Wireless problems with the Aspire One
- posted by Michael Walsh on August 9th, 2008


- (493)
I’ve received a few mails from people who haven’t yet bought an Aspire One who are being put off by reports that the wireless connectivity is a little flaky.
In particular, the concerns regard an article posted on the Acer Aspire One User Forum.
I asked Simone for his input on the subject and his reply was:
On the one reported occasion when this happened, it was resolved by performing a Live Update, yet the forum says that after recovery with CD / USB key the system no longer sees the wireless connection or doesn’t allow it to work, so this is another issue entirely.
In any case I believe the problem will soon be brought to the attention of Acer.
For now, I can’t add much more. Here in the lab I have preload Version 1.0.3.E in Italian and have never had this problem and the 4 samples that have come and gone functioned perfectly.
I would ask, however, all clients of the Aspire One to have the following information on hand when they contact Acer:
1- BIOS version
2- Operating System version (both are in “Settings” “Information”)
3- Proof that Live update has been performed: this can be done by clicking on the search icon and entering “*.log” and then selecting “desktop”, hit “enter” or click on the icon to start searching.
On the search results page, select “file system” unless it’s not already loaded and click on “search”
Among the many files there’s one (usually the second from the top) called: installed-success.logThis file records all the updates performed by LiveUpdate and it’s EXTREMELY USEFUL for us to have a copy of this file or a copy of the content.
Important:
Some users will have found inconsistent or even different contents when comparing their Aspire One installed-success.log files to others. It all depends on what language the operating system uses and the version of the operating system used in the preload. That’s why Mr. Rossi in Italy will have one patch while Mr. White from the UK does not and vice versa.
The moral of the story: YOUR OWN PERSONAL LOG FILE IS THE ONLY ONE THAT COUNTS.
So Live Update seems to be working overtime at the moment and obviously the learning curve for perfection is pretty steep but it’s good to know that the Acer has every intention of improving this product on a daily basis. Fingers crossed this issue gets cleaned up definitively in the next few days.
For the record, both the pre-production model I “borrowed” and the one I bought have not had these problems at all. In fact, in a video I’m still editing you can see me take the Aspire One out of the box, attach the battery and cables and go online within 5 minutes.
UPDATE: Found this on the web. worth a try no?
…there’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.
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Martin Dolphin wrote, on August 10th, 2008:
Got my Aspire One yesterday and pleased with it except for this issue – thanks for recording that it is an issue – I’m not that familiar with Linux/Unix so thought maybe I was doing something wrong.
My connection sometimes drops, sometimes fails to appear after a resume or boot – it usually comes back after a few suspend/resumes or reboots.
I’ve logged it with Acer Support and included the log file you refer to.
YaKu wrote, on August 22nd, 2008:
I also have problems with it, I have a 150AB version running Windows XP Prof SP3. Suddenly wifi connection stops. I try to use the “problem solver” from WinXP and after dissabling the wifi card It isn’t able to enable again.
This happens after using the netbook for an hour, perhaps it’s a overheating problem?
Morris Lee wrote, on August 23rd, 2008:
YaKu, is there any hardware wireless switch for the wireless, take a look in the bios settings, see if you can disable it, then boot to XP, then reboot enable it is BIOS again, then back to XP, see if something like that helps
Dawn wrote, on August 23rd, 2008:
I bought an Aspire One a couple of days ago, and even when it says it has a full connection to Wi-fi, it often doesn’t connect to the internet. I’m running Linux. It definately doesn’t look to me like there was only one occasion.
Anita wrote, on August 25th, 2008:
I got my Acer Aspire One yesterday and my wifi stopped running last night after using it a while. Woke up this morning and it was working again. Now, it’s night time again and I suddenly lost my wifi connection again. I don’t understand it because we are using a wifi off our home system.
What can I do so this doesn’t happen? Any suggestions?
Jeff wrote, on August 25th, 2008:
I am also having problems with the Acer Aspire One. Wifi will drop periodically and sometimes it takes a while before I can get it to come back. I bought it at BestBuy for $349. I may have to return it because inconsistent Wi-Fi is a deal breaker.
Polo wrote, on August 25th, 2008:
Make that the same for me: bought it Saturday, it worked perfectly out of the box, on my wifi system, on theneighbor’s, etc. It picked up five wifi points in the neighborhood. Took it travelling and it won’t register any wifi systems at all, even while friends are working next to it on standard Windows computers in the hotel. Ready to return it.
Polo wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
I would add that it does work on a DSL cable. But of course I got it to use on wifi. Acer’s Aspire One tech dept had no serious offer of help ( “set up a connection by getting the hotel’s sssid and passwords, they said — and do so each time you want to use wireless some place.”) I have my doubts that they recognize the problem — or that they want to be responsible for it.
Danish wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
Got the same problems for a couple of days. But, I finally got it solved.
This is NOT a problem with your Acer One – believe me. It is a problem with your wireless router! You have to get into the setup in your wireless router and disable the firewall settings. Reboot your Acer and you should be on your way. It worked just fine for me and I havent had any connex problems ever since
Polo wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
Danish,
Unfortunately that’s not the problem or the solution.
Polo
YaKu wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
I think that in windows you can see that the wifi card has dissapeared, perhaps Linux don’t give you that information.
I have tried many times and the fact is that the Wifi card dissapear after some minutes using the laptop when you are charging the battery.
Overheating? for sure!
emitremus wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
Got my AOA 150 with XP Home SP3 preloaded on it, was OK with wireless till all of sudden my wifi won’t pick any ssid although the wifi ballon notification shown there are one or more wireless available, tried disable/enable wifi card with no luck, restart the machine also helpless, till i remember there was Atheros Client Utility (ACU)I used for my previous eeePC, download and load it up, strange enough it works, it’s been 3 days and got no problem.
Still wondering why WinXP wireless client utility don’t work until now and I don’t know who to blame
Cheers,
emitremus
Danish wrote, on August 26th, 2008:
Yaku,
I brought my Acer back to the store and they had it checked and running for 6 hours to their wireless router with no problems. After that I took to the office and had it running there for 2 days without any problems.Then I brought it back home and the same connex troubles started. I solved the connex problems by disabeling the firewall in the wireless router and since then NO PROBLEMS whatsoever. Even managed to install Firefox 3.0.1 onto the gadget and it has been stable since then.
Would give it a try – since this is a unique piece of fun.
GL
Polo wrote, on August 27th, 2008:
From reading other posts here and elsewhere I think there must be a difference between the Linux and WinXP models. The problem with mine is that it doesn’t recognize Wifi networks present. The panel that’s supposed to tell you what’s out there says there aren’t any available netowrks. On the rare occasion it does “see” the networks, there is no connection problem.
Dedbiker wrote, on August 27th, 2008:
Same here, blank screen when searching for wireless networks that other laptops are seeing. I plugged in a USB Linksys Network adapter, and it connected just fine. Unplugged, and no dice with onboard. Its definatly something with the onboard nic, and/or its software.
Ded
YaKu wrote, on August 27th, 2008:
Danish
The problem is that suddenly my Acer stops the wifi connection, then I try to “repair” the connection. This tool disable the wifi card, enable it again and make an ipconfig /flushdns, ok?
Before disabling the wifi card, it dissapears! Nothing to do searching in the device manager or any else methods.
I have to turn off the computer, wait a minute and then start again.
I insist…. Overheating?
Kyt wrote, on August 27th, 2008:
Bought the Linux version yesterday. It detected and connected to the WiFi OK, prompted for a Live Update, which I accepted. After that had downloaded, installed and rebooted, I can no longer connect. It sees the WiFi network OK, but refuses to connect (despite having all the same settings as when it worked before the live update). Have reported to Acer. Poised to demand a refund if not resolved.
Niklas wrote, on August 27th, 2008:
I have the exact problem as YaKu.
Have the Windows-version of Acer One, and when I’ve used the computer for a while, the wifi connection is lost. When trying to fix it using Windows repair function the wifi card dissappears. I’ve tried to reinstall the drivers, rebooting, installing new hardware guide etc but the only way to get it to work again is to turn the computer off and then turn it on again. Then everything works fine.
YaKu, have you contacted Acer about this? I really hope they can solve the problem with new drivers, new bios or something.
Tyrone wrote, on August 28th, 2008:
I also have the wifi problems, after some time, which seems to be a random amount of time, my wireless network card just seems to disappear from my hardware list, and i need to reboot to get it back.
Niklas wrote, on August 28th, 2008:
Tyrone, for me it doesn’t work just to reboot, I have to shut the computer completely off and start it up again for it to work.
Very annoying.
I have been in contact with the Acer support line in Sweden. They said an upgrade to bios version 3114 would solve the problem, but I already have that bios version.
allan wrote, on August 29th, 2008:
My Aspire one used to work with my linksys wrt54g but when I upgraded the firmware of my linksys, my Aspire one had trouble(intermittent) connecting.
My Aspire one works at other WLANs.
Niklas wrote, on August 30th, 2008:
Acer Support Line in Sweden said friday that new BIOS-update is coming next week.
Robert wrote, on August 31st, 2008:
I can surf on wireless for about 2 pages – then the wireless stops working. It claims to be connected, but the pages time out, and I go nowhere on the net. I can “repair” the connection, but that just seems to connect me for another page or two.
I’ve updated everthing I can, but the problem remains. I’m ready for the solution! Otherwise there’s not much point in owning this little laptop for me.
NeverBob wrote, on August 31st, 2008:
Possible solution!
After messing with various drivers and whatnot, I did something I never do – went to the Windows Update website. After the usual rigmarole, I went to the optional updates section under hardware and found an update for the Atheros AR5007EG, as well as the network card. I installed both, and have been surfing problem-free ever since.
Now if I only had better battery life…
Nawaid wrote, on September 1st, 2008:
my machine is a XP version with 120 gb
wireless didnt work after making basic network setup. wireless networks were found but no ip assigned. my other laptop connected fine. I noticed there was an open network in my neighbourhood so i connected with aa1 and it hooked up at once! I then tried to turn off the WEP on my network and ….it workee! After that I disabled everything in mcafee, turned on WEP and rebooted……everything was fine!! i have now turned on mcafee again and everything seems stable.
VittyO wrote, on September 1st, 2008:
NeverBob’s 8/31 suggestion of updating the Atheros drivers via windows update has worked for me.
ronald wrote, on September 1st, 2008:
I for the life of me can’t find the Atheros driver upgrade on the windows site… everything I search comes up diddley and all the poking and prodding has provided less than fruitful – would you have a link or any further suggestions?
As it is I get intermitant net abilities on wifi :\
Morris Lee wrote, on September 2nd, 2008:
ronald,
give this driver a try, official one from acer
ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_one_110/driver/WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224.zip
Nima wrote, on September 2nd, 2008:
Hey guys,
It seems very tricky and annoying. It’s not the driver, router or software. I tried 4 different versions of Atheros’ drivers, tried changing WPA to WEP in the router, or disabling any anti-virus & firewall. I tried every possible thing and it is still doing the same thing and the only way of repairing it is to just shut the unit off and turn it back on. If somebody has any news from Acer please post it here (BIOS update or patch?)
unnamed wrote, on September 2nd, 2008:
Same thing here since I purchased it..
The wifi card merely disapears from the computer management, have to shut down and reboot every time.
Very anoying, I wish it will be solved soon, I like that laptop and would prefer to resolve the issue rather than returning it for refund..
NeverBob wrote, on September 3rd, 2008:
Hook your computer up to a router via Ethernet cable (to maintain your connection) and try this:
R+click My Computer>Properties
Select the “Automatic Updates” tab
Click the Windows Update Web site link (below “Turn Off Automatic updates”)
Select the “Custom” button on the web site.
Update the validation tool (it seems to come up every time). Continue.
This should bring up a page where you can select the type of updates on the left. Mine had a selection for “Hardware, optional (2)”. Click that one, select both, and see what happens.
Emiku wrote, on September 3rd, 2008:
Hi,
I downloaded and installed Toshibas Atheros Utility, that helped on my Acer One. (http://www.downloadsource.net/d16286/Toshiba-Atheros-Client-Utility-Windows-XP/) maybe there is a newer version out there? But this works.
Roger wrote, on September 4th, 2008:
I had the same problem related by Robert 08/31. Nerverbob’s solution (Windows Update) fixed it!!!!
Morris Lee wrote, on September 6th, 2008:
Hello guys, missed me? ok here is the deal, I am doing a install of vista on my aspire one (yes on the 8GB SSD) I been searching for a long time, I can’t find a guide how, so I came up with my own solution, with with Vista Aero Glass fully supported. All the above are besides the point. I am going to test the atheros card on the vista, see if any problems mentioned above exists in vista.
Right now, I am just trying to shrink down the installation size. Vista had the “slow harddrive” issues right after install, it was a pain to get the new intel chipset driver installed, once that is taken care of, baby running like cupcake on native, no memory upgrade either, all factory, will be getting a 1GB stick tomorrow(or today, 2:29 AM here) along with a 8 GB SD card.
Webcam works fine on vista too, need video color adjustments on first use.
I will write a guide with a fully working miniaturized vista iso image, and yes you will still need your own vista key to activate. however, I did find a solution to install from a USB hdd, saves me a lot of blank disks AHAHA
Talk to you guys soon
Lee wrote, on September 7th, 2008:
I tried neverbob’s Window’s update solution (31/08) last night, which worked for about an hour of surfing.
This morning after 10 mins online, I couldn’t load web pages, but again, the wireless icon still said connected and excellent strength.
Restarted my laptop, and wireless icons are gone again, from both icon tray and hardware list in the device manager.
Restarted once more, and wireless is back. This inconsistency is driving me mad!
So alas, I’m still waiting for a solution for stable wireless on my 3 week old Acer Aspire One. Will contact Acer today.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
to Lee and everyone,
After struggling through with vlite vista installation, founf that NTFS is nto such a good idea on this specific SSD module.
I do have the same problem when I was back in linux, inconsistency was very much a headache from time to time.
After the realization of the NTFS problem(too me like 10 hours in total) then I went for XP on fat32. everything works fine since then. Installed all the necessary drivers from acer European site, wireless etc works flawlessly, never have the asking for my wireless password on startup again.
other few notes, my XD card reader(in the 5 in one) never worked, only detected the 2GB XD card ONCE but as a 1 GB card(whaaa??)
Switching to XP, with the card reader driver installed, XD opens up flawlessly, I have always thought the XD card was broken…
Anyways, if you still are struggling with linux, XP with fat32 config, bootvis tweak, drivers etc,from my setup, boots just under 40 seconds. Runs Halo 1 PC, half life 1(half life 2 runs horribly, probably because of the ssd, intel 945 should be able to run it fine on a HDD edition though
After all, i do miss all the cool effects I have enabled on the linpus :’( but then again, i now know that my XD card is working!! and no more wireless password prompt
Happy days…
Morris Lee
Lee wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
Hi Morris Lee,
Would you mind explaining how to change XP to FAT32?
I’m not very computer-literate in a developer sense, so have no idea what this means, entails, and what is involved.
Are you able to post step-by-step instructions on how to do this, with links where needed?
Lee.
Michael Walsh wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
Lee,
Morris can’t just yet (he will once the new site is up), unless he puts it as an answer to this thread.
If you guys want, I’ll ask Morris to mail it to me and I’ll post it in a new thread so we don’t go too far off-topic and other people can easily find it.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
it is actually very simple, I will quickly explain it to those who can’t wait, before you install XP, it will as you to format to NTFS or FAT32, and this is after you have selected which partition you would like to use.
I will write a full guide when the new site is up!
Lee wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
Woa, install XP? XP is already installed, I’m not attempting to reinstall that to fix a wireless problem.. Don’t even know how this would be done as XP was pre-installed, no XP discs come with the Aspire One, and there is no CD drive even if you had the discs!
I will wait for Acer’s response, there has to be a simpler solution – otherwise I’ll have to attempt to return my Aspire One.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 8th, 2008:
the XP editions comes with eRecovery I am pretty sure(that is what i would assume if no disks are provided), and for you lee, I was only speaking to the linux SSD users, that they DO have the option to do so. if your driver is not fuctioninig correctly, download the Atheros driver from Acer(select your model first) then uninstall ALL the current installed atheros driver from device manager, this process makes sure all the windows drivers are removed or old drivers.
then, open up your downloaded driver for atheros, install that for either the device manager or the installation package. both should work.
I am now on XP with the atheros driver installed from Acer, working flawlessly.
hope this helps, cheers!
Morris Lee
Lee wrote, on September 9th, 2008:
Hi Morris Lee,
Forgive my questions, I really don’t know anything about installing drivers or modifying anything in my computer.
Do you mean the WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224 driver, from:
http://support.acer-euro.com/drivers/notebook/as_one_110.html ?
I’ve found another thread which seems many people with other Acer models have found success using the drivers from http://www.atheros.cz.
I assume I need the AR5007EG driver file as this is the same as current driver on my Aspire One?
(from: http://www.planetamd64.com/lofiversion/index.php?t31483-0.html).
One we’ve determined which is the exact driver by name that I want – Do I need to uninstall the current driver first before reinstalling this? I’m a little weary, I don’t want to uninstall and try to install something, fail, and be left with no wireless what so ever!
If you’d mind providing me with step by step instructions for a beginner, that would be really helpful for me and everyone else who will encounter this in the future.
Regards
Lee.
Barry wrote, on September 12th, 2008:
I seem to be having similar problems. I have the Linux version. Sadly I cannot even complete my first Live Update. I get as far as the last download and then I get a message to say that the server has connected. This has gone on for a couple of days now. Any ideas?
Barry wrote, on September 13th, 2008:
Having problems maintaining a wifi link on my Linux versiona One like so many of you. My One downloads a couple of internet pages, freezes, and then claims to lose its wifi link despite showing a 90% signal. Software up to date. DO I return this as faulty or wait for an update. Is it a hardware or software problem. Any advice would be apprecaited! Thanks
Peter wrote, on September 14th, 2008:
Similar problem with WLAN card. It stops a short period of time right after the machine has restored from hibernation. The yellow WLAN is constantly lit and stops flickering.
There is no difference if the device driver has been disabled before hibernating or not.
After reboot, the card comes back instantly.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 14th, 2008:
try using the latest* driver from microsoft update, usually it is suppose to be more stable according to my experiences, but don’t use hibernation or sleep, windows sleep and hibernation function sucks.
fred wrote, on September 14th, 2008:
mine droppes connections after sleep and at random times. many other computers in house no problems. real shame, otherwise lovely unit. acer tech support first denied there was a problem, then said i should reboot. which usually solves the problem. it does. currently rebooting 6 times a day.
Marco wrote, on September 14th, 2008:
Since I installed Windows XP I had trouble with a week signal dispite my wifi router is only 3 meters away. since turning of the power savings for the atheros card this seemed better.
but since today (14th sept.) I got a lot of disconnects, I didn’t got before.
now what I changed so far:
- using atheros software tool to configure wifi
- deaktivated power safe modus(better signal now)
- changed wifi frequency at router (no improvements)
- changed direction of wifi antenna at router (seems to improve..)
- restartet d-link 524 router (seems to improve..)
- restartet acer one several times..
- tried all old drivers for the atheros (200…224…239…) currently 260 from windows update
- changed some wifi seetings from router (only got worse)
- changed wifi settings for the card in the atheros software tool (only got worse…)
- installed the synaptic driver for the touchpad (seems to improve..)
my bios is 3.009, i didn’t changed that.
next time i will uninstall windows xp and put on the original linux again. if the signal won’t drop then 20 times a day, it is definitly a problem that can be solved by an update for windows in the future. otherwise it seems a hardware problem.
its better now with the things I mentioned for improvements but its still frustrating…
Nightwhisper wrote, on September 16th, 2008:
My wifi stopped working after 2 days. Now the led doesnt start anymore nor I can put on the wifi card.
Very disappointed
indenial wrote, on September 17th, 2008:
lots of advice for those who are slaves to the dark side but what of us plebes using LinuxLite on their A1? Morris Lee refers to Linux but he speaks in a tongue i do not understand…and that solution still requires a connection does it not? after reading through above issues, clearly there is a problem with the machine…
i used the A1 through north Thailand, and Laos with fun the whole time but in Vientiane…used the hotel wireless for 2 days no problem and on day 3…didn’t detect, not only that i cannot even open the Network tab in settings. its as if there is no connectivity at all on the machine.
stranger than fiction and if there is a Linux guru out there, let her/him speak. and what is Acer saying about this? its a bit of a problem marketing its product as out of the box connectivity if it doesn’t connect!
Morris Lee wrote, on September 17th, 2008:
A tongue you do not understand… probably my english, lol, anyways, simple question, are you sure your wireless is on? maybe you accidentally switch it off when putting it into the bag? the switch is the slider thing right under the silver rectangle(with 1 LED on both sides) which is located on the bottom right corner of the palm rest, in linux or XP(with launch manager installed) there will be “On Screen Display” AKA OSD displayed top of your desktop indicating the status of the wifi.
also check if the “right” LED by the silver rectangle is blinking after it indicated that wifi is on
the on screen display for wifi enabled is the satellite dish and for wifi disabled is the satellite disk with a red circle that is crossed off.
I hope you can understand me this time
Morris Lee wrote, on September 17th, 2008:
for those who still have trouble with the atheros wifi connection on windows, I suggest remove ALL atheros drivers, reboot, make sure windows has not install some other generic driver for the card, have another computer download
ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_one_150/driver/WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224.zip
or download this before hand, extract using winrar or windows zip, use device manager start-> run-> devmgmt.msc then choose the ethernet with the yellow icon, right click then click install driver, located the driver’s location by browsing it through your computer, install the driver, then, when it is installed, go on windows update and use the latest one from there, should be more stable with windows itself.
I used this method to install my drivers on all 3 windows xp installation test run, I was browsing the web no problem, downloaded SP3 fine.
However, I do have to address on problem, under the right palm rest, which IS where wifi card, when it gets hot, keep your hands away from it, let it cool down, I am assuming some of you fried or overheated your cards.
faris wrote, on September 17th, 2008:
i also got the same problem.what we sould do after finding the file “install-succes.log”?
Morris Lee wrote, on September 18th, 2008:
faris, can you be alittle more detailed about your issuse? wether if it is on XP or Linux etc.
faris wrote, on September 18th, 2008:
i’m using linux.recently i lunch the live update,but the update not completely finish.Then i found the network icon at the bottom of my screen disappear.so i try to open network connetion ,but it do not funtion.so what am i going to do??i follow the instruction above.i have found the file”install-succes.log”.so ??how to solve my problem..
i have contact acer center.then he say i need to format my notebook..is’t true???
