have verified this device works. For those that have the mini-PCI slot empty and don't plan to fill it with a WIHD card later on, there is no sense in the space going to waste.

Mini PCI-E Card to USB 2.0 Adapter Card

 

Just ordered one of these for $12.99 to go in there...

Newegg.com - SanDisk Cruzer Fit 16GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive Model SDCZ33-016G-A11


Also ordered a second Mini PCI-E Card to USB 2.0 Adapter Card to fill the empty slot in my Dell Mini 9.

This would also be a good option: Kingston DataTraveler Micro 32 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive - Black

...would bring the Mini 9 internal storage to 96GB with the aftermarket 64GB mPATA SSD it currently has.

 

Pretty slick

Edit: I just realized that I could use this for my wireless mouse dongle... or I wonder if my Logitech G930 stick would fit in there! Hoo-lee &%$§!

 

The G930 dongle would be far too big to fit in, unfortunately.....

 

Are you sure? It looks like it might fit... either way, I ordered one for €14,49... they ship internationally too..

If my G930 dongle doesn't fit, my G700 dongle definitely will

Edit: On second thought, it looks like you might be right... it looks like it would fit the length of the card, but the slot in the laptop is much shorter than the card is...

Mr. Fox, I see you have a screw holding your card in place. Did that come with the card or did you get that screw from somewhere else?

 

Yep. the card was chopped right down to fit, so all the length that is available in it's normal state is gone when cut to size.....

 

No, I had the screw in my spare "stuff" already. It is the same size screw as the WIFI card. The card came with a couple of stickers with a barcode and numbers that I have no idea why, but nothing else. Driver support is native to Windows 7 and Windows 8. My dual-boot system instantly recognized it and installed drivers in both environments.

I wonder how much of the Logitech USB dongle is useless plastic cosmetics? It would be interesting to know if the outer shell was removed if the important internal components that remained would fit inside of the mini-PCI bay.

If you look at the image you can see a dotted line above the screw holes nearest the USB port. Just use an Xacto knife and scribe a deep grove into the PCB material and snap off the excess. That is what the dotted line is there for. It is a universal card, so it can work (and match up with screw holes) in both full or half-height mini-PCI slots. The extra bay in the M18x is a half-height spec. Other than space consumed, there is no difference between the operating spec for full and half-height mini-PCI devices.

 

Thx for have find this Mr Fox, if you find anothers thing that you can put here tell it to .

 

OK, I'll do that, for sure. I'm sure anything that will fit in the space will work out to be pretty nifty.

Later today I will take another photo with a ruler to show the measurement of the space (length) available for USB devices to fit there. A longer device needs to be inserted into the USB port before the card is put in the slot and screwed down. Otherwise, you'll not have enough space between the USB port and laptop chassis for the device to travel in and out of the USB port.

 

I have find this

View attachment 90184

Don't know if this can work.


I have a Idea for my girl friend, she have a Corsair vengeance HS1 2000 Wireless Headset and she need to put this usb key it the laptop. View attachment 90185

I know this dont fit straight flush, but do you think if we put your adapter and a usb extender cable male/female, and that we put the usb key at the end, that this can work ? I will search for a place for passe the cable through empty space for fit the key.

I have find this cable not too long and short connector NEW USB 2.0 MALE AM M TO FEMALE F EXTENSION CABLE | eBay.

 

If you can find space somewhere else for the USB device, there is no reason that extension cable would not work. That might be an option for locust76 as well for his Logitec mouse dongle. Maybe near the SO-DIMM slots, or between the chassis bottom cover and a memory module. It would depend on how long and/or thick the USB dongle is.

The SATA port adapter would not fit in the half-height bay. Plus, I do not know of any device you could find space for that would connect to it inside of the chassis if it did work. Providing power to a SATA device would also be a problem since there are no spare internal power outlets.

 

Is this what you are looking for?

Spoiler

[Click to enlarge in new window]

 

freaking awesome man, thanks

 

yes thank you. I was trying to get a clean image so I can figure out where to see if I can figure out where to place some quick disconnects without having to take mine apart. now to wait for the heat sinks to show up.

 

speaking of WIHD, we never could get R2s that werent fitted with the wiHD card in the factory could we?

 

You can order a new M18x with WIHD in the US now that the far more important component (680M SLI) is not available.

 

Well, I think Brother DevilDoc is still having issues with WiHD on his replacement R2 that shipped with WiHD configured. I believe he can't get it working when using discreet graphics but it works on iGFX....for some odd reason.... http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m18x/702070-m18xr2-wihd-help.html

 

mSATA to 7pin SATA Adapter | eBay

 

I have an extension cable like that one. I thought it might work, but it does not. There is simply not enough space for it. The distance between the USB port and the chassis is not enough to accommodate the extension cable.

As indicated earlier, here are the photos showing the available space with a tape measure.

