Getting the Hardware
If you go into your local electronics retailer, it's unlikely you'll find mini-PCI wireless cards on the shelf next to the other wireless client adapters. But a Froogle search for mini-PCI 802.11 brings up plenty of options, although at prices much higher than you'd expect (or want) to pay.
An alternative to paying top price for a mini-PCI card is to "harvest" one from a product that uses one internally. I compiled Table 1 by digging through my past product reviews and you can use it as a starting point in your hunt for less-expensive wireless mini-PCI cards.
| Product | Card | FCC ID |
| Belkin F5D7130 802.11g Wireless Network Access Point | Broadcom BCM94306MP | QDS-BRCM1005 |
| Buffalo Tech WBR-G54 802.11g router | Broadcom BCM94306MP | QDS-BRCM1005 |
| Buffalo Tech WLA2-G54 AP/Bridge | Buffalo Tech WLI-MPCI-G54 (copy of Broadcom BCM94306MP) | QDS-BRCM1005 |
| Buffalo Technology WLI-USB-G54 AirStation 54Mbps Wireless USB Adapter | Buffalo Tech WLI-MPCI-G54 (copy of Broadcom BCM94306MP) | QDS-BRCM1005 |
| Buffalo WZR-RS-G54 AirStation 54Mbps Wireless Cable/DSL Router-g with AOSS | Buffalo Tech WLI-MPCI-G54 (copy of Broadcom BCM94306MP) | QDS-BRCM1005 |
| D-Link DI624 | Atheros-based 11g | KA2DI624SA1 |
| DrayTek Vigor 2900G Broadband Security Router | Based on Conexant's 802.11g PRISM GT chipset | N/A |
| Gigabyte GN-A17GU 802.11g Access Point | GIGABYTE GC-WIAG-101 (Atheros' AR5002G chipset) | JCK-GN-WIAG |
| Linksys WAP54G (original) | Broadcom BCM94306MP | PKW-WAP54G |
| Linksys WRT55AG | Atheros-based 11a Broadcom-based 11b/g | PKW-WRT55AG |
| Linksys WRT54G (original) | Linksys WM54G (copy of Broadcom BCM94306MP) | - PKW-WM54G (original) |
| Linksys WRT54G (variations) | Revised January 28 2005 None. Radio integrated onto main board | - Q87-WRT54GP2 |
| NETGEAR WG602 | Zcom XG-600 (PRISM-based) | - PY3WG602 (original) |
| SMC SMC2870W | AirVast Technology WN360g (PRISM-based) | QDWWN360G |
| USR 5450 AP | GlobalSun (based on Texas Instruments' TNETW1130) | 07J-GL2454MP-0T |
| ZyXEL ZyAIR G-2000 | ZCom XG-601 (Conexant PRISM-based) | M4Y-XG-600 |
| ZyXEL HS-100W HomeSafe Gateway (w / wireless) | ZCom XG-601 (Conexant PRISM-based) | M4Y-XG-600 |
| Table 1: Products using mini-PCI cards | ||
An 802.11g wireless router is a good choice for harvesting, since it will still function as a non-wireless router when you remove the card, or even just an extra switch if you don't need a router (just disable its DHCP server). But you may have to search on eBay to get older versions, since current versions of popular bargain-priced routers such as D-Link's DI624, NETGEAR's WGR614, and Linksys' WGT54G all have integrated radios (part of the reason why they're so inexpensive).
TIP: Vendors usually add a version number (example: WGT54Gv2 or similar) to the product's model number when they make a significant design change. However, retailers generally only stock by base model number (example: WGT54G), so if you're buying on-line, you won't know what you're getting until you receive it. Fortunately, manufacturers usually do show the version number somewhere on the product box. So if you make your purchase at a brick-and-mortar retail store, you can verify that what you're buying is the model you need.