Morris Lee wrote, on September 18th, 2008:
I never had this problem, but here is how I would approch it, reboot see if you get your icon back, if not, try pluging the ethernet cable in, then try running live update, if that still does not work, your nm-applet(the network manager icon) is currupted, you need to do a system restore.
faris wrote, on September 18th, 2008:
how to do system restore?
Michael Walsh wrote, on September 18th, 2008:
Faris, watch this.
dailey wrote, on September 20th, 2008:
I as well have the same problem. My unit came with XP SP3 and i upgraded to vista basic (works really well BTW). Anyway, it seems that if i let the computer sit for a very long time then the wifi is just gone. it is not in device manager or anything. Though i have not used my laptop for hours on end it never seems to stop working while i am using it…just after it has sat for a long time. The only way for me to get my wifi card back to is power it off, remove the battery and unplug the power. I updated to even vistas drivers as well as tried a driver from some other sites. anybody else having the same problem to this?
Space Goat wrote, on September 21st, 2008:
I’m just about to return my Aspire One to the shop and get my money back. This intermittent wireless issue is driving me nuts. I have tried everything I can think of, that Atheros driver made no difference. Think I might go for the EEE PC instead. Pity as the Aspire One would be a great little machine if it weren’t for this one fault.
Lee wrote, on September 21st, 2008:
I am arranging for Acer to pick up my Aspire One to assess the wireless problem, as have tried several things and still having issues.
I had the most success performing the eRecovery, which gave me 8 days of wireless, before it stopped, and not is back to it’s old tricks every day.
Will update when I get my laptop back – I urge others to do the same, contact Acer support direct, and get this problem sorted.
dave smith wrote, on September 22nd, 2008:
Hi
I bought an Aspire One for my son 3 weeks ago
Out of the box it would not connect to our router except when connected with a cable
Four hours later after help from a “computer guy”
we upgraded the driver via Windows Update Custom
The Acer then worked ok for a bit then kept dropping off line
after looking at sites like this and seeing loads of people having the same problem I returned it to Amazon for a full refund
It needs the bugs sorting BEFORE Acer start selling them
My main laptop is a Acer and it works great but I would not reccomend the Aspire One to anybody
Bought a EEE PC 901 next day from Amazon and it worked 100% straight away
Morris Lee wrote, on September 22nd, 2008:
I am not sure why people are going after the driver from windows update at first, should always try the one distributed by the manufacture(meaning Acer in this case) therefore, you download the driver FROM Acer, and please don’t assume it is acer’s fault the first place, I have been using my aspire one, and never had wireless problems like yo guys have had, since i did used the driver provided by Acer.
Cipix wrote, on September 22nd, 2008:
Nightwhisper, did u solve the problem?
wifi worked just fine, but i accidentally pressed the wireless button on the front-right of Acer one, and it stopped working since.
i tried install, reinstall windows update, i thought it was the router… but i cant seem to make it work:(
the driver / device looks fine in xp sp3, but when i refresh for wireless networks , windows says none are found..
please … if anyone:(…
Morris Lee wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
Cipix, did you try using the switch again?(note, you need to hold the switch to the right fully for like half a second for the device to actually enable)
if you do have launch manager installed, it will indicate if it is on or off when you use the switch.
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
I haven’t read all the replies here so forgive me. But I believe I have the solution.
This is for Windows XP.
To start, I’ll say that Acer has a horrible SETTING for the Aspire One on XP with Wifi. I will tell you how to fix this setting.
But first? Does the WiFi work good when you are on AC power? With me, I had literally almost zero Internet while on battery power. I ended up taking my first Aspire One back to the store, and they gave me an exchange with no questions asked. I brought the new laptop home, and I was having the same problem. No Internet on battery power.
Luckily I found how to fix this… I had to find out basically all on my own. Again, this is for Windows XP.
Here’s how:
Go, “Start” > Right Click “My Computer” > Click “Properties” > “Hardware” > “Device Manager”.
Now double click on “Network Adapters”. Double Click on the Atheros Wireless Adapter. Click “Advanced”. Now click “Power Save Mode”. The setting is probably set to “Max”. Switch to “Off”. Click “Ok”.
Now your Internet should work flawlessly on battery power. If it still doesn’t, try tweaking more of the power options on the Wireless card in device manager.
If your problem is with the Internet being flaky, even on AC Power, then I’m sorry, I don’t know how to help you.
I hope this helps. If it does, I ask that in exchange for my help that you spread this solution around to as many places on the Internet as possible. I am sure many people are having this problem.
But for having such a stupid setting, I am very glad that I managed to weasel Acer out of a laptop
Let me know how it goes…
Miki wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
I was going to purchase an Acer One but based on what I have read here I am not going to! I may later on once I am convinced that Acer resolved this problem.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
geez, people, if you are just commenting on on wether you are going to buy acer product or not, don’t post here unless you have a good reason. this is for people with problems, NOT a online “dis-advertisement” for acer, all the problems may seem bad, but that is because it’s for the customers with problems that they come and ask it here. I personally love acer, but certainly have had ran into problems before with their products, still, who makes “perfect products”. I am sure there are/will be forums like this for ASUS, Dell, HP and etc you name it, as long as they get enough popularity, all type of experience with the products will appear. no matter what they do, they still use intel, amd cpu’s, nvidia, ati, xgi sis graphics, hynix rams, seagate harddrives, you guys get my point?
ok, so you want to talk about “build quality” I am here now very happy to say that Acer certainly has improved their product quality(casings and all) comparing to all the other older acers i have see at work(I am a computer technitician) build qulity is definitly different and better.
I also own 3 Acer laptops, the ancient travelmate c100, its old, but still servived several drops to hard floor, about 5 years old now. both my 5920 and one are all in very very good condition so far, 5920 is 1 year old, aspire one is still pretty new.
that being said, keep comments that is just about how bad your “experience” or not recommanding acer product because you “think” the problem is going to happen to you too.
Aspire one is using Atheros wifi card, problem is on the wifi card and the wifi driver from atheros, go blame them if you really need to.
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
I don’t understand it…
My Aspire One works fine after I changed that setting. You should try it.
I know someone else who bought the Aspire One [with XP] (it’s what made me buy it) and their Internet also works fine.
Honestly, my Internet on the Aspire One works as good as any other computer.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
Usama Al-Farooq
no worries, cause the people are using different build of the drivers, they should have updated it from acer first, the drivers you get from pre-build “in stock” computers from shops usually have older drivers, one thing is good to try when you have problems with new computers like this is install the newest* driver meaning that the ones from the brand you brought from(like acer) since they are the driver that Acer have “modded” in some cases(like the realtek HD audio driver modded for aspire one’s dual microphone setup) or tested and signed(WHQL) from microsoft. even though, the driver updates from microsoft upddates are sometimes pretty out dated, or unwanted on laptops in my experiences. people trying all thse different drivers might lead to registry not being “uninstalled” properly during an driver upgrade, old registry migh contain certain errors or bugs that are suppose to be fix on newer drivers, which means the new drivers might still be configured incorrectly after upgrading resulting the same issues over and over.
I am writing essays here, bad ones too HAHA
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
I didn’t update my drivers though either…
I’m using what my laptop came with.
Although I do have Windows Updates turned on.
Where would I even find updated drivers?
Morris Lee wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
hum.. interesting, probably you have new stocks? with new drivers? anyways, to get the offical acer drivers, http://support.acer-euro.com/drivers/downloads.html
I trust the euro one better, they update more regularly, and more variety of drivers.
Cheers!
Tom wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
hi guys,
i have the same wifi problem as everyone else here,from reading the posts there seems to a fix for users with XP loaded , does anyone know of a fix for Linux limpus users ?
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
I just checked, and I do have the most recent WiFi driver.
I assume that MOST people are also up to date… I mean it’s not like this whole WiFi problem is an actual epidemic in reality.
Again – ATTENTION – anyone who is having problems with WiFi while on battery power, scroll up a few posts to find the solution for Windows XP.
Cipix wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
yes,wireless lan is active, so my launch manager says.
i really dont understand this….
i switched the power saving to off, i unplugged the power, it wont work not even in battery mode.
security is off in my linksys, i updated the driver from microsoft update…
it used to work just fine
what routers do u guys have? i have a wrt54gl linksys, maybe acer wont work with this particular one:(
Cipix wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
i must mention that i accidentally pushed the wireless lan button while i was in a connection, it stopped working since:(
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
Stupid Question, but have you turned the Wireless LAN button back on?
Other than that, IDK what to say.
I’d suggest going to a Cafe or some place (a friend’s?) with a Wireless connection, and see if it works there.
Otherwise it sounds like your laptop might have a hardware error :-/
So if it won’t work anywhere, I think you should try to get an exchange or refund.
Cipix wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
yes I have turned it on:)
I am waiting for a friend with a PSP to verify the router… but I get this feeling that it’s an acer one issue:(
Cipix wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
omg … it works
i put the Tarifa firmware and I changed the ssid name then I changed from G mode to B mode and then to Mixed mode and it works…
i dont know which of this made it work…
Miki wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
- Question: Does the Wifi connectivity problem appear only when running on battery, or even when running with the AC adaptor connected?
- Hopefully Acer is taking note of the complants here and will address the problem.
Lindsay wrote, on September 24th, 2008:
I bought the acer aspire one with XP today and have had no luck getting wireless connectivity. I removed the driver, installed the one from acer as directed by Morris in post 52, still no luck. Also tried the Windows Update driver, still no luck. It detects the network with a strong signal but it never acquires an IP address. My other XP machine is working fine, my Vista machine is working fine, the acer works fine when attached to the router with a cable. I even tried turning off the power saving even though I am only using it plugged in. I go out of town tomorrow so I’ll have to return it if I can’t get wireless working. I quite like it except for this problem.
It is kind of funny that I decided on the XP machine because the sales guy couldn’t get the wireless working on the linux demo machine while wireless was working on the XP demo machine.
Lindsay wrote, on September 24th, 2008:
I should also have mentioned that the driver version on the website matched the one preinstalled on my machine. The Windows Update driver number was a later version/higher number.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 24th, 2008:
humm… ok conclusion, I suppose the people with the wifi problem probably have defective Atheros product lines, cause it is very new card model I believe. but I do have to say, the wifi warms up pretty quick after alittle web browsing, so , I assume that the defective cards are less risistant to heat(or might have to do with your area’s temperture) I am in Canada, BC, farely cold weather these days, it did keep my one pretty cooled down for most of the time. But then again, if it is Atheros card defective, it is Atheros fault, not acers(might partially be acer’s since they picked the card…) anyways, I wish luck to all of you that are heaving wifi problems.
Lindsay, try deleting all the wifi preset profiles, see if that works, cause it sounds like the wifi connections is fine if it can read any of the wireless signal, check your router too, see if it is giving off Dynamic IP address and auto assigns them or a static with manual IP setup…
Wish you all have a good experiences with Aspire One!
Morris Lee
Saad Ibrahim wrote, on September 24th, 2008:
Guyzzzzzzzz Should i buy an acer aspire one(i use wireless)
Kim wrote, on September 24th, 2008:
It has been very interesting and educative to read all your comments here. Thanks for a great forum.
I have a bit different wireless problem with my Aspire One. I have the XP/120gb/1gb version of the One. It finds all available networks, secured and unsecured. The problem is that it can’t connect to my home network that is a secured one. It finds the network, tries to connect, tries to retrieve the “network adress”, falls offline, tries again, falls offline and then stops trying. I’ve been able to connect to unsecured networks, but haven’t used them for longer times, so I don’t know what would happen on those.
I’ve updated the Wifi drivers. First from Microsoft (no change) and then from Acer through the link provided here (no change). I also changed the power saving settings (no change).
Any advice? Or should I just send it back to the store and wait for an updated, better tested version of the One? I really would like to have a One, because I really like it. The keyboard is larger than on Eee 901 and I think it looks better. So I really would hate to send it back…
Also my fan is quite loud and it is that immediately when I turn the machine on. But I guess (from reading other entries online) that’s typical for the One?
Morris Lee wrote, on September 25th, 2008:
Sounds like you have an defective wifi card too, get it exhanged, it is not suppose to be like that, mine works flawlessly from the start, should be the same for you.I have tested it on both XP and Linpux(linux)
Cipix wrote, on September 25th, 2008:
really…
dont blame acer
i now know for sure it’s the damn ROUTER
try changing / playing with things that would make the router to reset the broadcasting, like changing ssid, swithing on / off wireless option, changing from B to G and backwards etc
edangs wrote, on September 25th, 2008:
i have applied the fix(s) above but continue having the wifi connection drop with my aa1.
i get this event log error everytime i lose connection.
anyone else getting the same system error below?
Event Type: Warning
Event Source: Dhcp
Event Category: None
Event ID: 1003
Date: 9/25/2008
Time: 2:50:10 PM
User: N/A
Computer: N/A
Description:
Your computer was not able to renew its address from the network (from the DHCP Server) for the Network Card with network address 002269090866. The following error occurred:
The operation was canceled by the user. . Your computer will continue to try and obtain an address on its own from the network address (DHCP) server.
For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.
Data:
0000: c7 04 00 00 Ç…
Cipix wrote, on September 26th, 2008:
if you use a router, your router is down,
if you use a adsl modem, then your adsl is down.
if u use both, then your router is down.
have u checked for voltage problems?
Hayward wrote, on September 26th, 2008:
I have good news for most of us I believe!
New BIOS has been released by Acer. Please download here:
http://support.acer-euro.com/faqs/search.html?Query=aspire+one
Then use the instructions from here to update your BIOS:
http://macles.blogspot.com/2008/08/acer-aspire-one-bios-recovery.html?showComment=1222356180000#c912368759589242434
This BIOS update fixed by WiFi and black screen issues!
I’m finally very happy using my $399 AA1 the way it was meant to be!
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 26th, 2008:
Kim, do you have all this extra Acer bundle stuff installed? I’m talking about all the extra junk like eNet Management and all that.
If you do, uninstall all of that and just let Windows handle your Internet connections.
If that’s not the problem, I don’t know what is. I have had a similar problem on another computer and it turned out that Acer’s technology was just too damn sensitive.
Infact, I’d recommend uninstalling ALL of Acer’s Technology except for the eRecovery Management thing. So uninstall all Acer empowering technology except for eRecovery. It all just makes your computer way too slow.
edangs wrote, on September 26th, 2008:
i have found the fix for my aa1(XP) wifi drops.
i used the Atheros Wifi Utility instead of the Windows.
Download the Atheros Client Utility for AR5xxx series WiFi cards, mirrored here: http://download.softpedia.ro/dl/67ac9654b5403783222de326e131d33a/48d9c0a1/300035242/drivers/OTHERS/atheros_c-u-5.2.0.125-2kxp.exe
During installation choose to use the Atheros client instead of windows to manage wireless connections.
Restart.
With Atheros Client Utility, right click on the taskbar icon, create a new profile (SSID and Encryption Key) or click scan.
as usual, the fix always turns out to be something simple. =)
Morris Lee wrote, on September 26th, 2008:
hello, just so let you guys be prepared of the consequences of the bios update method, I have seen rumors about bricking the machine with new bios, you are doing this at your own risk! no 100% success rate for bios upgrades on all types of electronics while using the device itself to do the job.
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 27th, 2008:
I heard that updating the BIOS could also void your warranty.
I think before updating my BIOS, I would just take the netbook back to where you got it from and either demand that they give you one that works or that their techs fix it for you.
Morris Lee wrote, on September 27th, 2008:
here is a little something from acer:
“Flashing the wrong BIOS can cause harm to the system. Acer recommends that you should only upgrade your firmware/drivers if you have been instructed to do so by an Acer Customer Care representative.
By using these firmware/drivers you agree to accept the possibility of product failure.”
enjoy~~
Jason wrote, on September 27th, 2008:
I have downloaded the Atheros Driver provided by a few people here. Its readme clearly says its for the FAT32/64 set ups.
Windows XP is usually NTFS. And I have read a discussion thread which says that its very hard to go from NTFS to FAT.
It seems to me that the PowerSaver solution only works for an extra 6 minutes (originally 5 mins, then 11 mins).
Acer needs to act on this because everyone seems to agree that the AA1 is really good for size and price… except for this wireless!!! Grr…
I have spent probably 10 hours on this.
Jason wrote, on September 27th, 2008:
Yes!!! I am happy to report that my AA1 150 (XP) has now worked for more than 11 minutes! (Sounds sad, but given the trials that we’re all having.
Thanks to edang’s solution (post #92), the wireless is now it to its 25th minute! LOL
Instructions:
1. Download the Utility program from http://download.softpedia.ro/dl/67ac9654b5403783222de326e131d33a/48d9c0a1/300035242/drivers/OTHERS/atheros_c-u-5.2.0.125-2kxp.exe
2. Install the program.
Note: there are some minor configuration during set up. I dont know if it makes a difference, but at the option were there is Single Sign On, I chose the first option (which disables it).
3. Set up configuration (as per edang’s instruction), or if you know your Wireless Network’s SSID, just enter it and then go into advance to enter the passwords etc (if you have any).
Happy (wireless) surfing… as it was meant to be!
ps: I have not scanned the program for virus as I have removed the preinstalled McAfee Antivirus Program. I will need to reinstall now as I dont think this caused any issues. It may just be an incompatibility issue with Microsoft’s Wifi management being sub-optimal.
Imp wrote, on October 1st, 2008:
hi all.. i’m currently using AA1 linux version and had the same wireless problem. i followed Danish’s advice in Post No 13 (disabled my router firewall settings) and my AA1 can connect wirelessly.
However, this does not solve the problem. Sometimes the problem reoccurs and i have re-enable the firewall again, before i can connect thru wireless. no problems with wired connection though. and my system is already up to date.
it seems that u guys have found the solution for win xp. anyone can help with linux? i’m a newbie to linux..;)
Morris Lee wrote, on October 1st, 2008:
Imp, no that seems to be your router’s problem. I would usually use a factory default settings to test these problems out. My factory default linux os works flawlessly with the wireless, therefore, the software issues is cancelled, leaving you the hardware or the router’s problem to consider.
happy troubleshooting guys~~(yes, troubleshooting is time consuming, but you learn from it, and that is exactly why we troubleshoot)
Morris Lee
Lindsay wrote, on October 3rd, 2008:
An update on my progress: it is now working just fine.
Last week I had to leave on a trip in the afternoon the day following my purchase so I took my aspire one back to the store, it connected to their network just fine so they convinced me that it was probably the router provided by my telco and to try it with another router. So I bought a Cisco/linksys router. I didn’t have time to try it before going to the airport so I just took the computer with me on my trip along with a cable and hoped for the best. Throughout the trip it connected just fine in various airports and hotels. When I got home I set up the new router and it connects to that just fine too.
So there is some incompatibility between it and my telco provided router. I don’t know which is to blame but given that it seems to work fine with lots of other routers I’m assuming it is a problem with the router.
So, if you are having problems getting it to work at home it might be worthwhile taking it to a few places with wireless services to see if it works there.
Good luck!
Morris Lee wrote, on October 3rd, 2008:
humm, lindsay, thanks for reporting that, sounds like we can narrow down some possibilitied to some users problems
Those of you having wireless drops or unable to connect even if you see the net work listed try:
Double click on the wifi icon(bottom right corner)
Click “Properties”
Click on the “Wireless Networks” tab
Click and highlight your router’s SSID (the name) in the preferred networks box
Click remove
Try connecting to your router again.
if you can connect to it, but unable to get online, to test if you are actually connected to the router:
Click start
Click run
Type: “cmd” without the quotes in the run box
Type: “ipconfig” in the cmd box and press “Enter”(AKA the “return” key)
check if your “IP Address” column is something like 192.168.x.x (first x usually 1 or 2, second x is usually a number between 2-254)
check if your “Default Gateway” column is 192.168.x.x and the fist x being identical to the first x from “IP Address” column
if those above 2 apply, your wifi to your router’s connection is fine, but something is wrong with the router getting on to the net.
Refer to your router’s manual for configuring your router correctly
alex wrote, on October 4th, 2008:
I was having the same problem loosing the atheros adapter on my Acer One XP 160g/6cell version (I returned my XP 120GB/3cell version because of this problem 1 month ago) ,after surfing for a while,only solution to fix it was turn off the laptop completely because restart wasn’t fixing it, I’m using latest bios version V3304 and the 7.6.0.224 driver , I think this driver or earlier versions are the cause of this problem , I went manualy to the adapter ,choose the update driver /find the web and windows find a new version (7.6.0.260)from Atheros also ,I have been using this driver for 2 hours now and look like the problem is solve..if it happen again I will contact acer, guys give a try to this driver .260 version
Morris Lee wrote, on October 4th, 2008:
hum.. weird, I am using 7.6.0.224 right now, no problem for like everyday use, I had aspire one on for about…7 hours now, no drops.
alex wrote, on October 4th, 2008:
I was wrong ,still no fix with driver update7.6.0.260,
I even installed the Atheros Client Utility and still loosing the adapter from time to time, I even update my lynksys router WRT150N original firware to the dd-wrt thinking about a router issue and still having the problem, I will test a Netgear WNDA3100 N USB wireless adapter but I’m pretty sure the problem is the Atheros wireless adapter on the Acer One
Morris Lee wrote, on October 4th, 2008:
oh, I am sorry to hear that alex, but I would recommand deleting your wifi preferred profile in windows using my post 101.
J wrote, on October 6th, 2008:
this tends to be a power settings issue…
for Windows users, try going into your device manager, the properties of your wireless card, advanced tab, and you should be looking for a power management option. the Windows versions tend to shut the wireless down to save on power. that should solve some of the issues here…
Oh, what a tangled web we weave… » The story of my Aspire One wrote, on October 6th, 2008:
[...] for me because I have a secured WiFi at home. I found a very helpful site called and maintained by the Acer Guy. The discussions on the site were very helpful and had some advice I tried, [...]
RK wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
Hi,
I’ve tried just about everything on this site and on the aspire one user forums. (updating bios,drivers, using atheros utility, disabling power save and even downgrading drivers and the bios) But NOTHING seems to work long term.
