Installing WWAN in Elitebook x360 1030 G2

[silvertriclops]

I'd like to install a WWAN module and want to know if this is possible.

I know the laptop has an M.2 style slot for a WWAN card, but a card one was not included when it was ordered. Some laptops (like Dell E6xxx) include antenna cables for WWAN, but others don't and I have no way of finding out whether mine has the cables without removing the bottom (which I have to buy a torx screwdriver for iirc). Does the x360 include the antenna cables for models ordered without a WWAN module?

The SIM slot is covered by a plastic insert that won't come out. Will I have to push it out from the inside and then insert a sim card, or is a sim reader even included? If not, where can I get one and are there instructions for installing it?

The module I have sitting around is an EM7355 but it's a Lenovo model. It's adequate for my needs but does HP whitelist wireless cards in their bios like Lenovo does?

Thanks for the help.

[banhien]

@silvertriclops

Firstly machine supports the following WWAN cards and it has 2 antennas (red & blue)

• HP lt4132 LTE/HSPA+ 4G Mobile Broadband
• HP hs3210 HSPA Mobile Broadband HP lt4120
• Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X5 LTE Mobile Broadband Module

And secondly, from my memory, you need a pin (similar to few smartphones) to remove the SIM tray  and please before buying a WWAN module, please check with your provider to see do they support it first.

Regards.

[silvertriclops]

@banhien

Thank you, good to know that the laptop includes the antenna and wires already.

I took another look at the card I have already and it's actually a HP LT4111. I will be using it on Verizon, and all LTE/CDMA bands are supported. I'd rather not buy another card if I can help it, since I already have this one, it's fast enough and if I want better bandwidth on occasion I can hook up to my phone or mifi. I just don't know if HP whitelists cards in the BIOS and if it would include older cards.

I don't see a hole to eject the SIM card. There's just a slot with a piece of plastic in it. Other threads say to push on it and it should pop out but in my laptop the plastic won't move at all when I try to push it.

[Photoray002]

"I don't see a hole to eject the SIM card. There's just a slot with a piece of plastic in it. Other threads say to push on it and it should pop out but in my laptop the plastic won't move at all when I try to push it."

Ive see this before a lot when HP was in the tablet business. In the specs, it says WWAN is only on select models.

So a lot of times, if a series offers some models with WWAN but not others, those others usually dont have all the hardware to add the parts. In other words, if your SIM slot only has a filler cap but does not open, It wont have the mechanism installed to insert a SIM card into.  In such case, yours might also not have the antenna. You would have to open the case and look.

[silvertriclops]

Is there any way to find out whether it has an antenna before opening the bottom? And if it includes the antenna but not the SIM mechanism, would there be any way to install it?

[Photoray002]

Make sure you pushed in on the blank plastic piece good to see if it will pop outward. If still not working, you will have to open in up to see if the hardware is there.

I dont know if there is a SIM card board available. You would need to give us the exact product number to look up, but from what could find so far, no there isnt one to purchase.

Maybe Banhien will know more on that. He is the WWAN guru here.

[Photoray002]

One other issue is that if you could find a Sim card circuit board to install to the laptop, the connector for the ribbon cable might not be soldered the the motherboard. So you would not be able to add one in anyway.

[silvertriclops]

All right, I've figured it out. I'll update this post when my LTE card arrives and I can verify it works. But for now all the signs point to it working. Here's some more info for anyone that gets here through google.

• Antennas: I opened it up and sure enough the antenna wires are right there next to the empty slot. I have the 1080p screen but the 4k should be the same
• Card: Put in a LT4111 I had sitting around and it errors out on boot. It will boot but states that the card is not supported and will be disabled. I bought a LT4120 from ebay which should be supported.

• SIM slot. Yes, the slot is there. It has a dummy sim plastic thing in there, and if you search through other forums, or call HP support, they'll tell you to push it in a little and it'll pop right out.

I talked with support 3 times, and the last guy put me on hold and went to the lab to grab a non-LTE model of the x360 1030 G2 and told me the plastic piece popped right out.

So tell me, HP, why my laptop came with this monstrosity, and support doesn't even know it exists??

That little notch is right where the eject mechanism is. No wonder it wouldn't pop right out.

If you have one of these, grab a tube of superglue and your micro-SIM card. Put some superglue on the short edge opposite the corner notch on the sim card, and hold it against the dummy sim for 15-20 seconds so it can dry. Then pull slowly and it should come out enough for you to stick a fingernail in and get it the rest of the way out.

Scrape the glue off the edge of the real sim card and put it in. This time it should click in.

Now grab a hammer and give the dummy card what it deserves (just kidding, stick it in a box for when/if you resell the laptop).

[lsbeller1]

@Photoray002 @banhien @silvertriclops

Hi there. I want to do the same thing. Did you ever get it working?

Steve

[silvertriclops]

@Lsbeller1

Yep! Bought a LT4120 from eBay for around $30 and installed it. The antennas were already installed and the wires were just sitting there, with plastic covers and taped to the motherboard near the empty slot. Easy enough to insert the card and click the antennas in. Then get the plastic sim cover out, put in a working mobile SIM and enjoy!

One thing though, every time I boot my laptop it errors out saying "there is an unsupported wireless card, hit enter to boot but it will be disabled." It does not get disabled; it boots just fine and Windows recognizes the LTE module and connects to Verizon's network (or T-mobile if I put that sim in). You may want to consider this if you see yourself remotely rebooting the laptop like through teamviewer, because it will get stuck on that screen every reboot.