Spoiler

 

Hi gang! Man this is crazy, I haven't even ordered my M18x yet, and I still couldn't resist grabbing one of these adapters because its only a matter of time!
I was looking at options to be used with this thing, and came across this flash drive:

Patriot Axle 64GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive

Looking at the photos, Brother Fox, I believe this might just wedge in there if the flip-around "hood" were removed and would provide a 64GB option!

 

It might, Brother TXG... it will be a tight fit if it does. You will definitely need to insert the drive into the port before installing the card because you will not have enough room otherwise. I don't see any dimensions posted at NewEgg.

It is available a little bit cheaper here: PSF64GAUSB Patriot 64GB Axle USB 2.0 Flash Drive RED-Best Computer Online Store - Buy with Discount Prices from Houston Texas-Directron.com (may not be if the shipping is not free)

Here is the spec sheet with dimensions: http://patriotmemory.com/product/specs/Axle2.pdf

 

couldnt you take the G700 out o the plastic housing to shorten it up a bit?

 

How's about this little beauty!!! (I doubt it would fit in it's current size, but if stripped down, might do!)

Anyway, highly unlikely anyone could justify the price tag - still, thought I'd throw it out there for a giggle......these little USB 3.0 buggers come in 512gb and 1Tb

DataTravelerHyperX Predator flash drives launched | T3

 

Ho no , can you put picture ? if we cute the plastic from the usb cable do you think it will be possible after ?

This one is more compact then the previous one New USB 2.0 A Male to A Female M/F Extension Retractable Cable | eBay

 

I think that one will work. I have one and will test it later today.

Edit: OK, there is good news and bad news...

First the bad news. It's not bootable. Apparently, the mini-PCI slot does not get power at first POST because no USB drives are detected at POST. None of them are listed after pressing F12 at the BIOS POST splash screen.

Now for the good news... that retractable USB cable works. The end is small enough to fit in the available space.



While it is not a bootable device, there is still a value to having the internal port for a USB keyboard/mouse dongle or a USB memory stick to stuff like drivers on so they are always available, etc.

And, the USB flash drive is active and visible during Windows Setup, even though not bootable at POST...

 

Also tested with Logitec USB wireless mouse micro-dongle... works during Windows setup...

<param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DErkoOC1Ltw?hl=en_US&amp;version=3&amp;rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DErkoOC1Ltw?hl=en_US&amp;version=3&amp;rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width='640' height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

 

Sweet Brother Fox

 

Thanks, buddy. I am going to check a USB and wireless USB keyboard to confirm that it allows access to Ctrl+I, F2 and F12 at POST. Will report back after I test it... probably sometime tomorrow.

 

OK - USB wired keyboard and MS Wireless Desktop (keyboard and mouse combo) both work, but ONLY after system has completed POST. Access to the Intel Rapid Storage Technology Configuration (Ctrl+I), F2 BIOS and F12 boot selection are not accessible because the mini-PCI slot does not receive any power until just after POST has completed. They work in Windows setup, same as the Logitec wireless mouse I tested yesterday.

 

this is a pretty cool idea and a good way to spend 15 bucks. That wireless HD is pointless, I'd never use the m18x on my tv anyways. Gonna go for it with my GPU upgrade, Got a logitech performance mouse mx and a logitech k800 backlit wireless keyboard can free up an external port and put the nano unifying receiver on the inside, i kinda like it.

 

maybe try this keyboard? Dell XPS M2010 Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard Battery C9891 DC400 C9911 PC207 CG638 | eBay

or try this, two usb port instead of 1?
Mini PCI E to 5pin USB2 0 Adapte Card with 2 Cable Netbook Mini PCIe to USB2 0 | eBay

or why not just install msata? would it work?

 

I have that keyboard plus mouse plus keyboard/w touch pad
it's a great place to hid the dongle for that stuff. And Logitech does have some high end mouse's if im not mistaken. And they share the unifying adapter as well.

That's a bluetooth keyboard for the m2010 which I have sitting in the close right now. haha

Side note:
For that expresscard slot that is doing nothing...
That is a usb bootable flash drive 16gb at the moment.

 

I have inserted this Newegg.ca - SanDisk Mobile Ultra 64GB MicroSDXC Flash Card with Adapter Model SDSDQY-064G-A11A in the slot through a microsd to usb card reader and the speed is worst (very slow) than the sd card slot (though the sd slot works at 45mb/s - I have a 128gb sd card in it). I have given up on the 'waste' of 64gb microsd and I've inserted the Logitech USB wireless micro-dongle that I use with several Logitech accessories.

 

I would have used the sd slot but it's not bootable on the m18x. Which is kind of wierd. Since some lower end laptops can boot from that. I use that for updating my garmin maps though.
45 mbit is pretty good. the highest i got out of that port is 41.5 max with an average of 40.1 on 4 different m18x machines.

 

I got mine last month. I wanted to reply to this thread but I just forgot I wound up using it for my Logitech mouse dongle. Fantastic idea!