The thing is, when you first get the little machine, it’ll work for a day or a few hrs. Then the problems start occuring. I found that after updating to the latest drivers (version xxxx260), it’ll work for a bit longer before the drop offs start occurring again. After that, it’ll just start dropping every 3-5 mins after I reconnect. I really want to keep this little machine. It has everything I want. But this is such a major issue with this netbook that essentially makes it far less useful than it should be. After all, a “NET”book that can’t use wireless properly sounds absurd. I’ve been keeping my eyes on the forums and this site and will report back if i see anything that truly fixes the problems. If this issue doesn’t go away soon, I’m going to go back for a refund.
RK wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
OMG, i have just found a fix for my drop outs!
Thanks to Chad_R’s comment on http://forum.ncix.com/forums/index.php?mode=showthread&forum=105&threadid=1789612&pagenumber=1&msgcount=15&subpage=1&product_id=31428
All I had to do was disable UPnP on my router and so far, I haven’t been getting any drop outs! I’ve been testing by streaming a 1 hr movie and it’s streaming PERFECTLY. No hiccups what so ever.
I was wondering why some people’s one worked after they switched routers. I think now I know it’s because their new router that works doesn’t have UPnP enabled by default.
Anyway, I will report back with some more thorough testing later on.
alex wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
dear morris , thanks for your concern, I think I was able to correct the problem,believe or not I think my problem was being caused by my router linksys WRT150N ,after doing several setting changes on my router (I read somewhere N router should use security WAP-AES ),I was using WAP-TIKP ,so I finally change my security setting from WAP-TIKP to WAP-AES and the disconection problem is gone , so far 2 days even letting the netbook downloading stuff overnight and no more disconnection , this look very weird since my router is suppose to handle both security modes without issues….
RK wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
UPDATE:
unfortunately, the wifi connection seems to only been sustainable when it’s plugged in AC power. When on battery, it still drops. Sigh.
Can’t get this to work at all.
Michael Walsh wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
Hi everybody.
111 comments to this article before this one. That takes this post to the top three since I started this blog.
It’s also getting something like 8% of all traffic to this site, partly because it’s ranked #1 in Google for the keywords “Aspire One wireless problems”.
Why am I writing this? because I want you to know that I have alerted the necessary people within Acer to this problem and they are looking into it.
The problem – hard as this is to believe – is that the tech guys in Taiwan who are equipped to analyze and repair these things are apparently having a hard time replicating the issue so many of you have experienced.
What needs to happen in these circumstances is a customer sends his faulty (wireless-less) product in for repair and, if the Acer technicians diagnose it as a genuine defect that cannot be repaired with the classic re-install and reboot, receives a new one under warranty. If – and this is the tricky part – the problem exists without additional complications, and by that I mean a million unsuccessful attempts by the unlucky customer to get the damned thing to work, then the tech guys can see what triggered the issue and come up with a solution.
You can imagine how unlikely that is. I mean we all have at least two attempts before calling support right? Each time you change a setting or alter something after the problem first arises, the path to what happened becomes increasingly difficult to trace.
So what I’m suggesting, and this is a loooooong shot and I need to state clearly that it’s me talking here NOT Acer, is that we might be able to kick start this procedure.
If you’re experiencing this problem at the level RK is (sorry to use you as an example, RK) AND CAN DO A CLEAN INSTALL OF EVERYTHING ON YOUR ASPIRE ONE so that it is restored back to the original factory settings (difficult with the XP versions I know), then the first time it happens again get straight on the phone to Acer support and have it sent in for repair. If it gets replaced under warranty we all win as the chances are the defective Aspire One will be sent to Taiwan for examination and then we’ll be that much closer to an official, global solution.
Of course there are a million factors that determine whether or not your Aspire One needs and is entitled to a replacement and I’m not sure any of the above will work, but the fact that they can’t replicate the problem is what’s holding up a patch.
And if you’re not getting online, well you’ve got very little to lose except your patience no?
alex wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
guys the reason in my case I think it was my router security setting or defective router since i got it refurbished from tigerdirect.com combine with this particular atheros adapter,I had exactly the same problem with 2 different brand new netbook (the 120gb/3cell and the 160gb/6cell) both version using the same atheros adapter,it would be a very rare coincidence to receive 2 defective netbook on a row,the issue in both netbook was the same,lost internet from time to time but when happening my network still showing in my wirelees list and adapter still on device manager but blinking led go off ,then when you try to recover ip or repair conection you get the limited conection icon on adapter ,when you restart netbook the atheros adapter dissapear and no matter what you do (re-install driver manually,try to add hardware,ect)won’t find adapter,states is not connected,so as soon you shut down pc and turn it back on everything start working perfectly again and reconnect automatically to my router without any issue,reffer to my post 110 for the way i fixed
alex wrote, on October 7th, 2008:
guys the reason in my case I think it was my router security setting or defective router since i got it refurbished from tigerdirect.com combine with this particular atheros adapter,I had exactly the same problem with 2 different brand new netbook ,the 3cell/6cell both version using the same atheros adapter,it would be a very rare coincidence to receive 2 defective netbook on a row,the issue in both netbook was the same,lost internet from time to time but when happening my network still showing in my wirelees list and adapter still on device manager but blinking led go off ,then when you try to recover ip or repair conection you get the limited conection icon on adapter ,when you restart netbook the atheros adapter dissapear and no matter what you do (re-install driver manually,try to add hardware,ect)won’t find adapter,states is not connected,so as soon you shut down pc and turn it back on everything start working perfectly again and reconnect automatically to my router without any issue,reffer to my post 110 for the way i fixed
Morris Lee wrote, on October 8th, 2008:
Alex, double post? lol anyways, problems can still be possible in your case, since you bought both in the same area no? might be the same production line that had the problem too.
I think it is more the just a software issue, probably something like the 8600m gt defective from nvidia.
JJ wrote, on October 8th, 2008:
tried the madwifi drivers but now cannot connect to any wifi at all
, and led doesnt work. How do I revert to orig. acer wifi drivers?
i am new to linux so i assumed if i want I can just download original
drivers and reinstall…
little did i know.
if you can point me to any help/wiki page on what to do to repair without to the cd restore.
Am still using the Acer linpus.
Morris Lee wrote, on October 8th, 2008:
Not that i know how to get the orginal driver back but you can always use the factory disk, this can ensre all the software issuse is not in the way of diagnostics.
Joe wrote, on October 11th, 2008:
This has frustrated me all day. I installed the new driver, the Atheros client software, tried several browsers, changed a bunch of settings, turned off UPnP. And I think I found a solution…for my home system at least.
I noticed that file downloads and internet activities outside of the browser were operating just fine. So I figured it was some kind of transmission protocol issue.
I went into my wireless router, and even though I’m using a cable modem, changed the MTU down to 1400 from 1500. So far, so good.
The problem is that if I have this problem on another system, it’s not like I can go in and change the MTU. (I did try changing the MTU on just the Aspire, but it didn’t produce the same results.)
hansen wrote, on October 14th, 2008:
Hi
Saw this thread because I have the same problem with my AAO model 150. WLAN normally does not work. (will not connect)
Sometimes it does however.
I normally also search on german sites – and maybe I found a solution to the problem.
The link is:
http://forum.eeepcnews.de/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=3529
Now what he does is:
Go to System, System properties, hardware, device manager. Select Network adapters – and then Athena WLAN adapter properties. Select Advanced. Change the setting for Power save mode from Maximum to OFF.
Note that the yellow LED on the front now is always on.
It looks good on my AAO untill now. Coming days will show whether this is the solution. .
KJ wrote, on October 16th, 2008:
Hi, guys, I’m using the Linux 8GB version. I just got it a week ago. After about 3 days after a restart it no longer detects wireless networks. I ran “sudo iwconfig eth0″ and got back: “eth0 no wireless extensions”. I am a complete Linux noob but that didn’t sound right. What I’ve been able to glean from the web is that the next step would be to see whether config_net_radio is set correctly in the kernel. But I’m not going there.
BTW I haven’t tweaked anything yet in an attempt to fix and I will be on the phone with customer service to get this resolved. I am willing to be on the bleeding edge with AA1 because it’s such a great little machine. Maybe they can fix the hum of the fan, too!
-K
Morris Lee wrote, on October 16th, 2008:
you can try a factory default, since you just got it not long ago, I assume you don’t have much files created in Aspire One. for the fan, you can disable it, AA1 runs fine fanless, get a little hotter, but it is winter here in cananda for me so it is fine.
for windows, it is easier to turn off the fan, a small app someone made does the job, you can find it on the aspire one user site.
Vince wrote, on October 17th, 2008:
Problems with Acer Aspire One
I hope this might be relevent.
I have the xp version, sp3, bios 3301. It wouldn’t “see” the wireless router. I manually set up the wirless ssid and encryption type and pass phrase on the acer aspire. Then I couldn’t get it to connect. It would “see” the network but wouldn’t connect to it. I then set up my Netgear router under the wireless setting> access list. After that I was good to go.
Morris Lee wrote, on October 18th, 2008:
the access list allows a computer to have access regardless what wifi password you have entered. therefore, it allows the connection being established without a question.
BUT! here is what really happened, Windows saved your previous “none password” wifi profile thus after you changed your router password makes the same SSID un-connectible. After you “added” your aspire one to the “access list” thus removing the password issue
those are my assumptions from what I understand, and if I was right, your aspire one should be fine, and this case would only be applicable to small amount of users.
Sorry to disappoint you in anyway,
Morris Lee
Ferry wrote, on October 18th, 2008:
Hi Guys, I don’t have Acer Aspire One but have Acer Aspire 8920G and Acer TravelMate 6292 (I guess Morris will say – “Yes I know you have both of them” lol)
When I read through this thread (and considering my experience with my both lappie), I think the most possible causing the problem is your wireless setting. Updating your driver might be helpful but you must make sure that your wireless is working not only for your existing laptops or PCs but also for your Acer Aspire One spec. (i.e. if your Acer Aspire One has Wireless B mode only but your wireless setup for G only it will not be working).
If your Wireless Router or Wireless ADSL modem has Mixed Mode (I can handle A, B and G – depends on your Wireless device spec) option of Wireless Type I suggest to choose that.
If you prefer to use DHCP instead of static IP make sure that it is working.
If you use Static IP (I prefer it) make sure that your lappie IP is in the range of your network ID (you need to learn how to setup IP address if you don’t know – just google it and you will find a lot of references). Also in my experience I need to setup Preferred DNS and Alternate DNS in my lappies to be the same as my Wireless ADSL setting to be able to access internet.
And one last thing if you cannot see available wireless in your range – just turn off your lappie wireless device and turn it on again.
Hope this helps (or at least can be an option to try before yelling Acer guys)
Chris Mitchell wrote, on October 19th, 2008:
OK, I’m having a similar problem but wondering if it’s a physical thing rather than software settings. The wireless “switch” on the front doesn’t seem to be a simple “left is off, right is on” thing – if I slide the switch to the right it springs straight back to the left. It took a few attempts for the orange LED to come on – but since then the wifi worked perfectly until yesterday. Then I had the same problems mentioned by people here (the icon said wireless was connected, but I couldn’t access anything). When I rebooted, no wifi. But I kept fiddling with the switch and it suddenly sprung into life. The wifi’s been working since then.
So I wonder if it’s just a manufacturing problem where the switch is a bit dodgy?
Morris Lee wrote, on October 19th, 2008:
the spring is suppose to be like that it is not a “swtich” more like sliding “button” that “toggles” the wireless on or off. just slide it to the right all the way and let go will disable or enable the wifi, it is not suppose to get stuck on the the right side at all. and it will take a few seconds until windows detects the wifi is enabled again.
todd wrote, on October 19th, 2008:
I am running the windows update drivers because they are newer (according to the ver. number). It runs OK, but I still think there are heat issues with this card.
I have not flashed my bios because the wireless is still running after upgrading. Flashing the bios should not void any warranty… Acer offers this as a standard update for their computers. That doesn’t mean that flashing a bios is not risky though. I would suggest you use the help of acer if you are not good with computers.
I did turn off power saving mode as it seems flaky. One thing that I’ve seen that worked. One guy replaced his card with an intel, and his works fine now.
Kempis wrote, on October 19th, 2008:
Hi,
Many post already give the answer to this problem so I assume the solution should be already in hands of many but I will repeat it anyway. Just remove all the crap it comes with the AcerOne, specially that Mcaffee suite. I erase it and using AVG antivirus and Sunbelt Kerio Firewall works like a charm. No problem with the wireless since.
Have a good one.
todd wrote, on October 19th, 2008:
It has nothing to do with the software installed on the pc from the start unless you mean drivers.
The card is overheating or is being flaky after power management kicks in. Almost everyone here has had the same symptoms. It runs for a while and then slowly gets slower and then just stops working/doesn’t show up in device manager.
The latest driver has decreased my issues, but it is just a faulty engineered card or it can’t handle the heat this little computer puts out. I think acer will have an answer but we won’t like it. I will likely return the thing or install an alternative card.
Lisa Geiger wrote, on October 20th, 2008:
I did send my aspire one back to acer, I sent it on
Wednesday. So I took apart my old lap top and somehow I got it to work. I still like the aspire one alot, I think it must be really buggy.
maxi wrote, on October 20th, 2008:
ok now. I also had a lot of trouble with the WIFI on my Acer One. But the last weeks worked fine.
I still would say that the Wifi Card or the Antenna are very limited in contrast to all my other wifi divices.
but here is my configuration since I am quite satisfied with. the wifi doesn’t disconnect anymore.
- I have bios 3.009 (didn’t) changed it
- running Windows XP SP3
- driver ist No. 7.6.0.200 (not 239, not 260…)
- running atheros client-help-programm 5.2.0.159
All the time I had another Linux Laptop running with the wifi set to “roaming mode” my Acer One disconnected. When I turned of the Other Laptop the wifi on the Acer One was running again. Believe me I configured everything right. All my wifi devices are configured with dhcp my router is handling all of them at the same time without problems but when I put the “roaming mode” linux laptop on, the acer One disconnected. then I managed to turn the roaming mode of my other machine of and the acer One found his wifi suddenly. Also it was there again, when I turned some kind of “pulled” dhcp mode on ( with a different programm ((WICD)). So for me this seemed to be some problems with the packet handling of the wifi signal.
so: – turn of all other wifi devices if possible (if a neighbor has a machine running in “roaming mode” thats not good. try it somewhere else.
-turn on all other wifi devices one by one to find out if one of the other machines causes the trouble.
if you don’t have other wifi machines then try my configuration from above.
Lee wrote, on October 21st, 2008:
If you are THINKING about buying an Acer Aspire One, DON’T. It’s not worth the hassle!
After 3 months of ownership, I’ve finally gotten a refund on my Acer Aspire One.
After having the wireless dropping issue that many Aspire One owners have experienced, and hours online searching for remedies and trying them (all to no avail) I returned my laptop to Acer to fix.
Acer replaced the Atheros wireless card to an Intel card, which took 14 days.
On return, the laptop started experiencing a slightly different wireless problem, whereby it could not acquire a network address after hibernation. Further time finding remedies and on the phone to Acer determined I had tried everything, and the unit should be returned.
So I now have my refund. Who knows if it was just mine, but this computer does not seem to be stable with the wireless, so if you are THINKING about buying an Acer Aspire One, DON’T. It’s not worth the hassle!
Morris Lee wrote, on October 21st, 2008:
I think it is radom, mine has worked flawless ever since I got it (unless michael put some magic on it specially for me XD).
so i think it is not to ALL machines, unless there are some programs that is preinstalled on there that prevents aspire one from connecting properly.
I am using a clean install of windows my own, it is working fine.
Kempis wrote, on October 21st, 2008:
In response to Todd. I made a test, left the AspireOne turned on overnight and still the wireless is fine and dandy. Probably I got a lucky unit but what I know is that I remove that Mcaffee thing and everything works fine. I do not notice any overheating, just the normal heat generated for such small unit. Even the hottest part of the laptop is next to the wireless and still things are working perfectly. I am beginning to fall in love with my AcerOne.
Kempis wrote, on October 21st, 2008:
In response to Todd. I made a test, left the AspireOne turned on overnight and still the wireless is fine and dandy. Probably I got a lucky unit but what I know is that I remove that Mcaffee thing and everything works fine. I do not notice any overheating, just the normal heat generated for such small unit. Even the hottest part of the laptop is next to the wireless and still things are working perfectly. I am beginning to fall in love with my AcerOne. thanks.
todd wrote, on October 22nd, 2008:
Kempis,
An idle wireless card does not transmit packets, and thus, does not get hot. Go download a DVD or seed on a torrent and see how quickly the card overheats.
That would be a valid test.
EK wrote, on October 22nd, 2008:
Anyone has an application software for the webcam with Vista on AspireOne? Thanks !
Morris Lee wrote, on October 22nd, 2008:
should be using the same application called livecam.exe but you need to get the driver package from the 5920 and just install the program in the app folder from the driver package. then the livecam.exe should appear in the windows directory
snowman wrote, on October 22nd, 2008:
1, not chaging, after lukked
Hi there!
So many post can get a little confusing… So now I just ask what to do.
I’ve had my new aa1 for nearly a week know, and I’ve had some problems with the wireless card as well.
-It sometimes drops out suddently, and not always while I’m using the internet.
-Happends both when charging and while using battery power.
-The Atheros card dissappears from the computer, device administration, add/remove hardware ect.
-Comes back after hard reboot. Not restart, but total shutdown.
- Not only when the computer is hot.
-The LED doesn’t light at all when the wireless disappears
I’ve contacted acer support, and I had to reinstall the computer. I did, and the problem is still there.
Sometimes I have wireless for more then 24 houres, and sometimes for only a few houres.
normally I have to reboot 3 times or more each day.
So… I’ve tried to:
-Reinstall the computer
-Update the driver for the Atheros network adapter to the vesion from the acer website 7.6.0.244
-Tunrning on and off the wireless switct(of couse)
-Connection to different wireless internet connections
So what to do?
Please help me… Should I update bios, could it just be a hardware error?
I’m not shure if it only happends some time after the computer have been hibernated (haven’t notices). But not immedietly after hibernate… So don’t think that it could be the reason.
todd wrote, on October 23rd, 2008:
At this point it is obviously a hardware/software problem that Acer will eventually address with a recall of the machines to swap the cards OR they will find a solution through drivers/bios updates.
Don’t hold your breath for this to happen though. It takes months for Dell or other large vendors to finally figure out engineering issues at this level. This is easily seen by the dates on drivers and bios updates on any support site.
IF you can’t wait it out, get another computer.
Kempis wrote, on October 23rd, 2008:
Hi Todd,
I have my AspireOne working with Ubuntu and I used Azureus to download and seed a movie and so far almost 1GB have been exchanged through the wireless. It has been working flawlessly during the whole day. I guess that the issue of the operative system ain’t matter because the problem suppose to be the hardware. However, I have not noticed any malfunction of the wireless with Ubuntu or windows. I didn’t use windowsXP, which is in another partition (yes, the AspireOne even allowed me double boot and I love it) because I just do not like to use windows unless it is absolutely necessary. But as I said the times I used windows the wireless works as a charm… of course, after I removed and clean all the application that come by default with the operative system such as the Mcaffee suite and the hideous free trial version of microsoft office.
My only explanation then is that, since my AspireOne is less than one month old and came in the second batch, probably the issue of the wireless was fixed by Acer. Other than that I do not find any other explanation because I do not even notice any abnormal overheating.
By the way, my system is the one with 1GB RAM and 120GB hard drive.
Till now, I do not have any reason to complain about this tiny beauty,
Have a nice day,
Keri wrote, on October 26th, 2008:
Had the same problem a few people described above: 160gb HDD/XP home setup. Wireless would intermittently stop transmitting despite giving me a “Very Good” signal strength. Other times, it would fail to detect any wireless networks at all. Weirdest of all its behaviors, the wireless card would disappear from the Device Manager.
Tried Acer’s recommended driver, no luck. Also tried adjusting the power-save mode, but no luck.
Windows Automatic Updates website had problems with not finding particular services running, so I went to the Windows Update Catalog directly and searched “Atheros wireless” until I found a driver released in September, 2008, for the Atheros Wireless Adapter 5006X v7.6.0.260. Download was about 1.5mb. So far, so good, including when it comes out of sleep mode.
Will update if I start having connection issues again.
todd wrote, on October 26th, 2008:
I am more inclined to believe that it is bios and driver issues now.
After changing the power settings and moving to the windows update drivers, mine runs for about a day and usually doesn’t require reboots.
That does not mean the issue is resolved. I expect acer to put out another driver soon, and likely another bios update. The asipre one is still the best device you can get IMO.
Gordon wrote, on October 27th, 2008:
bought a AA1 150, c/w xp home. formatted the AA1, install xp pro.
downloaded all the drivers from acer website. everything installed.
home wireless setting is of WPA. try get connecting AA1 to wireless network – always reject the network key.
found out from friend, telling me that AA1 doesnt support WPA, only WEP. unless i can find some driver upgrade for the wireless adapter. but i already install the one and only WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224 from ACER website.
if i lower my wireless router setting to no network key, get connected, no problem.
worry is, next time go outside places like Starbucks, if they set their wireless network to be WPA – then i bought the AA1 for nothing already!!!
Pls help – much appreciated
Morris Lee wrote, on October 27th, 2008:
I am using WPA, my school is using WPA(don’t ask me how I get the password) it works fine for me. check if you have WPA-personal and make sure it is using TKIP encryption type, that is the current setting that worked for me.
Gordon wrote, on October 27th, 2008:
the wireless network configuration menu doesnt even let me have the option to choose the encryption type…
the moment i key in my network key, it displas a message:
the network password needs to be 40bits or 104bits depending on your network configuration. this can be entered as 5 or 13 ascii characers or 10 or 26 hexadecimal characters…
Morris Lee wrote, on October 27th, 2008:
weird, both my SMC and linksys I have owned was able to customize the encryption type.
todd wrote, on October 28th, 2008:
you must be on an old copy of xp.. there was an update that added wpa functionality to xp pro if your card could handle it.. In this case, the card can, but you don’t seem to have the xp wpa update.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=009D8425-CE2B-47A4-ABEC-274845DC9E91&displaylang=en
Morris Lee wrote, on October 28th, 2008:
todd, i must add, it is almost impossible for acer to miss that update in the XP build, and looking at the release date : 3/31/2003 it is quite a while ago. also for the fact that most of the users here are having wireless connection “drop” rather then unable to connect which leads me to think that this can’t be the cause of the problem.
however, never get your hopes down, am I correct? give it a shot, might help. And I must add, great find todd, keep up the good work and thanks for sharing!!
I never shared the same problem can due to a fact that I have only tested service pack 2 build of windows xp and later including vista and vista sp1, and XP SP2 was released on 6 August 2004 should as a matter of fact include the patch you have provided.
So, to sum it up, sorry for my big big mouth for almost inclined to the tone where I am rejecting todd’s finding, but never get your hopes down and give that a try!
Cheers to the world baby~
Morris Lee
todd wrote, on October 29th, 2008:
except he reinstalled xp pro from his own copy, and likely used an older cd.
Morris Lee wrote, on October 29th, 2008:
you are correct, there is a big possibility that he is using older WinXP builds. I missed the previous posts just before mine, so i thought you meant it for everyone.
Best wishes~~
Morris Lee
Kamran wrote, on October 29th, 2008:
WIFI PROBLEM SOLVED!!!!
I recently bought an Aspire One 150X and became tired of restarting again and again to get the built in WIFI to connect. Drivers, BIOS fixes anything, did not correct the issue.
Yesterday, I bought an INTEL WIFI N 4965 card and removed the ATHEROS one. All the wireless issues are gone and the machine has not disconnected even once.
Whats more, the wifi switch has started to actually work. The card now always starts when the switch is pressed.
The onboard LED shows WIFI status just fine as well.a
hexmex wrote, on October 29th, 2008:
I also got the problem with the wireless. But found a new driver at acer.com download. Wlan_Ahteros_7.6.1.149 have just tryed it a few hours but looks promesing. even the wlan switch is working.
Hope this is the thing we have been waiting for.
(sorry my english:)
Dan wrote, on October 30th, 2008:
I’ve had my AAO 150 160gb/6cell/XP for a few weeks and initially had the wifi sleep bug requiring a power off/reboot. Since upgrading to driver 7.6.0.260 and disabling Power Saver Mode in the wifi advanced tab, it works perfect.
I have a fair amount of experience in wireless networking, and find that if a wireless PC shows a good to excellent connection to the router, but the internet still doesn’t work, it is the router. Try changing the channel from the default (almost always 6) to the extreme lowest or highest. WPA encryption is the best, but you must know the type, and WPA2 is just foe the most paranoid. WEP is pretty solid, and will usually keep those snotty nosed script kiddies off your LAN.
If all else fails, try connecting to a friends wifi. I have had a boatload of routers, and my opinion is Linksys/Cisco is the best. I’ve had Microsoft, Blitzz, DLink, Belkin routers, but always had wifi issues.
We have 5 wireless laptops, 2 wireless desktops, XBox360, 2 PSPs, iPhone all connected without issue.
Hope these tips help.
CemoCan wrote, on October 31st, 2008:
I have the same wifi disconnection problem with my brand new acer aspire one. This especially happens after a sleep or hibernation. But, without these it happens again. Even it disappears from the system hardware in network cards as well. I like this little notebook but without wifi it is nothing for me. If any one solved this common problem please post here. Also, why don’t we get our voices heard by Acer on this huge issue?
Good luck everyone!
novelo wrote, on October 31st, 2008:
I had the same problem today. While working on it at school it didn’t recognize any network. I rebooted the machine and then the wireless network completely dissapeared it didn’t even recognized the hardware. As if it has suddenly vanished from existance.
It hasn’t worked since.
Acer Atom 1.6ghz, 120GB 1GB RAM XP SP3
Morris Lee wrote, on October 31st, 2008:
try your wifi switch. if it still does not work, get it replaced
Dan wrote, on October 31st, 2008:
This is simple.
For the peeps that none of the fixes are working and you need vto reboot to get the network started again.
Most routers that come free with ISP’s can handle 10 connections at the most.Thats 10 pages open.I suggest you shut down any other computers on the network then trying again.
My acer one wont see a usb cd-rom although the bios sees it fine.
ive got the linux version but wanna put xp on!!
CemoCan wrote, on October 31st, 2008:
Besides this commom wifi problem, I also have “Gmail” problems with the Aspire One. I wonder if any other people do have the same problem; and what would be the solution. I extremely use gmail due to my job. But, it is really a pain in the neck with the Aspire One. Whenever I sign into my Gmail on this little machine, gmail freezes temprorily and later even if it work again, it still is so slow. By the way, I also tried it through my other emails, like Yahoo and Hotmail; and they work perfectly fine. This problem only occurs with Gmail and ALL the time I sign in. Is this happened to anyone? Any suggestions?
Thanks.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 1st, 2008:
I never had that problem, try updating Aspire One, if problem persists, install firefox 3 using the Aspire One manual. if that still does not fix the problem use a factory default
CemoCan wrote, on November 1st, 2008:
Morris Lee, thanks a lot. I installed Firefox 3 and the problem solved. If I use IE, the problem still persists, but I do not care. From now on I will be a FF3 user. Thanks again.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 1st, 2008:
CemoCan,
I thought you were using linpus so I referred you to the manual as there is a page telling you how to upgrade to FF3 for the aspire one linpus edition. however, there are tons of users using internet explorer and having gmail issues. so don’t think there is anything wrong with your IE.
but I am glad that the problem is solved now
Cheers
Mike wrote, on November 2nd, 2008:
Hi, I’m new to here but was wondering if you could help me. I recently bought an Acer Aspire One A110L Laptop but am having problems connecting to my wireless broadband (provided by BT through a HUB). The laptop picks up the wireless connection in the bottom right corner but wont connect. Any ideas of what I can do? The laptop has Linpus™ Linux® Lite version operating system installed which I have never used before. I have alwayts previously had Windows. I have a Windows XP disk so would you recommend installing this or not? Thanks for any help you can provide.
Mike
Morris Lee wrote, on November 2nd, 2008:
it is hard to say if your hardware are fully supported my linpus, linpus is modded version of fedora and shrinked down in size with lots of features removed, please provide a model number of the device you are trying to connect.
VPC wrote, on November 3rd, 2008:
Have a XP Aspire One and lose wifi unexpectedly and need to reboot – shows good signal but no connection happening just stops connection out of the blue. Other in our house have no similar problems while this is happening to me on the same wifi.
Seem to be a bug with Acer. To be fixed one hopes or mine goes back.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 3rd, 2008:
I would assume that there is something from the router that is causing the problem, if I understand your message fully. have a look at your router settings
Zenaida wrote, on November 3rd, 2008:
hi, i think im going to buy an Acer aspire one in about a week or two, but i dont want to if the wifi is gonna give out on me… My house has two other laptops that work fine on wifi, and im gonna buy the 6 cell, 160 Gig version off of amazon.com. These posts have been going on for awhile, but i wanted to know, should i be worried about my acer’s wifi, or is this a problem that only happens with a few acers? I am not computer savvy at all, so i dont want to get a netbook thats going to give me lots of problems. I just need it to go online, and it seems perfect aside from this snag… should i still go ahead and get one? if i do have a problem with wifi, will acer help me try to fix it or will i have to spend alot to get it to work? I have no cash and no time, but i need a laptop
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 3rd, 2008:
Zenaida,
There’s no point ignoring the fact that some netbooks (Aspire One’s) have had wireless problems. The number of replies to this thread is a good indication that the problem is real.
However, the fact that there are technical issues doesn’t mean that they’re all defective or that the Aspire One is a dud. Remember, Acer is on target to sell 6 million of these things by the end of this year (it was only launched in July) so it can’t be that bad.
I have an Aspire One (bought and paid for not given to me) and I’ve never had an issue with wireless connectivity or any other problem with it. Morris has one and he’s answered more questions about it here than anyone else and he’s never had an issue (right Morris?).
This site is the unofficial eyes and ears of Acer. Do not think – any of you – that I have been idly sitting by letting you suffer in silence. I have brought this very post to the attention of the highest authorities within Acer and have updated you as far as I can with developments (the problem is so “infrequent” that the tech-support guys in Taiwan can’t replicate it). Believe me Acer knows.
Just remember that if your Aspire One is defective, you are perfectly within your rights to get it repaired and I and any of the people standing behind/with/alongside/in front of me here on this site am more than happy to let you know free of charge what you can and should do if you run into a brick wall…
You’re in safe hands here
Morris Lee wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
yes Michael, you are right, mine has been problemless until I put vista on aspire one and running outta space, HAHAHAHAHAHA, but this is besides the wireless problem.
Only “problems” i have came across(not problems really) wireless driver is not included in Vista(since the card is pretty new) and that the “Maxmium Power Saving” function in vista only makes web browsing really slow, other then that the wireless has been working everysince. I did however mad a custom heatsink that is attached to the top of the wificard(internally, not visible from outside) the right hand rest has been pretty cooled down ever since.
I will show you guys the ugly wifi heatsink I made, but works, if anyone of you like to take the time to make your own, you need to prepare some tools such as:
-vise
-handsaw (all purpose blade would do)
-Drill with drill bits(stationary drill preferred)
-aluminum or copper plates
-super glue(ones form transparent crystals are the best for heat conductivity, since they are very similar to glass, and glass is not bad for heat conductivity)
-thermal paste(if you don’t have super glue?)
-double sided tape
-sand paper
these are just some things you will need to complete the task, I will show you the pictures of the design of the heatsink when I open it up for HDD upgrade. I did not draw out a design, I did it free hand.
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
Warning:
Morris Lee is certifiable.
The new site *might* go live this week. Looks like the Expert Voices section is going to get off to a roaring start. Can’t wait to see where you guys take it.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
ahh, i will be there to fill that in for you Michael, as from the previous post, you can see that i am going to write a small guide to upgrade the video card for aspire 5920.
charliex wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
Been having the wireless problems with the 7.6.260 drivers on the 150 about an hour of connectivity,then the card disappears needing a reboot, so i just changed to the 7.6.1.160 found them here,lets see if it fixes it or i’ll just swap out the card for the intel board instead.
http://laptopvideo2go.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=21428
i have the 110 linux version too,haven’t had the same problem with it
Morris Lee wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
so I guess it is more directly to the A150 series as far as I can tell. Me and Michael both have the linus A110 ones and works fine ever the moment the box was opened(I still remember that morning Michael, such a suprise, never forget, and never forget the smell of new aspire one…) anyways…. yes, Michael, maybe the first poll you can do is like “do you have wifi problem, you have A110 or A150?” something like that, so we can start tracing the problem down. maybe just because the HDD uses more power and the wifi’s power is been pulled off and unable to power backup unless a full shutdown?
Mike wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
Hi guys, if I was to install Windows XP onto my Acer Aspire One 110 laptop over Linux which is currently on there could I simply install it using the backup XP disk I already have or would I have to install extra drivers for it to work? If so any ideas where I could find these? I’m simply trying to connect to my wireless broadband on my laptop through my BT Hub but having spoke to BT’s ‘technical’ department they informed me that the Hub does not support Linux operating system so I wont be able to connect to my broadband unless I upgraded. Hope someone can help. Thanks
charliex wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
left it running all nite have not had the issue yet, but i have had it work ok before, could be a temperature issue, i’ll try some more testing..
this may also be related to powersaving in the wireless drivers, i don’t think its the typical problem of wireless routers not supporting the 802.11 power saving mode, since the atheros card actually disappears from the hardware viewer altogether and not just failing to connect
But it might be worthwhile changing the power saving mode of the wiress card and see if it helps.
i’ve found the 110 to be more stable, i have had a few hard locks on the 150 in the week i’ve had it, seem to be mostly video driver related though.
charliex wrote, on November 4th, 2008:
left it running all nite have not had the issue yet, but i have had it work ok before, could be a temperature issue, i’ll try some more testing..
this may also be related to powersaving in the wireless drivers, i don’t think its the typical problem of wireless routers not supporting the 802.11 power saving mode, since the atheros card actually disappears from the hardware viewer altogether and not just failing to connect
But it might be worthwhile changing the power saving mode of the wiress card and see if it helps.
i’ve found the 110 to be more stable, i have had a few hard locks on the 150 in the week i’ve had it, seem to be mostly video driver related though.
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 5th, 2008:
@Mike
On your other, normal Windows notebooks or any other computer you’ve used to connect to your hub, do you have to install a program that allows you to “access” BT’s network? I’m asking as there’s a similar problem in Italy (where I live) with the national phone provider who makes you install proprietary programs and jump through several hoops before connecting with what should be just a password-protected wireless network.
Before you take the quite significant jump of installing another OS, let me ask the guys in Acer what everyone else in the UK does in a similar situation as I’m sure you’re not the only one with this problem.
I’m surprised BT brushed you off so “harshly”. I won’t go down so easily…
Mike wrote, on November 5th, 2008:
Thanks for the reply Michael. I look forward to hearing your response. Cheers
David wrote, on November 5th, 2008:
I had the wireless dropout problem with my AOA 150 running XP. The problem always occurred at some interval after cycling the WiFi power or going into Standby.
I tried all the above software solutions, but the only working configuration for me is the 7.6.0.260 driver with Power Save Mode at Maximum.
Zenaida wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
okay, i just got my acer, and it works lovely… not having any issues, its faster than my desktop and the wifi is fine… I have only one very important question. How the heck do you work the frickin camera? I can see a little camera at the top of my aspire, but i cant find any information at all on how to use it… there isn’t even a mention of the camera in the handbook… help? please?
Zenaida wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
oh, and if this is the wrong thread to be asking that question on, could someone tell me where to go? I dont want to clog up this thread if my question is irrelevant
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
Zenaida,
Doesn’t matter about the thread as it’s a blog. The forum’s coming but this is all we got in the meantime…
Don’t know which version you have (XP or Linux). With the Linux version you should see the Webcam under Fun (bottom left). Not necessarily in the home page three icon view but certainly if you click on the arrow and expand it.
Under XP I don’t know how you access it as I’ve never had my hands on one.
There have been issues with the webcam not working with Messenger (I’m talking about the Linux version). This is because shortly after launch, MS changed the protocols and Acer is still playing catch up. Should be sorted with a Live Update soon.
Hope this helps…
Zenaida wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
oh, mines the XP version, i thought it should be on the netbook somewhere, but my brother told me i probably have to download something else to get it to work… i wasn’t sure if i just couldn’t find it or if i needed to do something else to get it to work…
Zenaida wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
one more thing, would it be okay to put itunes on my aspire one? or would that slow it down alot?
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
@Mike
Just got a reply from Simone that might be worth trying. I have a feeling it’s your BT router (read on and you’ll see what I mean):
rod wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
my problem with my aceraspire one are i cant open the video call or for short i cant make a call using a headset….
rod wrote, on November 6th, 2008:
and i think im wasting my money with ths product aceraspire one its useless……
CemoCan wrote, on November 7th, 2008:
Hi Zenaida,
I bought the acer one from amazon but because of this very common wifi problem unfortunately I had to return it. Tell the truth I really like this little netbook but without properly working wifi it is nothing to me; because, that’s one of the major reasons why I got it. I have some other friends with acer one and all they have the same problem. Mostly they keep the acer one plugged all the time because this reduces the wifi problem. And also I do not believe that acer cannot fix this problem or let’s say how come they cannot replicate it? Just turned it on and play around with it; then you’ll see! Again if this problem is completely solved I will re-purchase the acer one.
By the way, using the webcam is quite hectic with this netbook. There should be shortcut (either on dekstop or in programs) regarding digital photo/picture transfer (it has camera picture on it), just click on it and here you go. I do not understand why they hid it! Please after using your acer one for a while, update us regarding the wifi issue.
The Acer Guy » Wireless problems with the Aspire One at Aimee Gurl… wrote, on November 7th, 2008:
[...] All of a sudden, this afternoon, my wifi card disappeared I was happily surfing.. well not really, I was laying on my side on the floor downloading visual studio express and trying to install it on brownie when all of a sudden, the connection dropped. I tried the repair tool but now it couldn’t find my wireless card. I thought it was a Windows 7 issue but I remember having the same problem while I was in Vietnam when it was still on XP. Somehow it came back to life again after several restarts and uninstalls and reinstalls of the network card. Apparently, I’m not the only one who has had this problem as evidenced by this forum thread here: (The Acer Guy » Wireless problems with the Aspire One) [...]
Zenaida wrote, on November 7th, 2008:
I only recently got my acer, but so far I’ve had no wifi problems whatsoever… i can sit in my room thats on the other side of the house from the router and the connection works just fine… its pretty fast, the only thing i’ve noticed is you have to wait a little to get youtube videos to stream, but seeing as my wifi is crap, that is to be expected.
i’ve only had my acer for two days, ill let you know if any problems arise…
thanks for the camera info, ill let you know when i get home whether or not i found it… Whens the forum coming up so we can get a little more organized? and is there anyone here who has itunes on their aspire one? I dont know if i should put it on or not…
Smallfriex wrote, on November 7th, 2008:
I have been struggling to get my Linux Aspire One to connect to a wireless network and I have been reading these postings for a couple of weeks. My Aspire sees the network’s but cannot connect – message ‘the network connection has been disconnected’ despite putting in the correct keys, trying different security settings or no security and different routers.
Ringing the 0870 Acer technical helpline, they refered me to the special software support line at 50 pence a min. he talked me trhough deleting my connection and setting it up again (something I must’ve tried 50 times) and when I explained the details of the problem, he was rude and didn’t want to know.
He tried to tell me it couldn’t be a hardware or software problem if it was seeing the network. I mentioned all the forum posts on this issue and he said ‘there’s forum posts on eveything’. He said he would send me a step by step guide to reseting my network, took my email, and hung up. This turned out to be the generic recovery -great!
Acer must know by now they have a serious fault with the wireless networking. And it seems we’re being left to it. If you try the helpline be prepared for short shrift! Until a fix is forthcoming, I own an expensive brick. I think mine will have to go back to the shop. So frustrating.
peter l wrote, on November 9th, 2008:
Am experiencing similar problems with wireless on my Aspire One (160 Gb, Win XP, 6-ell battery).
When I resume from hibernate, sometimes the Atheros network card disappears: connection drops and card is no longer visible in Windows XP device manager (even not with Hidden devices enabled). When I reboot the netboook, everything is fine. But as soon as I hibernate and then resume the issue occurs.
I restored the netbook a couple of times to factory settings but the issue remained.
Then I upgraded the wireless driver to 7.6.0.224 (as found on the Acer website), and changed the power settings (in device manager) to Power Save Mode = Off and now it seems to be ok.
But this affects the battery life!!!!!!!!!!!
When I leave power save mode to normal or maximum, (with this new driver) the connection stays available but the wifi connection is not functioning properly: I can only ping the default gateway, but NSLOOKUP and surfing etc aren’t working (after resuming from hibernate), really strange.
Is there a fix available for the Wifi problems?
Help! (e-mailed Acer just now)
PS Sometimes I hear the Windows DingDong (from new Hardware added or removed, wondering if that’s maybe the wireless network card cutting out for less than a second? Wifi icon remains in the taskbar, but where can I check in WinXP what device causes this Dingdong sound? There’s nothing en Event viewer, can I enable additional logging?
Steve Kramer wrote, on November 12th, 2008:
This is a SOLUTION for the following problem: Wireless Fidelity Internet Connection Dropout (my Wifi card pooped itself and I lost my internet connection, and when I choose repair, it gets stuck on cannot reconnect)
For the Following Acer Minis: All running WINDOWS OS 2000 or higher
Ok, This happened to my Acer notebook since day one. It is an Acer Aspire with a bunch of numbers after it. It is the one with Windows XP Service pack 3 with the 120 gig drive, and 1 gig shared memory. Using the WiFi card for a few hours then it drops. Try to be able to Disable/Re-enable, it fails, then right click/repair, it fails. For starters, this has nothing to do with your firewall because if it did, you wouldn’t establish a connection in the first place.
Solution Go To: Start/Control Panel/Network Connections/Right Click your Wireless Card AND Choose Properties/UNCHECK QoS Packet Scheduler. Reboot PC, and Reconnect to your network (as you might get a disconnected message for a second.
ALSO, This solved the issue for my Acer without any updated drivers, or BIOS flashes . This is a right out of the box fix.
Why?
Basically, This problem happens to many, many cheap network adapters, wired and wireless. When I worked in the department of Manufacturing Test Engineering for Zhone Technologies, I had to fix nearly a dozen laptops (oddly enough) with the same problem, but they were wired usb to RJ45 network adapters. Once I saw that QoS Packet Scheduler was enabled, I disabled it and the problem never came back. The same is true for my Acer Mini.
Here is some background info on the Quality of Service (QoS):
Web data is typically sent via TCP. The point of TCP is that if the data stream cannot be delivered reliably, it retransmits the bits that got dropped/lost/scrambled, until they can be. If it gets stuck long enough, then it terminates the connection.
QoS is CPU intensive, and primarily works by throttling your connection speed to create leeway for time-critical, lossy packets like UDP-based VOIP protocols.
Now, Someone mentioned difficulty getting youtube videos to play smoothly…This is how you fix that:
There is only so much this mini can do, and a resource hog like McAfee limits what u can do. Also, between mcafee, Windows Firewall, and your routers built in software and hardware firewall, you are being firewalled waay too many times.
This is what you do and some rules: NEVER, NEVER, disable your routers firewall capabilities. I heard someone mention to do that in a post here, That is a dumb idea. Leave it on because IF you are being attacked, you want it to be blocked at the router first, rather than at your PCs. Would you rather block a bullet with your chest, or a bullet proof vest?? Next, Leave the Windows Defender’s Firewall on, but disable the McAfees firewall service. Now, what you should really do is uninstall the entire McAfee suite because it uses way too many resources for this laptop to handle. Dont believe me? hit control+ALT+Delete and click on task manager. Then click Processes, Look at all the process that say McAfee or begin with MC, there are alot and some use over 40 megs of memory ALL the time. BUT, make sure you have other antivirus software ready to install after you do away with McAfee. Road Runner sunscribers can rejoice because as long as they are a member (like I am, but I might switch to FIOS) you get free CA internet security suite just for being a member. And CA is probably one of the best suites out there. just go rr.com/extras/security to get the free download if a member. It includes, Firewall, antivirus,antispyware and remover, and anti spam for email clients. (But dont forget, if you get this (CA) and use their firewall, Disable the Windows Firewall in the control panel.
Going through that many translations and authentications for each firewall app will severely degrade you internet speed. So, read the above and do what I said, and your Youtube videos will run smoothly buddy : )
So give this all a try and please let me know if this helps or not.