I originally wanted to use it for my Logitech G930 headset dongle. The dongle could have fit just fine:

Spoiler

But the M18x chassis has limited space around the Mini-PCI slot, so I had to abandon my dreams of integrated wireless headphones. Instead, I decided to plug my mouse dongle in there.



But, due to the limited space mentioned above, it's necessary to trip the adapter along the first line:


There are no screws included, these are what one needs:


I'm an idiot and forgot to remove said bag of screws before closing up my laptop:

Now I don't even notice the dongle and have both USB 3.0 ports free when not gaming! Excellent Thanks again to Mr. Fox for the outstanding idea!

 

lol I bought two wireless dongle for my wireless headset and opened it up and cut off some extra light/board to save space, didn't have to open the 2nd one thought I'd fail but worked, taped it with electrical tape at the end while leaving half a usb casing on. wireless headset to go.

 

This is the best use for that slot since the r2 can use the gpus the over wihd, only integrated. Which sucks

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2

 

rofl Im bored
Mini PCI E to 5pin USB2 0 Adapte Card with 2 Cable Netbook Mini PCIe to USB2 0 | eBay

or these three
2 5 3 5" SATA SSD HDD to Laptop Mini PCIe PCI E mSATA Adapter Converter Card | eBay
New 15 Pin SATA Male to Two SATA Female HDD Power Cable | eBay
Ultrafast SATA 7pin Female to Serial ATA F Speed Up to 6Gbps 50cm Cable Angled | eBay

 

Well I bought one too .. And also have a g930 was wondering what dongle you cut up? Was it a logitech one if not which one any pictures? Guess I will be a gunnipig when my m18x comes in.

 

I guess you could always buy G930 dongle-only via Ebay for next to nothing and butcher it to see if it will fit. If it doesn't, no love lost.....

 

I just bought one of these from a fellow forum member.
Amazon.com: MR15 (Dual Micro SD Cards to Mini PCIe adapter): Electronics

It works great in my R2. W7 needed no additional drivers. It was up and running in a couple of minutes.
I have two 32GB micro SD cards installed and have a couple of extra storage drives now in my computer. I haven't quite found what I'm going to use them for...but for $15 (plus the SD cards) it's cool to have the rig fully populated.

 

Would a Mini PCI-e msata adaptor + msata ssd work in an R1? Has anyone tried it?

 

Yes, it has been tried and does not work. The socket is correct, but it is not a SATA port and does not receive power until after POST completes. It's the same on the R1 and R2. If it did work, you would have to disassemble the chassis and chop out part of the base because the area around that mini PCI-e port is too small for an mSATA drive to fit there.

 

One of these might fit as they dont need the adapter Amazon.com: 32GB RunCore Pro IV Light 50mm Mini PCI-e PATA SSD RCP-IV-M5032-MC: Computers & Accessories

 

Sorry, Brother Fred. No, it will not fit. It is too long. I have a spare Mini PCE-e PATA SSD from upgrading my Dell Mini-9 and it is too long to fit in the available space. If it would fit, it might be usable for storage, but the port in question does not receive any power until POST completes and Windows starts loading, so it could not be used as a bootable drive. I cannot test it for storage space since it will not fit in the chassis. If we could find a drive like that in the shorter form factor, it might work for storage space.

 

Thanks for the info Mr. Fox.

 

Maybe I was too hasty declaring the port is not bootable. It might be an issue or functional limitation with the USB card. One would have to test it to find out. It is already working in the M17x R3. Have a look at these two threads:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...-additional-sata-iii-3-ports-your-laptop.html

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...al-hdd-m17xr3-using-mini-pci-e-raid-card.html

Fitting the mini PCI-e SATA adapter into the half-height card space may still be tough. One would need to chop off the little arm that drops down from the chassis for the retainer screw and figure out an alternative for holding the card in place without a place for a screw on the full length mini PCI-e card. I'm sure something can be figured out as a workaround.

 

already posted lol, but tbh, it will not work well with power splitter cable because sata provides 1.5 amps, and most devices takes up 700 milliamps to 1.4 amps. intel 525 msata takes up 1.35 amps during its max power usage its pointless, dropping two of those will net you two storage device with poor performance or may not work at all.

I ordered most of the parts shown in the other thread like 2 weeks ago, should be here in another week so I want to extend and split sata power from the optical port, and mod that HDD caddy in optical bay in my 18x. given regular sata 1.5 amps I am crossing my finger on 13 pin optical sata to 22 pin sata will also provide 1.5 amps, so I could throw in two HDDs, two intel 520 240gb.

(all of the above are in max speed, max power draw, sata6gbps, may not draw as much power under sata 3gbps)

not many SSD would work well in this because 480gb size tends to have lot more power draw during both sequential and random write. SSD 120gb would work nicely though, same with 120gb msata.

the toughest part is probably getting 7 pin sata cable to go through portion of the machine from mini pcie port to where optical drive is in m18x. imho if I can cut off the plastic portion that covers internal wire and use electrical tape or plastic wrap, sata wire will be real thin and should work and fit nicely.