You’re Welcome
Steve
P.S. I accept “thank you” boxes of chocolate and potent catnip for my Fiance’s psycho cat
Michael Walsh wrote, on November 12th, 2008:
Steve,
What can I say?? Thank you for dedicating the time, effort and for fighting off the cat long enough to post your insights.
You have won a free Acer Guy T-shirt that I’m still designing but when they get here, one’s yours.
If you have any more of these gems, remember I’m recruiting for the “Expert Voices” section of the new site due any day now.
Let me (and the thriving Acer community) know if you do.
Again, thanks.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 12th, 2008:
Hello Steve, thank you for the solutions, I couldn’t have answered these questions, since I was never able to get the same problem everyone else was.
I hope everyone would find Steve’s method useful.
Morris Lee
Bristol Chris wrote, on November 13th, 2008:
I bought mine a month ago, and have had flakiness problems. It will suddenly stop working while I’m connected, and a reboot usually fixes it. However, tonight a reboot didn’t fix it, nor did a system restore, nor did restoring the wifi driver.
Eventually, I restored everything to factory settings – a pain to say the least. It *still* didn’t fix it. The wifi button still worked – toggling it displayed “Wifi enabled” or “Wifi disabled” accordingly in large green letters on the screen, but it didn’t show in Device Manager.
Device manager didn’t show any wifi adapter, even after the restore – however, I finally fixed it by right clicking on netowrk adapters in Device Manager and saying to scan for hardware changes. Perhaps I should have done that *before* doing the factory reset, because it then claimed it had found “new” hardware, and it started working again.
It’s a bit alarming though – it’s a lovely machine except for this annoying habit of dropping the wifi.
Bristol Chris wrote, on November 13th, 2008:
OK, I wish I’d read Steve’s post first
Thanks, Steve – I’ve tried that. I’ll let everyone know in a month if it worked for me
vossilus wrote, on November 13th, 2008:
Hi Steve,
thanks for your post! Just one question as I only saw you mentioning the XP version.
My spouse owns the linux type. Anyone know how to do the trick on this one?
Thanks for helping me showing off! ;o)
Bristol Chris wrote, on November 14th, 2008:
Ah well – tried disabling QOS, and everything worked fine today – until this evening.
Exactly the same problem. I was online, then everything stopped, couldn’t access any websites. When I rebooted, Windows didn’t recognise my wifi. I tried scanning for new hardware – no luck at all.
Eventually, I had to restore factory settings yet again. Scanned for new hardware. No joy. Rebooted about six times, and eventually it kicked in and recognised that I had installed “new” hardware – and it’s working again. I really hope I’m not going to have to format my disk and restore factory settings every single day – this really will make my Acer pretty unusable
I’ve flashed the BIOS to 3305, so let’s hope this does the trick. I’m not feeling terribly confident after my recent experiences, though. I’m not a computer whizz, but neither am I computer illiterate – how a layperson with even less knowledge than me just buying this laptop from a shop would cope with this, I don’t know.
Jordan wrote, on November 14th, 2008:
Bristol Chris: I’ve having essentially the same problem, except my wireless card never disappears. Instead I just get ridiculously touchy connections, or the atheros can’t find the router, etc…
I’d recommend checking out this forum as well:
http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=34&sid=8d8c1da000449dd8843cafd84659035f
my current problems are chronicled here:
http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=6437
Tried literally every single solution offered in this thread and on those forums. Nothing consistent.
Steve Kramer wrote, on November 15th, 2008:
Bristol Chris, Michael Walsh, Morris Lee, Vossilus:
I just wanted to start out by thanking you guys for your comments, You all are very kind, and it is because of people like you, that I try my best to help out. And regarding the “youre welcome” and “i accept as thank you” comments that I made…I am sure you guys already know, but those were just jokes to lighten the mood and frustrations of the pc problems we face :I would never want to be that conceded. My greatest success has derived from some of my greatest failures. Now to business.
First off, This is for Michael Walsh: I would be honored to wear one of your Acer Guy T’s. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, and just for you and this community, I have quite a few gems I have come up with, specifically for our Acer Mini’s. I am sure you all will love them, as I put a lot of time into them. I also tailored some tricks specifically to some of the people on here, which I will try to neatly catagorize on here for you all.
Bristol Chris:
System restore will not fix network card issues and drivers, its designed to
restore corrupt regristry files and edits only.
“System Restore automatically tracks changes to your computer and creates restore points before major changes are to occur. To create a restore point, System Restore takes a full snapshot of the registry and some dynamic system files. For a list of
what file types are monitored and restored, see the MSDN article, Microsoft Windows XP System Restore.”
You would prolly have more luck pressing F8 after the P.O.S.T. and
choose “Last Known Good Configuration”
This is what is backed up on system restore and most of the comprehensive ones are only included in Vista:
Registry
Files in the Windows File Protection (Dllcache) folder
Local user profile
COM+ and WMI Databases
IIS Metabase
Specific file types monitored
So dont plan on using System Restore unless U specificcally need
to back up the Registry files – Most likely HKEY_LocalMachine_Hardare
Bristol Chris, do you have a desktop PC as well? If so, I can help you create a centeralized Folder between your desktop and your Acer Mini. That way, the next time you have to do the Acer Factory
Recovery but you dont want to lose any important files from your Acer, you can just simply copy those files to the folder, then copy them back to the Acer when you are done with the Recovery. I actually had to do this to my mini when i was creating Vista shell packs. I downloaded a bad virus, which disabled nearly everything except my wired network adapter on the mini I also had about 30gigs of files on the laptop that I really didnt want to lose so I copied them to the folder, then copied the files right back when I was done. Its really handy, and really ease to do. If you are interested, let me know
Your wireless adapter seems to have a hardware issue. Actually sounds
like a leaking Capacitor rather and over heating. Capacitors or “Caps” Store energy like
little batteries. When they leak, they intermittenly fail. When they fail, and to prevent
damaged to the rest of the board, that device gets shut down, then retried later behind the scenes
U ever had a TV that took a few times to actually stay on? Kinda the same principal.
So once it kicked back on and you manually clicked “Scan for new HArdware”, it checked the
Checksum of the devise and it came back as status “OK” So, to answer your question,
Yes, you could have infact clicked that before you did the recovery, and eventually it would have
came back up….The only thing would have been the timing (clicking it when the device came back up)
and probably a reboot.
I have heard of people on here have been suggesting Overheating causing the failure…This is
The Reason I am leaning towards the Power/Capacitor issue: When a device overheats, Its done
until it cools down – in MOST scenerios, the device is operational when the device cools
(without a windows reboot). In A Power/Cap issue, When the device goes, Time of failure is
usually the same, and time of success is very erratic, MOST OFTEN requiring a reboot.
I hoped this helped at all, I will be trying to find A mini with your same problem, so that
I can give you a 100% answer, as of now, with my fix, I cant get mine to fail.
A Very easy way to rule out an overheating issue is this (But do NOT do it to your mini):
1.) Start/Run/CMD/Ping yahoo.com -t
2.) You will start to see a bunch of numbers (ip addresses) and ping travel time (in miliseconds)
3.) This is good, this means that everything works.
4.) Put a blanket of the laptop (see why I told u not to do it to yours, u can do it, but no
more than twice, and u HAVE to pay attention:)
5.) Just wait till I buy another mini and do it to that one. I did to this with my current, but
it has no more issues so heat def was not the cause, i just wanted to see my failure temp
6.) NOW, once the blanket is over, if you start to see the Error “request timed out” THEN it seems that its
an overheating problem
7.) Take laptop from blanket and put it in fridge (but only for 2 minutes, any more could cause condensation…NOT good)
8.) If the “request timed out” error starts to go away, it is absolutely an overheating failure
But if you are under warranty, its best to just try and get them to replace yours. Your problem seems a little different than ours. In that respect…and if you do try this short trick, certainly do not tell Acer this, they will not cover the warranty if you tell themn that. It actually takes a lot more than that to damage them, Hell, at my work, we actually have to stick them in an oven for 24 hours and we cannot sell them unless the work in the oven through-out the entire duration. But please, let me know if you have a desktop pc and if you want me to show you how to create a share folder between the 2 and to map the folder….Doing a complete recovery on the laptop is a lot less frustrating when you know that you can keep all your files. This is also a great idea because, without a CD drive on the Mini, this trick will allow you to put all kinds of files, extremely large or small onto your Acer laptop that we cant do currently. In fact, If anyone wants to learn how to do this, let me know. Ok, next up is:
Vossilus
Hey, Im so sorry I didn’t post this in my first post, I thought I did…
In the meantime What exactly is the issue? I mean, I know its the wifi reciever/internet dropping out, but what are exactly the syptoms? Does it (internet connection) drop out always at the same time, or very different times, do you notice it happening when the battery is at a certain level, those kinds of things.
QoS for Linux -
The QoS support in linux consists of the following three basic building blocks, namely :
Queuing Discipline
Class Based queuing
Filters/Policers/Classifiers
The packets from the internet flow directly into the filter and from there they reach
the respective queuing discipline. The queuing discipline in turn moves the packets to
the classes. The main function of the classes is to hold the packets under it, which
makes the queuing disciplines to request the filters in order to identify which class
actually the packets belongs. These classes also does not hold the packets
permanently within them, but instead they uses another queuing discipline for the
purpose of holding the packets.
Bascally, it seems as tho QoS is a technology built into linux that is distrbution-specific (Red-Hat, Ubunto, etc.) or is a set of principals for the construction of an application and forces QoS compliancy. Either Way, This QoS protocol is different than the TCP/IP QoS addon in Windows 2k and up, and therefore, should not affect your Acer advercely. In better terms In Windows 2K and up, QoS is an installed add on application for compliance under the TCP/IP protocol, and in Linux, QoS is just a set of Principles, Guidelines if you will. It’s up to the creater of the Distribution of the Linux version that you currently have whether to create a QoS compliance application. So, the guy that made your distribution of Linux would have to create a seperate QoS app, or someone else would have to make one for his distribution. I doubt he made one, but if he did, we would have to figure out what he named the application, unless its embedded into another program. In any Case, I do not think that is causing your problem. To humor me, is there any kind of device or hardware manager in your versoin of Linux? If so, navagate there and once you find your network card, right click on it and choose properties (or whatever the Linux equivalent is). Also, and this happens alot, some laptops you will have to disable one of the network adapters if you have 2 or more onboard. Sometimes Windows gets confused either by the DMA or by the memory addressing and will try and send the packets to the wrong card (this is right about where QoS Terminates your connection by the way). So in addition (and I sould have posted this yesterday, but was rushing) Disable QoS and the Network Card (Ill be calling these NIC’s from now on-Network Interface Card). To do this: Start/Control Panel/Network Connections/Right click what ever NIC you are not using. For all us WiFi People, we want to right click on the Realtek. Right click, choose Disable. Do the same to Re-enable it when you want to use it.
Some things that will improve the performance and speed of your laptop
1.) Remove Mcafee Its a resource hog. If that doesnt prompt you to do so, this will: The Mcafee that came with our laptops is for some reason, only a 60 day trial. Lamest thing I ever heard, but true. And what if you are not a member of Road Runner and therefore, don’t get that super cool CA security suite I was talking about the other day? I can help you with that. I know a very good antivirus and Firewall and spyware that are Free. Make sure to download these: The Antivirus is AVG (http://free.avg.com/download?prd=afe), the Firewall is Zone Alarm (one of my favorite firewall apps) Which Windows users will not need because Windows XP has built in firewall, but I anm including for the Linux users. (click zone alarm firewall download button all the way to the right) (http://www.zonealarm.com/store/content/company/products/znalm/freeDownload.jsp) The Free spyware removal tool for windows is Windows Defender (Microsoft.com) and Adaware (Lavasoft.com for Linux)
2.) Windows XP only – Start/Control Panel/System/Advanced/”Settings” Button under Performance/Click “Custom” button and UNcheck every box except for the very last one. Click “Apply” then “OK” then wait.
3.) If your videos and music are skipping alot in Windows Media Player, go to Winamp.com and Download Winamp Lite (Try to find one of their earlier versons if you can, the use hardly any resources, so they play very smooth!)
Cool stuff
I have a shell which will make your taskbar look and toolbars like very sleek and professional. Almost like Vista. It uses no resources so you will not have to suffer. I will Post pictures when I have Time. But I will tell you that you have a list of color choices for things like the Start Button the exit, fullsize, and minimize buttons, the progress indicator. Color options are blue, plum, orange, green, rose, and some more that i cant think of atm.
So, I am very tired, and If I missed anything again, Please, by all means, shoot me an email @ skramer11@tampabay.rr.com Just remind me who you are in the subject line of the email. Thanks and have a Great weekend! I live in Florida and this is the last week of beach weather so I will be at the beach after I finish packing so I may not get to your messages until Monday.
Steve
Steven Kramer wrote, on November 15th, 2008:
Bristol Chris, Michael Walsh, Morris Lee, Vossilus:
I just wanted to start out by thanking you guys for your comments, You all are very kind, and it is because of people like you, that I try my best to help out. And regarding the “youre welcome” and “i accept as thank you” comments that I made…I am sure you guys already know, but those were just jokes to lighten the mood and frustrations of the pc problems we face :I would never want to be that conceded. My greatest success has derived from some of my greatest failures. Now to business.
First off, This is for Michael Walsh: I would be honored to wear one of your Acer Guy T’s. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, and just for you and this community, I have quite a few gems I have come up with, specifically for our Acer Mini’s. I am sure you all will love them, as I put a lot of time into them. I also tailored some tricks specifically to some of the people on here, which I will try to neatly catagorize on here for you all.
Bristol Chris:
System restore will not fix network card issues and drivers, its designed to
restore corrupt regristry files and edits only.
“System Restore automatically tracks changes to your computer and creates restore points before major changes are to occur. To create a restore point, System Restore takes a full snapshot of the registry and some dynamic system files. For a list of
what file types are monitored and restored, see the MSDN article, Microsoft Windows XP System Restore.”
You would prolly have more luck pressing F8 after the P.O.S.T. and
choose “Last Known Good Configuration”
This is what is backed up on system restore and most of the comprehensive ones are only included in Vista:
Registry
Files in the Windows File Protection (Dllcache) folder
Local user profile
COM+ and WMI Databases
IIS Metabase
Specific file types monitored
So dont plan on using System Restore unless U specificcally need
to back up the Registry files – Most likely HKEY_LocalMachine_Hardare
Bristol Chris, do you have a desktop PC as well? If so, I can help you create a centeralized Folder between your desktop and your Acer Mini. That way, the next time you have to do the Acer Factory
Recovery but you dont want to lose any important files from your Acer, you can just simply copy those files to the folder, then copy them back to the Acer when you are done with the Recovery. I actually had to do this to my mini when i was creating Vista shell packs. I downloaded a bad virus, which disabled nearly everything except my wired network adapter on the mini I also had about 30gigs of files on the laptop that I really didnt want to lose so I copied them to the folder, then copied the files right back when I was done. Its really handy, and really ease to do. If you are interested, let me know
Your wireless adapter seems to have a hardware issue. Actually sounds
like a leaking Capacitor rather and over heating. Capacitors or “Caps” Store energy like
little batteries. When they leak, they intermittenly fail. When they fail, and to prevent
damaged to the rest of the board, that device gets shut down, then retried later behind the scenes
U ever had a TV that took a few times to actually stay on? Kinda the same principal.
So once it kicked back on and you manually clicked “Scan for new HArdware”, it checked the
Checksum of the devise and it came back as status “OK” So, to answer your question,
Yes, you could have infact clicked that before you did the recovery, and eventually it would have
came back up….The only thing would have been the timing (clicking it when the device came back up)
and probably a reboot.
I have heard of people on here have been suggesting Overheating causing the failure…This is
The Reason I am leaning towards the Power/Capacitor issue: When a device overheats, Its done
until it cools down – in MOST scenerios, the device is operational when the device cools
(without a windows reboot). In A Power/Cap issue, When the device goes, Time of failure is
usually the same, and time of success is very erratic, MOST OFTEN requiring a reboot.
I hoped this helped at all, I will be trying to find A mini with your same problem, so that
I can give you a 100% answer, as of now, with my fix, I cant get mine to fail.
A Very easy way to rule out an overheating issue is this (But do NOT do it to your mini):
1.) Start/Run/CMD/Ping yahoo.com -t
2.) You will start to see a bunch of numbers (ip addresses) and ping travel time (in miliseconds)
3.) This is good, this means that everything works.
4.) Put a blanket of the laptop (see why I told u not to do it to yours, u can do it, but no
more than twice, and u HAVE to pay attention:)
5.) Just wait till I buy another mini and do it to that one. I did to this with my current, but
it has no more issues so heat def was not the cause, i just wanted to see my failure temp
6.) NOW, once the blanket is over, if you start to see the Error “request timed out” THEN it seems that its
an overheating problem
7.) Take laptop from blanket and put it in fridge (but only for 2 minutes, any more could cause condensation…NOT good)
8.) If the “request timed out” error starts to go away, it is absolutely an overheating failure
But if you are under warranty, its best to just try and get them to replace yours. Your problem seems a little different than ours. In that respect…and if you do try this short trick, certainly do not tell Acer this, they will not cover the warranty if you tell themn that. It actually takes a lot more than that to damage them, Hell, at my work, we actually have to stick them in an oven for 24 hours and we cannot sell them unless the work in the oven through-out the entire duration. But please, let me know if you have a desktop pc and if you want me to show you how to create a share folder between the 2 and to map the folder….Doing a complete recovery on the laptop is a lot less frustrating when you know that you can keep all your files. This is also a great idea because, without a CD drive on the Mini, this trick will allow you to put all kinds of files, extremely large or small onto your Acer laptop that we cant do currently. In fact, If anyone wants to learn how to do this, let me know. Ok, next up is:
Vossilus
Hey, Im so sorry I didn’t post this in my first post, I thought I did…
In the meantime What exactly is the issue? I mean, I know its the wifi reciever/internet dropping out, but what are exactly the syptoms? Does it (internet connection) drop out always at the same time, or very different times, do you notice it happening when the battery is at a certain level, those kinds of things.
QoS for Linux -
The QoS support in linux consists of the following three basic building blocks, namely :
Queuing Discipline
Class Based queuing
Filters/Policers/Classifiers
The packets from the internet flow directly into the filter and from there they reach
the respective queuing discipline. The queuing discipline in turn moves the packets to
the classes. The main function of the classes is to hold the packets under it, which
makes the queuing disciplines to request the filters in order to identify which class
actually the packets belongs. These classes also does not hold the packets
permanently within them, but instead they uses another queuing discipline for the
purpose of holding the packets.
Bascally, it seems as tho QoS is a technology built into linux that is distrbution-specific (Red-Hat, Ubunto, etc.) or is a set of principals for the construction of an application and forces QoS compliancy. Either Way, This QoS protocol is different than the TCP/IP QoS addon in Windows 2k and up, and therefore, should not affect your Acer advercely. In better terms In Windows 2K and up, QoS is an installed add on application for compliance under the TCP/IP protocol, and in Linux, QoS is just a set of Principles, Guidelines if you will. It’s up to the creater of the Distribution of the Linux version that you currently have whether to create a QoS compliance application. So, the guy that made your distribution of Linux would have to create a seperate QoS app, or someone else would have to make one for his distribution. I doubt he made one, but if he did, we would have to figure out what he named the application, unless its embedded into another program. In any Case, I do not think that is causing your problem. To humor me, is there any kind of device or hardware manager in your versoin of Linux? If so, navagate there and once you find your network card, right click on it and choose properties (or whatever the Linux equivalent is). Also, and this happens alot, some laptops you will have to disable one of the network adapters if you have 2 or more onboard. Sometimes Windows gets confused either by the DMA or by the memory addressing and will try and send the packets to the wrong card (this is right about where QoS Terminates your connection by the way). So in addition (and I sould have posted this yesterday, but was rushing) Disable QoS and the Network Card (Ill be calling these NIC’s from now on-Network Interface Card). To do this: Start/Control Panel/Network Connections/Right click what ever NIC you are not using. For all us WiFi People, we want to right click on the Realtek. Right click, choose Disable. Do the same to Re-enable it when you want to use it.
Some things that will improve the performance and speed of your laptop
1.) Remove Mcafee Its a resource hog. If that doesnt prompt you to do so, this will: The Mcafee that came with our laptops is for some reason, only a 60 day trial. Lamest thing I ever heard, but true. And what if you are not a member of Road Runner and therefore, don’t get that super cool CA security suite I was talking about the other day? I can help you with that. I know a very good antivirus and Firewall and spyware that are Free. Make sure to download these: The Antivirus is AVG (http://free.avg.com/download?prd=afe), the Firewall is Zone Alarm (one of my favorite firewall apps) Which Windows users will not need because Windows XP has built in firewall, but I anm including for the Linux users. (click zone alarm firewall download button all the way to the right) (http://www.zonealarm.com/store/content/company/products/znalm/freeDownload.jsp) The Free spyware removal tool for windows is Windows Defender (Microsoft.com) and Adaware (Lavasoft.com for Linux)
2.) Windows XP only – Start/Control Panel/System/Advanced/”Settings” Button under Performance/Click “Custom” button and UNcheck every box except for the very last one. Click “Apply” then “OK” then wait.
3.) If your videos and music are skipping alot in Windows Media Player, go to Winamp.com and Download Winamp Lite (Try to find one of their earlier versons if you can, the use hardly any resources, so they play very smooth!)
Cool stuff
I have a shell which will make your taskbar look and toolbars like very sleek and professional. Almost like Vista. It uses no resources so you will not have to suffer. I will Post pictures when I have Time. But I will tell you that you have a list of color choices for things like the Start Button the exit, fullsize, and minimize buttons, the progress indicator. Color options are blue, plum, orange, green, rose, and some more that i cant think of atm.
So, I am very tired, and If I missed anything again, Please, by all means, shoot me an email @ skramer11@tampabay.rr.com Just remind me who you are in the subject line of the email. Thanks and have a Great weekend! I live in Florida and this is the last week of beach weather so I will be at the beach after I finish packing so I may not get to your messages until Monday. Also It is my 24th birthday in a few hours so thigs are about to get a lil hectic.
Enno wrote, on November 16th, 2008:
Have the same problem as everyone else (XP, wireless stops working, “Repair” fails to enable the card). Nothing (power save, drivers, QoS) works in the long run.
Steve Kramer wrote, on November 17th, 2008:
Where are you getting your drivers from? Acer Global, or Microsoft’s update? If you got them from Acer, try this: Disable both NICs then run Windows Update. Microsoft will then download and replace both current NIC drivers with Microsoft Signed drivers. This is good for a few reasons, 1. in the chance that your current driver was corrupt (most often caused by an improper shutdown, like a power surge or holding the laptops power button until it shuts down. If this particular driver was in use when the shutdown occured, most often it has been corrupt. 2. Microsoft forces this new driver to overwrite the existing driver, which doesnt always happen in a manual ddriver update. Even though the corrupted drivers file size is correct, its contents may not be. Make sense? If not, tell me and I will go more into detail about it. Now, after the drivers have been installed, reboot PC. When the laptop comes back up, re-enable the wireless card, BUT not the wired one. There is another post on here that lists the Microsoft update site, and I recommend doing it. Here is a “unique” problem I encountered with a Microsoft brand Wireless card that may help you: This was an 802.11g only card that is PCI that I installed on my desktop. With all the driver updates in the world, it only worked when it wanted. The only way I got it to work was to re-enable my onboard wired NIC and connect my wired NIC and wireless NIC to the same router. Once I estabolished a connection I ran IP config and then released my IP address. After that I disconnected the the wired card and then disabled it. The wireless card never had a problem again. So, try disableing them both and then run Windows Update, then reboot and reenable wireless card, leaving wired still disabled. Then try plugging both the wired and wireless card to the same router. Unplug both the router and modem (adsl, or cable) then plug them back in. When both boot back up, run ipconfig then try releasing your ip address, forcing your router to recreate the address.
I strongly urge you to get the driver from Windows Update because 3 out of 5 times, a poorly written driver or a corrupt driver is the cause.
The other 2 out of 5 is the hardware itself. I doubt its an over heating issue but this thing does get pretty toasty, so I could be wrong. Its more likely that a cap is leaking, which in turn means that something else is bad, or fell off. This is most likely a resistor, which limits current to the cap. If more current gets to the cap thats not supposed to, then the cap starts to go. This sounds most logical because: The Wifi card on this laptop uses less current than the motherboard itself. Since the wifi card is onboard, they use resistors to limit the current going to caps and other components that require less current. Now, at the manufacturing plant, they are supposed to perform a drop test to ensure that all the caps, resistors, and other components go through the wave solder machine and are soldered properly. This rarely happens, especially with all the layoffs, budget cuts, and new trainees. The point of the drop test is to drop the board and see if any components fall off due to improper solder time and temperature. If it passes through the wave solderer improperly soldered, then components will fall off, which is common. they then solder the pieces back on and retest. Now, if the drop test is not performed, then the pieces will fall off during shipping, and get stuck in the laptops casing. If you have tried everything, and the device still failes, then it sounds like a resistor fell off in the path that leads to a cap, causing intermittent failures on the devices that has the resistor and caps. If multiple reboots is the only thing that causes this device to work again, its most likely that this is your problem.
peter wrote, on November 17th, 2008:
Have the xp version. My wireless stops working but shows still connected. Then I try to repair but it wont. Then I reboot and the wireless option vanishes. Acer told me to unplug battery and adapter. Hold down power button 10 seconds. This resets the wifi hardware and gets electricity out. Then attach battery again and start up.
This fixes the problem but still comes back so I have to repeat again.
John wrote, on November 18th, 2008:
I recently purchased the Acer Aspire One with the 6 cell battery & XP. I had not tried the wireless before going on vacation. At the resort, I was able to connect to their wireless but the Aspire One took forever to open my browser (Firefox 3). Signal strength was 4 out of 5 bars. After about an hour of frustration, I decided to plug in the charger. Instant cure! Then I did a search for the Aspire One wireless problem & found this blog.
After reading all 200+ posts, I disabled the power saver mode (post #66) for the Atheros wireless adapter. Now the wireless works great without the charger connected.
BTW the wireless network adapter driver that I am using is 7.6.0.224. I did not update to the *.260.
I don’t have the excessive heat problems reported in some of the posts. I have installed the free program that allows user control of the Aspire’s cooling fan. You can adjust the fan on temp & the fan off temp. The temps are in degrees Celcius & the default on temp is set too high (78C). I have mine set at 50 deg on temp & 45 deg off temp, & it’s been working great. Here’s the link to the fan temp program:
http://www.computentsystems.de/aceraspireonefancontrol/
Thanks everyone for your posts.
Michelle wrote, on November 20th, 2008:
Ok, so I’m having gmail problems as well…
I can get on without issue on my home wireless. At school, gmail will not work with IE, firefox 3 or google chrome. It may load initially, but then stops working. Gmail lite works, but is unbelievably slow. No one else has an issue getting on gmail on this wireless.
Any ideas?!?
Mike wrote, on November 20th, 2008:
I fixed this on my computer!
Windows Update is seeing my adapter as the Atheros 5007 model when in fact it is the 5006, it automatically tries to update the driver and changes the model from 5006 to 5007 when it does so and that starts all my problems.
Download the driver from the Acer Website and extract the zip file. Then go to device manager and choose ‘Update Driver’ then don’t tell it to search, choose the ‘Let me choose’.. then again choose the manual option and point it to the .inf file and choose the ARS5006. LED is working and so is wifi
Mike wrote, on November 20th, 2008:
By the way, working on getting this fixed on the back out. Will follow up if I can later.
James Dellow wrote, on November 21st, 2008:
I think the Power Save option mentioned above is a sympton of the problem, but doesn’t fix it entirely. When the wifi ‘disappears’, before rebooting try selecting “Network Devices” in Device Manager and with the right mouse button click “Scan for hardware changes”. You might have to try it a few times but I was able to make it reappear again with this technique.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 21st, 2008:
Michelle, sounds like your school has scripts blocked, maybe one reason to protect the computers at school from running malicious apps thus the basic version of gmail will work.
to further narrow the problem, if gmail works in your home, then there should be nothing wrong with your laptop, unless some configuration were tempered.
Try looking for a site with scriptes enabled and try it at your school.
Michelle wrote, on November 21st, 2008:
Thanks for the advice… What do you mean when you say looking for a site with scriptes enabled??
That and my classmates can use gmail without issue on their laptops at the university, which makes me think it is something on my laptop.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 21st, 2008:
interesting, what verison do you have? Linux or Windows? for windows, install firefox, for linux, refer to your user manual to update to the latest firefox
Lou wrote, on November 22nd, 2008:
Mike (Post 208)
It seems your advice fixed my problem. I hope every body else tries this fix. I could not get my connection to stay on more than 15 minutes.
I changed the driver to the 5006 series and it dropped the connection after about 15 minutes, however after I rebooted, no more issues!!!!!
Thanks again Mike!!!
Michelle wrote, on November 23rd, 2008:
I have XP on it and do use firefox. Gmail doesn’t work at the university on firefox, chrome or IE.
However, it does work on other people’s laptops (they are not aspire one) on IE or firefox.
Michelle wrote, on November 23rd, 2008:
And it is the latest version of firefox…
Morris Lee wrote, on November 24th, 2008:
interesting, any firewal or antivirues you are running?
disable them temporary to test if the site works, if it does, check your filter settings.
Jordan M wrote, on November 24th, 2008:
I just want to chalk up another problem with an aspire one wifi. A few days after I got it XP just stopped recognizing the wifi card but then it started working again. Just started having the same problem again today. I’m just happy they included a LAN port on these so i can hard wire it in a pinch.
I’ll see if some of these fixes work and will post again soon with the results.
Jordan M wrote, on November 24th, 2008:
Just did a windows update, shutdown and rebooted (actually shut down the reboot, not a restart) and the wifi card is back on.
Now that windows can find it again, I checked the driver and it’s dated 5/20/08, so I plan on updating it, hopefully that keeps it working better.
Is there any word on which driver to use?
Michael P wrote, on November 24th, 2008:
Here is a possible solution (in danish, but the image should say it all) http://www.mininote.dk/?p=480
Michelle wrote, on November 25th, 2008:
I actually just uninstalled my antivirus / firewall and gmail still doesn’t work on it when I’m on the school’s network. Does it change anything if I told you I have to log in through VPN?
Morris Lee wrote, on November 25th, 2008:
are you logging on the same way your friends are?
Michelle wrote, on November 26th, 2008:
Yea, we all have to log in through VPN to get on the school’s wireless.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 26th, 2008:
Michelle, I can’t think of any other solutions, but try removing all your cookies and temporary files and passwords, if you can, put IE back to factory defaults.
also delete your pre-saved VPN connection profile, then log back on again.
Jordan M wrote, on November 30th, 2008:
so I tried installing the driver for the 5006X instead of the 5007. It worked for about a day with no problems, but now it just crapped out again.
Morris Lee wrote, on November 30th, 2008:
I been looking, apparently the EeePC 701 uses the same wireless adapter as aspire one, you can download the driver only package from my server here http://techdaily.uni.cc/aspireone/files/atheros.rar both 32 and 64 bit are included(even though Aspire One is not 64 bit capable, i don’t think eeepc is too, but I included it anyway) you need WinRAR to extract the driver and use windows driver wizard to install the driver, you need to uninstall all the current atheros drivers prior on installing it.
Christian wrote, on December 1st, 2008:
I have a theory. i have the linux version a110, i have replaced the preinstalled linpus with windows xp pro. first when i installed the machine it said that my wireless was working ok but i couldnt find any wireless networks even though i had the ap just a couple of feet from the acer. i installed like 3 different drivers. nothing helped. until i pushed the little wifi switch to the right of the keyboard, now it works flawlessly. the theory is that the wifi card maybe goes into a powersaving mode when running on battery. we have a acer laptop on work that does this. just hit the switch and it works again.
Patrick wrote, on December 1st, 2008:
Has anyone tried updating the BIOS? Does this make any difference?
Morris Lee wrote, on December 1st, 2008:
I updated mine, I just had to make sure my new battery will be regonized, but all the differences is that the brightness can not be as low as before, this is to solve some users having “stuttering” or “flashing” back light when running on battery with audio playing and lowest brightness level. if you don’t have the above problem, there is no need to update the machine, updating BIOS is a very dangerous thing to do.
Murkho wrote, on December 1st, 2008:
This is my first and last time buying an Acer. Customer service sucks. I have been on hold for 50 minutes after getting transferred from the 1st guy that answered after 20 minutes. He said i will have to get the wireless card replaced; apparently it is a known issue.
Wireless card has some fundamental problem.
Morris Lee wrote, on December 2nd, 2008:
funny how now I am experiencing the same problems, yesterday was the second time the wireless failed on me(ever since i got it) I was simply streaming video from my server(a Windows shared local video) and watching it on my bed, all the sudden it stopped. I can’t enable it using the switch, so I shutdown the laptop and boot it up again, wireless is working for for the rest of the video….(which is like 1 hour long)
Anyways, I switched to Intel 3945 now, I will be doing further testing with this one, see if it ever fails on me, if it does, then it is the machine’s problem, if not, then it is the wificard.
Palmtek wrote, on December 4th, 2008:
All,
I was having the same problem on my brand new Acer one and I think I found the problem. The problem with wireless Atheros wireless card settings where power saving mode was causing promlem. I went to wireless card configuration and turn off the power save mode. Bingo it works perfect and fast.
DaveC wrote, on December 4th, 2008:
Add another one to the score for “Power Save Mode”. Once I set that to “off” (from “Max”), I haven’t had any problems (cross fingers).
New driver didn’t help, and I was having the problem where it would completely disappear from devices intermittently (requiring constant shutdowns/restarts).
Jordan M wrote, on December 6th, 2008:
I changed the power save mode and all it did was prevent the laptop from going to sleep when I closed the lid. The WiFi still crapped out after a few hours.
I updated the drivers and all that. Didn’t help at all.
Murkho,
did Acer say if they were issuing a recall? Did they tell you how their warranty service works?
Morris Lee wrote, on December 6th, 2008:
At this moment, i don’t think acer is going to do a recall, since they are still trying to pin point the problem with the RMA machines.
Jeff wrote, on December 6th, 2008:
My ACER wireless is not working properly in the lounge at Heathrow T4. Other computers are connecting OK.
Annoyed. Very annoyed.
Warren wrote, on December 7th, 2008:
Hi, I’ve got an aspire one 150, the linux version. I love the OS but am having the exact same wireless connectivity problems as most other users. My connection will randomly drop and cannot be regained until the machine has been powered down completely.
I don’t have much faith in acer fixing this as I was locked in with very poor video drivers on my ferrari laptop for eternity. Hopefully they’ll see their netbook customers as more deserving.
Andrew wrote, on December 8th, 2008:
Hi – i have only scanned this blog quickly – so excuse me if i’ve missed the answer to this:
I have a normmal netgear wireless router – on which I select a security WEP key. Where on the Acer One can I enter this key!? Don’t tell me Acer forgot this fundamental security feature?
And there’s no auto upgrade – I’d expect, now I’m on the wired connection, to be auto-downloading loads of upgrades?! it’s a pants of a first impression.
Andrew
Willobie wrote, on December 10th, 2008:
I have a new acer aspire one which seems to be able to connect to every other network in the neighbourhood but will not connect to mine!
It can see the signal but when I enter the appropriate Network Key it goes through the motions but does not connect…
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 11th, 2008:
FIRST SORRY ABOUT MY ENGLISH, i am being reading several weeks this forum, i am from MEXICO and buy this acer one windows xp,, and still waiting for a solution in the wireless problem. man all you leave in USA return the product,,, the product is not working ass it should be. i am in MEXICO and cant do that that return the pc. i read in this forum that i guy wait about 50 minutes in line,,well i more than 2 hours in line,,, several days and finaly thay say ” THIS IS NOT A ACER PROBLEM, PROBABLY YOU HAVE A KIND OF VIRUS IN YOUR LAPTO”" cant believe you imagine? i bee doing a lot of change , that person post in this forum and donts work,,, last thing i do was power save mode but not work,,, I AM STILL WAITNG FOR A SOLUTION,,,finaly 3 points
1. NEVER EVER BUY A ACER PRODUCT 2. STILL WAITING FOR THE RIGHT SOLUTION 3. DONT DO THE CHANGES THAT SEVERAL GUYS POST IN THIS FORUM I DO ALL, AND STILL HAVING THE SAME WIRELESS PROBLEM,,, THANKS FOR READING………………………..still waiting…..
MustAspire wrote, on December 11th, 2008:
Here’s a quick solution AA1 Linpus’ wireless problem:
Set your wireless router’s encryption to WEP Shared 128 bit ASCII, enter a new 13 character password, now modify or create a new wireless profile on your AA1, make sure it’s WEP Shared then enter your 13 character password, it will be connected in no time
This could be the reason why it won’t connect to other wifi networks. I’m not sure with XP based AA1.
I got mine yesterday AA1 8GB SSD Linpus. It took me more than an hour to figure it out. And now it’s very stable
Happy wireless surfing!!!
Max Power wrote, on December 11th, 2008:
Hi all-
I have the Linux version of the AAO, and I’m having an odd issue with the wireless, and i haven’t seen a fix anywhere online…
Basically, my connection manager will show me connected at 100%, but in practice I will have no internet connectivity. Restarts and rescans don’t fix the problem. Resetting the modem and router don’t fix it, and my other laptop and desktop that use the wireless work fine.
One odd thing is that the AAO seems to work at least half the time upstairs next to my desktop, but when downstairs in the same room as the router, it rarely works.
I’m completely new to Linux, so any help fixing this will be greatly appreciated!
BlackMagic wrote, on December 11th, 2008:
Edangs, your solution is a miracle, as simple as it is! I had terrible problems with the WLAN, slow speed and drop outs. The client utility solved it!
Thanks!
(now lets fix the terrible touchpad…grrrr
BTW, apart from these 2 probs, I just love my A150 (WinXP, 1GB, 120GB).
Morris Lee wrote, on December 12th, 2008:
BlackMagic, what do you mean by the touchpad problem?
MZA wrote, on December 13th, 2008:
Hi all. I am from Malaysia, and I just bought AA1 for my wife this afternoon. It seems I am having wifi problem too. After I booted up the AA1, I could see the wireless network, but unable to surf. I ran the diagnostic, and it works, and able to surf. I shut down the AA1, and the same problem happen again. I ran the diagnostic again, it worked again. I tried to turned off and on the wirelss, the same problem happened again, I ran the diagnostic, it worked again. I found this blog after suspecting this problem is not new and hoping the solution is out there. I am downloading the atheros driver now. Thanks guys for very educational blogs.
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 13th, 2008:
me again,,,first sorry about my english as i told i am from Mexico,,, well i have notices,,,buy a ram memory 1 g to remove the 500 and up grade to 1.5 in memory,,, the seller send me a link of a video step to step to install,,,the memory i do it,,, i thing if is more memory RAM the problem with the wirells will solved,,, i do step to step as it was in the video,, and finaly insert the new ram memory works, fine for about 30 miunutes,,, then simple will not on the computer again,,,it was DEAD one friend my that repair pc told me….you broke the guareted acer you must give the pc to one autorize servies to up grade the memory ,,, acer will not give you servies becusae of the politics of acer.
…2 i will have to buy another laptop definilty no acer 3. wacth out if you one to upgrade the memory PLEASE DO IT IN A ACER SERVIES AUTORIZE BECUASE YOU WILL LOOSE THE GUARTEEDD………..thanks for reading
the motherborad was the problem with the up grade the momery,,, he show me about 5 more acer one with the same problem,,,the pc became dead with a up grade of the memory,,,,,,,,conclusion…1 i have no more acer one
Willobie wrote, on December 13th, 2008:
I still cannot connect to my own wireless network. I have orange broadband and use a Siemens Gigaset router. I currently have two other laptops connected wirelessly without problem.
The acer can see the network and the signal but when I put in the network key it doesn’t connect.
Morris Lee wrote, on December 13th, 2008:
@Willobie,
Try installing an updated driver from Acer website, and did you try with AC and without AC
Willobie wrote, on December 15th, 2008:
I’ve finally done it! The ‘network key’ it was requesting was in fact the security code from the bottom of the router – NOT the network key!
It works beautifully now!
Michael Walsh wrote, on December 15th, 2008:
Way to go Willobie.
Waaay too many hoops to jump through but we’re all happy you’re up and running now.
Morris Lee wrote, on December 16th, 2008:
@Willobie,
interesting, I never noticed a router use such a security, what I currently use is MAC filter, way more powerful the WEP or WPA I think, since if your MAC does not match, will not connect to router at all. But WPA and WEP can easily be brute force attacked yet MAC address are a lot more trouble to change.
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 17th, 2008:
its alive!!! its alive!!!,,,,my acer one is back!,,, it seem that is a several problem with bios 3014 at the moment to upgrade the ram makes the acer one dead,,,you can find all the step in this page http://ytuquelees.net/index.php?s=acer+bios
the bios origanal was the 3014 right know i have the 3009 and the pc is working fine,,,know i have not the wirreless problem,,, and running more fast with the 1.5 ram, with the bios 3014 original my wireless suck,,, but with the new bios in my pc 3009 is all fine,,,,,as i told sorry about my english i am mexican
BlackMagic wrote, on December 17th, 2008:
@Morris Lee: about the touchpad, I had some troubles with it but I found the “advanced settings” option to turn things off wich I am not used to.
BTW, I still had some troubles with the network speed, even with the client utility. Using the task manager in Windows I saw that no more than 15% of the network capacity was used when copying large files, and some dropouts occurred. So I tried playing around with the various channels of my access point. There are MAJOR differences between the various channels. Finally I set it to 13, now I get a network utilization, without dropouts, of 40%. Which is ok to me.
Morris Lee wrote, on December 17th, 2008:
@BlackMagic,
What do you mean by the advanced settings to turn off? are you in the mouse control panel in windows? or are you referring to the Fn+F7 key to disable/enablet he touchpad?
Peter wrote, on December 18th, 2008:
In terms of network security, WPA2 is really the only secure choice at the moment. Not even a mac address filter is really effective. If one wanted to a simple packet sniff could determine the mac address of a machine on the network and then spoof that mac adress.
So use the WPA2 encryption with a pre-shared key to secure your wireless network if you want it to actually be secure.
BlackMagic wrote, on December 19th, 2008:
@Morris: I mean:
Right-click the Synaptics Pointing Device icon in the task bar, select Properties -> Device settings. Then click the Settings button. Here you find all kinds of options.
@Peter: WPA is, depending on the devices you use, not always possible. My Pinnacle Soundbridge for instance, which I use for playing music in the living room, only supports WEP. There’s only one thing that’s safe: don’t use a wireless network. Which is what I do when setting up professional networks, as I do for 2 small law firms.
For private purposes, I protect using WEP and MAC address, along with server security of course. And I monitor the usage of my access point.
BlackMagic wrote, on December 19th, 2008:
@Peter: correction: the newer driver for my Pinnacle 1001 does support WPA…great!
Morris Lee wrote, on December 19th, 2008:
@BlackMagic,
Those are the advanced settings such as the touch sensitivity(different from mouse sensitivity), corner taps, virtual scrolling and many more. I find the corner tap is very useful as making one of the corner as a middle click, great for FF ro IE7 web browsing.
duo60 wrote, on December 21st, 2008:
it seems to me that problem of disconnected wifi
card is only if netbook runs on batteries and gets to sleep mode. I think to avoid this problem is needed to set up bateries management to not allowed to sleep our netbooks.
Maybe you’ve got other proposals
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 22nd, 2008:
hi me again,,,, i glad to say i find the correct way to solved wireles problem, here is the link http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=6437
and it says ¨Re: Wifi Problems Fixed!
by adamsully on Fri Nov 07, 2008 9:02 am
(Note: Don’t let this fix intimidate you. It is very simple, and takes less than 10 minutes to complete)
The process that I used:
1. Format a USB flash drive – I used an old 256MB drive that I had laying around. Right click on the icon of the drive after you plug it in. Choose “Format.” Make sure that you chose “FAT” as the file system, not “FAT32.”
2. Prepare the flash drive and install the new BIOS – Before you proceed you need to remove any fan control software that you have running. Many users have experienced serious problems after flashing their BIOS due to incompatible fan control programs. There are multiple solutions for controlling your fan with the new BIOS, but many of the old methods are not compatible with 3305. Also, there is another method for flashing the BIOS without a USB key but many users are reporting problems and Acer’s own release notes recommend using the USB method. Follow the instructions at http://macles.blogspot.com/2008/07/flashing-bios.html. The zip file that it is referring to in step 2 is at http://sites.google.com/site/maclesblogspotcom. Since you just formatted the USB stick there shouldn’t be any folders on it, so you should be extracting the files to the root directory. In step 3 when it says to “change to drive C:” it literally means type “C:” and press enter. Make sure that you have your laptop plugged in! You will receive an error message when attempting to open the BIOS if you are not on AC power.
3. Update the WLAN driver – Download the driver at http://www.badongo.com/file/11852092. This driver is for Windows XP only and not for Vista. Right click on “My Computer,” choose “Properties,” click on the “Hardware” tab, and go into “Device Manager.” Right Click on your Atheros WLAN card and choose “Update Driver.” Select “No, Not this time” and choose to search in the directory where you saved the new driver. Once you have finished, perform a restart and you should now have a trouble free wifi experience and hopefully restored confidence in your AAO.
Conclusions: I have found that installing the driver without the new BIOS just caused more problems. Additionally after installing the new BIOS, and without the new driver, I was still experiencing connection problems. If updating your BIOS and WLAN driver cause any problems on your machine both can be rolled back to their previous versions, but these are official releases from the manufacturers and since installing them I have not experienced a single hiccup in my connection. The most annoying thing that was happening before was that my wifi would have very low connectivity after waking from standby as well as when running off the battery. Both of those problems are gone and the power save option on the WLAN card is actually useful now. I can leave the option on in my house when I am never more than 15 feet from a router, and turn it off to get better reception on campus and in places like coffee shops with hotspots. In other words, my AAO now performs just like it should. Word.
Krakus wrote, on December 22nd, 2008:
Unfortunately, bad news for you. Your solution is not solving the problem, despite your success with your notebook. I did follow all steps as described and I still have the same problem. The connection is now dropping every couple of minutes. It make me think that this is a hardware problem rather than software.
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 22nd, 2008:
no, i have 28 hrs using and is okay fine no more wirelees problem please check that sure the bios 05 is upgrade
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 22nd, 2008:
i leave my acer one on with seeing movies on line and its all fine check again
JESUS MONTEMAYOR wrote, on December 23rd, 2008:
SORRY ABOUT MY ENGLISH I FROM MEXICO MORE THAN 30 HOURS EN MI ACER ONE IS WORKING FINE THE WIFI PROBLEM HAS SOLVED IN MY CASE WITH THE PROCEDU THAT I PUT ABOVE,,, WORKING WITH EXPLORER AND GOGLE CHROME ,,,WITH GOGLE CHROME WORKS MORE FAST,,,, REALY TRY THE PROCES TO CHANGE BIOS TO 3005 AND UPGRADE THE CONTROLES OF THE WLAN !!!
MikeJ wrote, on December 23rd, 2008:
My Acer Aspire 9410 would stay connected to my Netgear wireless router for a few minutes, maybe 10-15 at the most, then suddenly disconnect. Then it would reconnnect. This continued endlessly. Finally, I called Netgear and, it turns out, the problem was a known incompatability between the Netgear router and the Arris modem provided by Comcast. This was corrected by downloading a firmware upgrade for the router. High praise for Netgear tech support.
Krakus wrote, on December 23rd, 2008:
Bios 3305? Not the newer 3307? Are you sure?
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 23rd, 2008:
hi yes i sure upgrade de 3305 all the steps are above,,,please check when run with f2 that the bios 3005 is upgrade, and then upgrade the drivers of wlan and you will notices the change and wifi problem solved.
it still run fast the wireless with chrome of gogle,, with the explorer runs normal,,,,and you will see a lot of change of baterry with the new bios 2005 the battery is more opitimed,,, and you will have more time without ac power,,,only with the battery BUT MORE IMPORTANT THE WIFI PROBLEM SOLVED.
jesus montemayor wrote, on December 23rd, 2008:
you have to upgrade the 2 things, first the bios and then the wlan drivers,,,if you upgrade only the wlan will no solved the problem,,,and if you upgrade the bios but the wlan drivers no you will have the same wifi problem but if you upgrade the 2 you will notices the change and the good permormances of the laptop with the wifi as it should be.
ONE MORE THING I UPGRADE TO 1.5 RAM MEMORY AND WORKS FINE HERE IS THE LINK TO A TUTORIAL HOW TO UPGRADE THE MEMORY Y RECOMENED UP GRADE TO 1.5 AND USE A ACER AUTORIZE SERVIES TO UPGRADE THE RAM MEMORY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1MBuizr_s4
FELIZ NAVIDAD MERRY CHRISTMAS
Disgusted wrote, on December 27th, 2008:
Totally totally disappointed that this has been goin on since way b4 august and still going on, bought this for my daughter for christmas.. had plenty of wireless signal now has none.. im on a quest to figure it out.. and i have submitted a ticket to acer.. however i have one really P.O. 13 year old!(even when directly connected to the internet, says limited or no access.) Crap i say, CRAP!
Lazarus wrote, on December 27th, 2008:
All,
I was about to head up to ‘Currys Electrical Store’ here in the UK to get one of these units – Until I read the above posts!
Given the fact that the purpose of one of these units is to connect whilst travelling (the sole reason for me wanting to buy one too) and that they, so far, don’t generally even seem to do that without a huge amount of fuss then Acer seem to have failed with this machine.
A wise old lady used to say “Buy cheap – Pay twice”, hence I will not be purchasing one. I’d rather spend a bit more on the likes of a Samsung NC10 or a MSI Wind and get the connectivity I desire, when I desire it.
To all that have taken the time to post, thank you. It is sites like these that save people like me from ending up with ‘expensive bricks’ as someone mentioned.
I’d just best not tell the wife how much I’m going to spend if I’m not to get one of these!
-LaZ-
Rich Moore wrote, on December 29th, 2008:
I bought an Aspire One in August and noticed intermittent wireless problems detailed above, especially after hibernation. Because of this I went back and bought the Best-Buy 3 yr service. About 3 months after I bought the machine, it quit (would not get to the boot screen). I took it back to Best Buy and received it back two weeks later with a new motherboard with latest BIOS. Since then I have had no wireless drop-outs. My only issue is if I run the wireless driver in max power save mode on battery power.
Neil wrote, on January 2nd, 2009:
I had major problems with the wireless. It never worked. It would show that it was connected sometimes, but the actual connection was painfully slow then would drop to nothing. I called Acer support at 1-800-816-2237. They are open 7am to 9pm central time. There was zero wait time for a tech. Many people are talking of extreme fixes, but for $10 of UPS ground shipping, I’m sending it back to the factory to get it fixed (They pay for the return shipping). I was really mad until I called Acer. After talking to two different techs, they were really nice and eager to help. I asked both of them if this was a common problem and both said that it was not. This is probably a case of a very vocal minority. This is reflected by the very high ratings. So, my advice is to call Acer and if they can’t help, then send it back to the factory so they can worry about it. By the way, the only fix that they recommended was to turn the “power save mode” to “off” instead of “maximum”.
Here’s more info about that:
There’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click My Computer > Properties > Hardware tab > Device Manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > Properties > Advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.
The computer nerd in me wants to fix the problem, but my best advice is to let Acer worry about it. Read a book or plant a flower in the meantime…
I hope this helps.
Kathlene wrote, on January 2nd, 2009:
I bought two of these as Christmas presents, well in advance. So my options are limited for return and repair.
We have had these wifi problems with both machines.
jesus montemayor wrote, on January 3rd, 2009:
try the process that i put above maybe will help
B. Kelford wrote, on January 4th, 2009:
I just fixed the wireless after having combed forums and tried various fixes over the past few days. I’m not sure which of these is the exact fix, but my order of fixes was as follows:
installed updated WLAN driver for windows: http://support.acer-euro.com/drivers/notebook/as_one_150.html
installed windows updates bases on
RK’s comment:
http://forum.ncix.com/forums/index.php?mode=showthread&forum=105&threadid=1789612&pagenumber=1&msgcount=15&subpage=1&product_id=31428
then used edangs fix:
http://download.softpedia.ro/dl/67ac9654b5403783222de326e131d33a/48d9c0a1/300035242/drivers/OTHERS/atheros_c-u-5.2.0.125-2kxp.exe
In the intermittent of these fixes I had also disabled UPnP on the router and windows as well as the firewall settings on the router. I have since re-enabled these settings with no issue, and so I do not believe that they contributed to the problem.
Aaron wrote, on January 5th, 2009:
This is definitely a problem that’s at least semi-widespread. As others have described, my Acer drops wireless semi-regularly — the icon for the wireless connection just disappears and the computer acts as if it has no wireless card. A reboot and a rest usually fixes the problem temporarily, but this is of course completely unworkable. I’ve tried many of the solutions above with no success. I suggest all of us having this problem report it to Acer so they won’t be able to ignore it any longer. In the meantime, I’ll be sending my notebook back to the factory for repair.
Michael Walsh wrote, on January 5th, 2009:
@Aaron,
“I suggest all of us having this problem report it to Acer so they won’t be able to ignore it any longer.”
They know already. I’m making sure of that.
Guzman, Jose wrote, on January 6th, 2009:
Hi i work in Acer Chile, and it true we all know the wifi problem in the Acer One pc
Acer personal all around the world are working hard to solve the problem.
Almost done we are about 90% finished and will be in Acer site for download the patch file, in next days.
All the proces to download and open the file will be abailave in acer site.
Please check this forum in next days i will put the link to the download file in Acer site.
WS wrote, on January 6th, 2009:
The problem appears to be a “bug” in the Network Manager. The best fix seems (at least to me) to be updating the network manager to a newer version (via linux).
I have written out instructions here on how to do this. Though keep in mind that not all problems are caused by the same thing and updating software can sometimes break things. This worked will for me so here is the link. Use at your own risk and let me know if this solves your problem or suggestions: http://www.furtopia.org/files/acerone
WS wrote, on January 6th, 2009:
Opps wrong link this one works: http://www.furtopia.org/tools/acerone
Michael Walsh wrote, on January 6th, 2009:
@Jose – thank you for letting everyone know the progress you’re making and for posting the link when you have it.
Will it be available through Acer Pan America alone or worldwide (http://support.acer-euro.com/)?
@ WS – thanks again for your efforts and the link. This community is the greatest!
The Acer Guy » Blog Archive » Happy New Year, and Welcome! wrote, on January 7th, 2009:
[...] to acer, there seems to be a potential fix for the Wireless on the Linpus, it has been addressed here Many thanks to [...]
mitch wrote, on January 7th, 2009:
i have an acer aspire one and every time i log in it says that it cant load my personal profile and is putting me on a temp. profile and any changes made will be lost…..i jus didnt log off for awhile and then i logged me off and i lost everything on it and it dose it everytime i log off can someone help e-mail me
stilesaustin@yahoo.com
Mike from CT wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
It’s amazing that in two days this thread will be 5 months old (and the issue persisting even longer than that)! Will we finally have a solution? I’m sure a lot of people are still monitoring this thread waiting for the solution promised by Jose yesterday.
@Michael Walsh – Have you been able to obtain any more official communication or status on this issue? Any definitive news on where to obtain the fix?
Do you know if this patch will apply to Win XP, Linux or both?
Thanks. Anxiously waiting…
Guzman, Jose wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
the patch will be avabaile to xp and linux for sure
Mike from CT wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
@Jose – Thanks! We’re all counting on Acer to come through on this!
WS - WhiteShepherd wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
I’m a programmer by trade and tinker around with Windows and Linux. I’m an end user and not associated with Acer.
On the Linpus OS I found a bug in the network manager that could be fixed by updating. I took some update files and placed them into a .zip file (easier for windows users than a .gz file) and made a little .txt file to explain how-to install (download link on my server a few posts up).
To date after install of the update I’ve had no more network issues. Has this update/patch helped anyone else using Limpus with their network?
(I realize most users if they find a fix vanish to their daily lives but hoping for some feedback). I’d offer to look into windows issues too but I only have a Linpus Acer right now.
kikapoo wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
(COPY AND PASTE)
sorry about that since we have the same problem..
*newbie and not techie
the
I have an Acer Aspire One which runs Linux. It used to connect to my wireless network perfectly, however, when I booted it up today the wireless network adapter icon no longer shows up in the system tray. As a result I cannot use the internet! The network adapter light shines orange, is this normal? I have tried restarting the netbook and enabling and disabling the adapter (using the switch on the front) multiple times but the icon still will not display.
thanks a million ~
Bhagwant wrote, on January 8th, 2009:
I am starting to notice that the wireless connecctions drops off intermittently my Acer Aspire One since it did a live update a few days ago. I also seems to have lost access to Skype since the up date. Is there any advice out there for me.
Guzman, Jose wrote, on January 9th, 2009:
monday!!!
Ben wrote, on January 9th, 2009:
I had the same problem with my Acer Aspire One. 120GB HDD version with Linpus.
1st off it would not connect via Wifi.
I ran a ‘Live update’ using a network cable.
After update the Wifi worked but kept dropping out and also seemed abit ‘hit and miss’ when looking up domains.
Thanks to the WS for putting up this link to http://www.furtopia.org/tools/acerone/.
I downloaded the .zip, ran the file and now my Wifi seems alot better.
Thanks
Ben wrote, on January 9th, 2009:
opps… spoke too soon
Althou it is alot better
… on the downside, it seems to no longer save my wifi pass phrase??
Vicky wrote, on January 11th, 2009:
There is something very strange with the
aspire one. It’s always a surprise when I boot it up. Things seem to get lost. I’ve lost the Synaptics touch pad software. I reinstalled and updated but i lost it again. I lost my personal links in ie7 more than once. Experienced the WiFi problem. Turned off a couple items in msconfig/startup that mysteriously came back on. I am thinking of updating the bios but not sure if that’s a good idea. Anyone else experiencing these problems?
Morris Lee wrote, on January 11th, 2009:
@Vicky,
do you have anything like deepfreeze or ewf running? check your system restore settings.
Vicky wrote, on January 11th, 2009:
Hi Morris
I didn’t think about DeepFreeze or ewf. I’m more familar with DeepFreeze so I will install it. I’m sure things will be less frustrating after I do. You also mentioned System Restore. I did use it once to roll back some changes I thought might be playing some role in all this. Is there something else I should know about Sys Restore?
Do you have any idea what might be causing this? I’m clueless. Thanks
Morris Lee wrote, on January 11th, 2009:
@Vicky,
No no, don’t install either, they are programs which will lock the system statues, remove all the changes every time you reboot.
I suppose in this case, it is the system restore that is causing the problem. try disabling system restore, delete the entries of the restore points, enable System restore back, and create a new restore point.
Vicky wrote, on January 11th, 2009:
Thanks Morris, I certainly misunderstood how DeepFreeze works. I will try your suggestion with Sys Restore. Thanks again
Denis wrote, on January 13th, 2009:
Wireless internet connection would only work on AC power. Wireless signal was strong but could not connect to the internet or very intermitent. I followed the instructions at the top of the blog “…there’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager. ”
Works fine since then.
Josh wrote, on January 13th, 2009:
So…Monday has come and gone. Any update?
Michael Walsh wrote, on January 13th, 2009:
I’m on them Josh.
Have patience…
Christian wrote, on January 14th, 2009:
If only I had known about this issue beforehand!
Got a Acer One Inspire 150 with XP and 160GB HD today, was a very happy camper fiddling with it on the mains.
Then in the evening took it to the sofa on battery and wifi signal was still there (excellent signal strength) but browser would stop loading pages after 4-5 webpages max!
I am about to take it back to the shop tomorrow hoping they will refunde the money.
VICTOR wrote, on January 14th, 2009:
Ok, i am not a full satisfied Acer customer as well. I have two Acer laptops the Aspire 5920G which i bought a year ago having some memory problems and now i thought i should give Acer another try buying the ASPIRE ONE 150 XP SP3 160GB. I am not saying it’s a great little machine for its price but i am having problems with the WiFi as well. I must say that MY ASPIRE ONE HAD BIOS VERSION 3305 INSTALLED when i bought it 6 days ago and i updated IMMEDIATELY the Atheros Wireless Card drivers when i saw that i had connectivity problems at my house. At my house i have a Linksys router and after the driver update i connect without a problem for as long as i want. The problem is that i tried to connect at two other networks at my university (i was sitting 5 feet away from the router) and at my friend’s house (i placed the ASPIRE ONE next to the router one feet away). I must say that i have the POWER SAVE mode OFF.
So what are the conclusions here.
1. The bios 3305 and card driver update is somewhat the closest of a fix that i have read until today (except that other one that changes the card completely with an Intel one).
2. Acer is not the devil but i can say in my opinion that has the worst technical support from all the major computer companies especially after this incident. How can Acer and Toshiba sleep well FOR HALF A YEAR without fixing such a major problem on a laptop that is supposed to be something like the KING OF MOBILITY? How can they sell a problematic product for half a year without fixing it with a patch or something, a product that with common sense we can say was supposed to sell the most PIECES in the history of Personal Computing?
Neil wrote, on January 15th, 2009:
I received my Aspire One back from the factory repair for the wifi problem. See the January 2 post. It works great. I’m using it now. My advise still stands that you should call the support line and send it back to the factory for repairs. I received the laptop back 12 days after mailing it UPS Ground.
The paperwork that came back with the laptop said that they reloaded windows and updated the BIOS.
Good luck to everyone with problems.
Josh wrote, on January 16th, 2009:
@Michael Walsh
It’s not really a question of patience so much as it’s that I’m nearing the end of my return window for my unit. I’d love for there to be a definitive fix for this issue, because the device seems so great otherwise. But without something less vague to go on, I’m afraid I’m unwilling to hold onto the unit on faith.
A decade ago, I had time and energy for computing-as-hobby, and would have viewed this as an opportunity to hack and experiement and help find an answer, but these days I kind of just need it to work.
Josh wrote, on January 16th, 2009:
…of course there’s nothing like publically admitting you’ve become a cranky old man to make you want to hold back the ravages of time.
I decided to go ahead and throw the thing onto the workbench (by which I mean whatever flat surface is handy) and see if I can knock the rust off the old skills. Maybe I can contribute instead of just whining.
Looks like somewhere in my last attempt, I picked up the 5007/5006 driver confusion, so I’m going to see if that bears fruit.
Kent wrote, on January 17th, 2009:
Hi Everyone
Thanks for all your posts and many tips.
It took me some time to read everyone…
I am not a beginner with computers, am working as an IT-Technician in Sweden and have more than 15 years in the field. Have the Linux 8GB version of AA1 and all the recent auto updates installed.
I also have this problem with the WiFi on my Aspire one but my problem is i little different than most of the posts i read.
On my AA1 the led on wifi puts out and the connection drops off, as if there where no WiFi-card in the PC. If i reboot the PC the led lamp lights up and everything works again for a while.
I have tested many things and i have found a way to replicate the problem at will at least on my AA1.I noticed that my problem occurred using the AA1 while holding/moving it. When i put the pc on a table it worked with no interrupts for hours.If i lift up my AA1 2cm in the front and then drop to the table the led light stops and the problem is there.Only reboot helps.
Think there is a mechanical fault with the WiFi card or some component related to the flight mode function. The problem is activated in many different ways hibernation, shaking, network glitches etc,etc.
(If any of you have had problems with Wlan on DLink routers you know the frustration, replace them.)
I have tested with or without ac-power same problem. I have tested the tips on this blog, drivers update, bios upgrade etc etc the problem keeps coming back in different shapes and gets worse by time.
If i don’t force the problem the led-light works as it should and goes on/off with the switch and everything works just fine.
Think you have to replace the hardware related to the WiFi. That is why changing motherboard or wireless card is solving the problem for some of you.
I will return my AA1 to the store, have not the time or strength to try to convince ACER this is a real problem. Have already spent many hours trying to fix it and i am VERY DISSAPOINTED. Better to work and spend the money on something that works.
Thanks
)
Kent, Sweden
Rodolfo wrote, on January 17th, 2009:
Hi everybody,
I’ve bought an Acer Aspire One last year and been experiencing problems with the wireless connection. I have tried all of the suggestions mentioned here, and also installing other linux distros, but the wifi adapter suddenly desappears after some random time working.
It usually comes back after rebooting, although some times I had to reboot several times.
I figure that this should be a hardware related issue and will have to send my new mini-laptop to Acer’s technical department…
This has been a great inconvenience, since I use this laptop primarily to surf the web via wifi. Now I will have to wait for around a month without my laptop and see if they finally fix it or if they replace it.
Having seen Acer’s attitude towards this problem, I have decided that I will never buy an Acer laptop again… and I will also advice others not to buy them.
Josh wrote, on January 17th, 2009:
I would just like to say up front that I absolutely love my AA1, except for the wireless problem.
I require working internet. I’ve had networking issues with other computers as well, so I’ve learned how to fix my router, network settings, etc… so it is *not* my router. That being said, my AA1’s notification balloon pops up and says it detects one or more networks. However, when I right-click and try to view available networks, it says there are none. This is odd, because the wireless icon says it’s “acquiring network address” and hangs up there… it also lets me browse the internet, but only on my home network. It not only doesn’t see any other networks anywhere else, it won’t let me browse anywhere but at home. My linksys USB wireless seems to work just fine, which is what I’ve had to use if I am anywhere other than at home. I was thinking about updating the bios, but not only does ACER not seem to have instructions for doing so, I don’t want to run the risk of screwing up my AA1 any worse than it already is.
I have updated the Atheros driver three times. Once from Windows update, once from Acer, and once from Atheros, with no improvement whatsoever. I haven’t tried installing the ACU yet, because until now I hadn’t been able to find a viable download for it. I will try this next, but if that doesn’t work, I may try a mobile broadband card instead. I love my AA1 enough that I don’t want to return it… but it *is* very annoying that it doesn’t work “out of the box”. Also, I got my unit from Wal-Mart… the Wal-Mart website advertised that it was the 6-cell battery version with 120gb hard drive. BEWARE: The wal-mart version is NOT a 6-cell. On the plus side, it actually has a 160gb hard drive, but I would have rather had the extra battery life rather than the extra storage space.
Other than that and the wireless problems, this is a perfect little computer.
Khris wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
I’ve been following this thread since I bought the laptop. Sad to say but mine is going back tomorrow… it’s been 12 days and they have a 15 day return policy. I liked the idea of using the laptop to access my billing and CRM software on the go but to be honest I can’t deal with the wifi issue. The wifi consistantly drops and requires a repair (xp version).
Not jumping through hoops to make this work… I feel that my time is too valuble to be insalling and uninstalling drivers, callling acer, sending the unit in… ect.. ect.. Sold my dell D430 already but going back to my Dell E6400. Bigger but oh well, atleast it works.
Josh wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
I would also like to add that I’ve tried what I’ve tried so far on both battery and AC power.
And I am again looking for the Atheros wireless configuration utility… the last two downloads I tried, from this thread, have both been invalid.
If I can’t find a resolution over the weekend, I’ll be calling Acer Tuesday. I would try Monday, but it’s a “holiday”. I’ve been holding off on calling them because it’s been my experience with tech support(of any kind) that the only thing they really want is for you to reboot/power off-power on, etc… like there can’t possibly be a problem with their service(in the case of my ISP) or their brand of hardware.
On the plus side, my USB GPS works perfectly with the AA1, and I have had absolutely no problems with my sleep/hibernate functions. I’ve tweaked my XP processes, and the computer runs as smooth as butter, except for the damned WiFi.
I would also like to add that the AA1 runs A LOT better than my wife’s Compaq Presario C700. That piece of crap keeps deleting it’s firewall, anti-virus, and constantly ejects the CD drive whether or not there’s a disc in it… And that’s even after a full reformat and re-install of Vista(which I hate with a passion).
Josh A wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
(I’m the “cranky old” Josh above…changing my name to avoid multi-Josh confusion)
So I was indeed being hamstrung by the 5006/5007 driver detection issue, and my Aspire One is now incredibly stable. Emboldened by this, I’ve even gone ahead and raised the stakes and put the Windows 7 Beta on it. It runs great!
In the interest of contributing, here’s my recipe (not all steps may be necessary, but I’m not quite ready to go playing trial-and-error games to see which ones are)
For a clean Windows 7 install:
1) Ensure machine has most current BIOS from Acer’s site
2) Install Windows 7 as normal
3) While that’s running, go download the XP driver for the card reader.
4) Let Windows do a Windows Update run to try to get all your drivers
5) Go into Device Manager (Open the start menu and type “Device Manager” into the search box, it’ll take you right there)
6) You’ll probably see three “Base System Devices” showing up as being driverless. That’s the card reader. We’ll deal with them in a moment.
7) Look under your network devices for the Atheros Wireless. If you don’t see it, and instead see a generic “Ethernet Device”, then shut down completely and reboot, go back to step 5) and try again. Do this until you get the device showing up.
8)Right click on the Atheros entry and choose “Update Driver”.
9) Choose “Browse my computer…”
10) Choose “Let me pick…”
11) In the following screen, you *should* see a driver offered with 5006 in the name. If so, choose it. If not, then download the (XP) driver off Acer’s site, unzip it, come back to this screen and choose “Have Disk” and pick it from the downloaded drivers.
12) Once you have this driver set up, the wireless light should come on. If not, reboot.
13) If you’ve gotten wireless set up, now you can run the card reader installer you downloaded way back in step 3).
14) Reboot and everything should be good to do. Enjoy Windows 7.
Josh wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
Addendum:
I’ve noticed that some of you think it’s the router… and it may be on a limited case-by-case basis. However, if the problem *was* the router in most cases, then that means every single router is the problem since those of us who are having this issue have tried multipule WiFi hotspots. My AA1’s Atheros AR5007EG, for example, lets me browse the internet so long as I’m within range of my network, even though it says no wireless networks can be found. It also let me browse the internet at Ihop on the day I bought it, even though it said no networks were found… it won’t connect at Ihop anymore, and it cannot detect, will not connect, and will not let me browse at any of the other local hotspots(Library, Denny’s, the Mall, the movie store, etc). I may sound petty, but I got this nifty machine for mobility, not so I could just use it at my house, which is the only place it will connect or allow me to surf at all without using my Netgear WG111v3 Wireless USB adapter.
In addition to updating my XP to SP3, along with all other high-priority and some optional updates, I also completely un-installed the wireless before trying each of the three updated Atheros AR5007EG drivers I mentioned before. Each time, I completely powered down the AA1 and powered it back on to reboot. Each time, I also I went in and turned off the the “Power Save Mode”, which made no difference to the AR5007EG’s performance shortcomings. I also tried un-installing some of the extra options for the internet connections themselves, like the QoS Packet Scheduler. Using the AA1 on battery or AC power makes no difference either for other WiFi hotspots. I also tried restoring XP back to factory settings, with no luck. Then, I again tried each of the three AR5007EG’s driver updates(Windows/Acer/Atheros) with my AA1’s XP still at factory settings, with no luck. I have also tried using the wireless switch on the front of my AA1, each time I updated the drivers or XP… still no change. It has not been able to “see” any wireless networks, and will not connect to any but my home network.
Another thing to note is that I un-installed McAfee and most of the other “crapware”, which made the unit run smoother, but did nothing for the WiFi problem.
At this moment, the icon for my WiFi says it’s connected to MacNamaranet(my network), and it lets me browse the internet, as I said before. But clicking on “View Wireless Networks” brings up the familiar “No wireless networks were found within range”, even though it *is* connected to MY network and is letting me browse with both Firefox and InternetExploder(explorer). My router’s configuration page also “sees” the AA1, but for some reason the AR5007EG cannot “see” the network even though it’s connected to it. If it worked this way for all WiFi hotspots, it would be irritating but grudgingly acceptable. Unfortunately, it WON’T connect to any other WiFi hotspots that I’ve tried. My AA1 will connect to MY network whether on battery or AC… just no other networks.
I *am* rather confounded by this, as none of our other computers which use XP’s wireless configuration utility have had this issue, so I am hesitant to lay the blame on Microsoft… And I keep all our computers up to date on Windows Updates, both high-priority and optional, so it is not a “different version” issue. My wife’s aforementioned Compaq Presario C700 Laptop came with Vista, and even with all of it’s problems, the Windows wireless configuration utility works flawlessly. If it is a problem on Acer’s end, then it should be remedied immediately, with a recall notice to fix the flawed units free of charge. If it is a problem with the Atheros card itself, then either Acer or Atheros should take responsibility and fix the problem. It is a shame really, because this is a great little computer, and *not* voluntarily offering to fix the problem (whether it’s Acer’s or Atheros’s fault) is ruining the AA1’s reputation… it seems that whichever company *is* actually at fault would be concerned about losing customers.
Incidentally, the fan hum doesn’t bother me… I’d rather have a noisy fan than an overheated AA1.
Also, I tried “edang’s fix: http://download.softpedia.ro/dl/67ac9654b5403783222de326e131d33a/48d9c0a1/300035242/drivers/OTHERS/atheros_c-u-5.2.0.125-2kxp.exe“, because I thought the Client Utility *may* solve the problem, but I get the following error:
”
For the record, my AA1’s relevant specs are as follows:
Acer Aspire One series, Model# ZG5
System Bios Version – v0.3305
VGA Bios Version – Intel V1585
144 GB HDD, 3 cell battery(was advertised as a 6 cell)
System:
Microsoft Windows XP
Home Edition
Version 2002
Service Pack 3
Acer Incorporated
Intel(R) Atom(TM)
CPU N270 @ 1.60GHz
1.05 GHz, 0.98GB of RAM
My Atheros AR5007EG Wireless Network Adapter:
General:
Atheros AR5007EG Wireless Network Adapter #2
Device type – Network adapters
Manufacturer – Atheros
Location – PCI bus 3. device 0, function 0
(This device is working properly, etc.)
Use this device(enable)
Advanced:
802.11b Preamble – Long and Short
Map Registers – 256
MFP – Disable
Network Address – (not present)
Power Save Mode – Off
Power Save Policy (Background) – Legacy Power Save
Power Save Policy (Best Effort) – Legacy Power Save
Power Save Policy (Video) – Legacy Power Save
Power Save Policy (Voice) – Legacy Power Save
Radio On/Off – On
Scan Valid Interval – 60
Driver:
Driver Provider – Atheros
Driver Date – 5/20/2008
Driver Version – (currently) 7.6.0.224
Digital Signer – Microsoft Windows Hardware Compatibility Publ (the rest cuts off)
((The options that have “Legacy Power Save” do not have an “off” feature. The only options are “Legacy Power Save” and “WMM Power Save (UAPSD)”. Does it make a difference, since I have the “Power Save Mode” option set to “Off”?))
Josh wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
Addendum #2:
I forgot to put in the error message I get when I try to install the Atheros Client Utility:
“C:\ATHERO~1.EXE
The NTVDM CPU has encountered an illegal instruction.
CS:0daf IP:0186 OP:63 74 64 6f Choose ‘Close’ to terminate the appliation.”
Josh wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
Ok… I *very carefully* removed the keyboard and facecover/touchpad assembly so I could get to the WiFi card. Once I had the WiFi card out, I noticed the number doesn’t match. My computer says it’s an Atheros AR5007EG. The actual printing on the WiFi card says:
“IC: 4104A-AR5BXB63
FCC ID: PPD-AR5BXB63
Atheros AR5BXB63″
Does this card use a different driver than the AR5007EG, or is “AR5007EG” a “blanket term” for all Atheros cards beginning with “AR5″?
francesinho wrote, on January 18th, 2009:
Hi, i have the same problem what Josh wrote about. I’ve the AA1 since yesterday and only today i noticed this problem… i tried to install again drivers using eRecovery and first time i noticed again an orange led appearing on the wi-fi led area and i used again wifi connection. But now i can’t again because my connection suddenly disappeared, i had to connect again the lan-cable and now i’m looking for solutions. I need wi-fi connection tu use AA1, i re-started the computer, i installed drivers again but no led appeared anymore. Now what could i do? Should i start the entire eRecovery Management and take my pc back to the “origins”?
Waiting for fast answers, i send to you all special greetings from Italy!
Josh A wrote, on January 19th, 2009:
@Josh
The computer is wrong. The card in ths Aspire one is not a AR5007EG, and it is not a blanket term. The card in there is an AR5006X (or something like that, I’m away from the machine right now, but the important part is that the number should be 5006, not 5007).
The driver for the 5007 will cause the card to limp along only well enough for you to get frustrated with it. If you manually talk windows into using the 5006-series driver, I think you’ll see a vast improvement.
There are XP-based instructions for doing this further up in the thread. I posted Win 7 Beta instructions too.
Josh wrote, on January 19th, 2009:
Update:
I googled Atheros AR5BXB63 for a driver, and finally found it. Then I uninstalled the WiFi card, manually installed the Atheros AR5BXB63 driver, and finally found a working copy of the “Atheros Client Utility”. I believe it is the Toshiba version. So far, so good… I disabled Wireless Zero Configuration service, and have the ACU configuring the connection. It detected and connected to my network, but it was letting me browse the internet on my network before. Time for a real test… I drove around to every open WiFi hotspot I know of in the area, about 8 of them, and it detected and automatically connected to all but one of them, which was the local Ihop. I would say that if no other problems arise, this solved my version of the problem. I think Ihop has it set up somehow so you have to be inside the building for it to actually connect. The AA1 detected the network, but wouldn’t find a website. I didn’t have money for coffee with me, or I’d have gone inside and tested it more thoroughly. Since it was only Ihop’s connection my AA1 wouldn’t automatically connect to, I wasn’t too worried at that point.
The Atheros driver I used is the AR5BXB63 driver, and the client Utility is version 5.2.9.125-2kxp.
Moshiah wrote, on January 19th, 2009:
It seems that the new atheros driver 7.6.0.264 together with the new bios 3114 have solved all my problems.
jayne wrote, on January 20th, 2009:
http://www.furtopia.org/tools/acerone dont use this link since iv done this i cant connect to my internet and the messenger still doesnt work and network centre doesnt open anymore. im sick to death of this stupid thing now and it will be going back very soon. I would never advise someone to get the acer aspire one as its more trouble than its worth.
Dave wrote, on January 23rd, 2009:
My Aspire One recognizes my home network but cannot connect to it. I have 3 other computers in my house and the wireless works perfectly on all of them. As far as I can tell all the settings are the same. At work, it can connect, but not always. Also, I was recently in several marinas (each of which had several routers) with the laptop (as well as another laptop) and the One was only detecting about 2/3 of the signals that the other computer could. What’s more, the One was significantly slower than the other laptop when it did connect (About 90% slower). Another problem: one day, the netbook stopped detecting any routers. Disabling and reenabling the device in task manager cured the problem but I don’t know why it happened to begin with.
I haven’t tried any updates from Acer or Microsoft and I will try them, but I doubt they will work. Signal strength shouldn’t have anything to do with drivers and there are so few devices on this computer that there is no reason why connections should fail frequently from driver conflicts. Finally, the One seems to be incompatible with a large number of Linksys routers. In my eyes, the wifi for this computer is either defective or very poorly designed. I do not believe that this problem is afflicting a handful of Aspire Ones, I think it afflicts most. I believe most users simply don’t notice these problems or are lucky enough to be using routers that are highly compatible.
I’ve owned this computer for 3 weeks and both Acer and Future Shop have refused to take it back. They won’t even acknowledge that these problem exists even though online they are being listed very frequently. My advice: DO NOT PURCHASE THIS LAPTOP! WIFI IS NOT READY FOR MARKET AND ACER IS NOT STANDING BEHIND ITS PRODUCT!
David wrote, on January 24th, 2009:
So it’s only a vocal minority that has the problem.
Well I just have to add my voice to that tiny groundswell. What kind of a netbook can’t connect to the Internet via wireless?
That’s about as much use as a ceiling fan that cannot spin but is cool to the touch. Very helpful.
Craig wrote, on January 24th, 2009:
Wow…I finally resolved my Atheros problems by installing the version provided by Acer 7.6.0.224 instead of the newer version (by 3 months) provided by MS (7.6.0.260). With the MS driver installed, it was continuously dropping my connection (status would show connected, but Messenger kept having to reconnect). Working great every since installing the Acer version. Apparently, MS fucked it up.
erkme73 wrote, on January 24th, 2009:
@Craig… THANK YOU for your last post. That was EXACTLY what I needed. I tried everything on this long blog, and nothing worked until your post today. I just ‘downgraded’ the driver to the version you listed (can be found here ftp://ftp.work.acer-euro.com/notebook/aspire_one_150/driver/WLAN_Atheros_v7.6.0.224.zip)
I was just about to buy the Intel wireless card from eBay. You’re my Hero.
erkme73 wrote, on January 24th, 2009:
Woops… Looks like I provided the wrong link (had the wrong cut/paste)… Here is where I got my working version: http://files.laptopvideo2go.com/wlan/atheros_v7.6.0.224.exe
Thanks again!
erkme73 wrote, on January 25th, 2009:
My problem returned… seemed to work great so long as the laptop was on the charger. The power save settings are all disabled/off.
I have a Linksys WRT54G v2 that was flashed to Tomato V1.21. When I brought my other Aspire One home from work (for the first time ever), it too had connectivity issues. I brought a spare router home from work (Motorola-based Linksys WRT54G V2 knock-off from eBay) which has Tomato 1.23. When I added that to my network, and connected to its SSID, everything worked perfectly.
So, for some of you, it may be a router firmware/network card compatibility issue. Good luck. I’m happy now.
Greg wrote, on January 27th, 2009:
Usama’s advice worked flawlessly for me!
thanks so much for the solution to the wireless conectivity issue!
Usama Al-Farooq wrote, on September 23rd, 2008:
look back at his response…
Mel wrote, on January 27th, 2009:
Hi!!! I have a problem with my Aspire One AOA 150… How do i install programs with cd, when their isnt any cd room on it? I need it for my school work. Do anyone have any suggestions? Thanx
Morris Lee wrote, on January 27th, 2009:
@Mel,
What you need is a USB external DVD ROM, you can find it in local store.
HOWEVER, there are workarounds, usually, you can use another computer, copy the contents from the CD to a flash drive or a SD card, once it’s done copying, you can insert it into the aspire one and install it from there
Joseph wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@Jose and Michael,
Reading the comments in this blog I am seeing zero good alternatives to returning the Acer One and getting a full refund.
I think, like everyone else, I bought this netbook because of it’s size, foreseeing a way to simplify my life.
I have booted up the Acer One about 5-10 times in the past 3 weeks that I have owned it, and just now the wireless has sh#&-the-bed. I am running XP. My Acer One shows no external hardare light, and shows no OS indication that there is a wireless card.
I am not about to try anything here…until there is a sure-bet method of fixing this problem for good. As far as I can tell, everyone has tried something, posted that it works, and then re-posted later that it does not work. This whole “have you tried” BS is for people who spend their lives working with computers, which is probably 1% of those that own computers.
wE NEED A SURE-BET FIX FROM THE PROFESSIONALS AT ACER!
Jose and Michael, is there a sure-bet fix?
Thank you for your response!
Morris Lee wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@joseph,
There is a definite fix at this moment, swap the card to something else. I swapped mine to an intel 3945abg, it is working flawlessly. before, I only had 2 experiences of wireless problem, and that is over like a couple of month’s use of testing windows XP, Vista as well as the linpus.
Joseph wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@Morris
Will replacing the wireless card void the warranty on my Acer One? From everything that I have read on this blog, switching out the card makes sense…a hardware problem. The only problem that I foresee with your solution Morris is that, if my One has any more problems, Acer will not service under warranty once the unit has been opened up. Please tell me what you know about this….it would be nice to hear from Jose or Michael on this also but it sounds like they may be holding their tongues for political reasons.
Thanks for your response!
Morris Lee wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@Joseph,
humm.. good question, but I don’t think it would void it, since I was able to swap the HDD in Aspire 5920 without voiding anything, you are simply swapping the compatible device(I suppose it has to be acer made one, which mine is-pulled from a 5920) working flawlessly, even the wireless switch works.
still, my warranty is gone, it was a gift too, so i ain’t got any receipt, and I swapped to a 2.5HDD(did some soldering to the board)
Michael Daniel wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
This is definitely an overheating problem. I loose connectivity constantly, and at first I blamed the campus wi-fi network where I go to school but then I noticed that none of the other students were having this problem. I disabled the power saving but that didn’t seem to help much. I shut the computer down for about 10 mins while I went and had a smoke, came back and it connected fine for about an hour before the wi-fi crapped out again. I put the brick from the power cable under the back of it to raise the netbook up to allow air to circulate and it connected again in about 45 seconds. I started downloading the toshiba client utility and windows update drivers. When the toshiba client utility was at around 80% downloaded I took the brick out to see what would happen. It dropped connectivity a few mins later at around 97-98% downloaded. I wasn’t able to reconnect until I replaced the brick. Now it just went out again while I’m typing this. If the drivers and client utility doesn’t work I’m returning it tomorrow. I bought it less than a week ago.
I’m about to go to the computer lab on campus and blog to everybody I recommended this thing to that I made a terrible mistake and that they should avoid netbooks at all costs. I should have known better than to buy into a cheap fad like this.
Joseph wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@Michael Daniel
Oh man….Michael I hear you. “cheap fad” is true, although these little netbooks have been more popular than notebooks for the past 5 years in Japan…and Japan just gave their big award to Acer for the “Acer Aspire One” the smallest most simplified little computer with the fastest startup…blah..blah..blah…Oh look…there goes my wireless again…
Yes this is definetly an overheating problem…
This goes out to everyone out there….Top of the line Toshiba machines rule…I have used them for 10 years without any significant problems…I just fixed my 3.5 year old G20 Qosmio that was overheating… simply by a dab of oil on the fan shafts….and the machine gave me an on-screen warning to shut down due to overheating….what other computer diagnoses hardware problems like that? The fans had started making noises so the solution was simply…get rid of the friction that is making that noise. Oh look my wireless is working again…I must need to put another log on the fire…I have a promotional ad for Acer…”The New Aspire One…the coolest looking thermostat for your woodstove that you will find anywhere…
Man I really want to reach out and warn people about this machine….$400 worth of microtechnological junk!
Sorry…I just had to rant….I can’t afford this downtime…
FYI…check out the Toshiba Libretto U105 or U100….I should have followed my gut and spent the extra on that machine…even if it is used….
Morris Lee wrote, on January 28th, 2009:
@Joseph,
not necessary entirely a microtechnological “junk” except the wireless. once the card has been swapped out, everything works fine.
typical intel 3945 are about $20 on ebay, an intel 4965 wireless N is about $30-40, I think that is not a bad combination after I swapped mine out.
rofranco wrote, on January 29th, 2009:
Hi again,
I own a Linux powered AA1 that unfortunately had a problem with the wifi network card.
After trying every possible solution on earth (without touching the hardware, and without even thinking of installing any malware like Windows) I sent the laptop to Acer’s technical department.
I’m supposed to be receiving the laptop today and they told me that they had replaced the network card.
So definitely, there is a hardware problem on some Acer Aspire One wifi network cards.
This has nothing to do with the drivers that you can use… it’s a hardware problem that Acer is not making public.
For all this, I’m still convinced that Acer is not an alternative for a good/usable laptop.
Apart from that, I would also like to mention that the Linux OS variant that they include in the system has also been a mistake. The distro is based on Fedora, but is INCOMPATIBLE with it!!! And it doesn’t have support for several devices like 3G modems (which are a typical device that you can need with these laptops!!!)
So AA1 Linux users have only two options: be tied to Linpus and their unfrequent updates, or use a reliable Linux distro.
Erland wrote, on January 29th, 2009:
I solved my wireless problem (network manager broken, no wireless icon showing up in the notification area, no connection) on the Linpus Linux version of the AAO by just deleting the all the files in the folder
/home/user/.gconf/system/networking/connections
(copy and paste that line into the file manager to get there) and restarting the computer (all the necessary configuration files will be restored to default).
You can find out if this is the solution for you by trying to open Network Manager from the terminal (see http://the.taoofmac.com/media/Acer/Aspire%20One/AA1notes.html for instructions on accessing a terminal and much more handy stuff) – type the following command in the terminal: “nm-applet” and if you get an error and it says something about gconf and the “connections” folder above then that’s it.
Michael Walsh wrote, on January 29th, 2009:
@rofranco
I’m sorry to hear that you had problems but I’m not sure your post is exactly, erm, fair when you accuse Acer of “not making things public”.
I was in Acer tech support (Italy) yesterday and saw 10 Aspire One’s lined up and they just can’t replicate the wireless problem everyone’s having. They’re not denying it, they can’t copy it, which means it’s NOT a product-wide problem.
So what do they do in a case like yours? The decent thing and change your wireless card FOR ANOTHER IDENTICAL ONE.
That means that YOUR card was defective, NOT ALL THE CARDS.
It’s not as if they secretly changed yours for another one they know works in the hope that the millions and millions of other Aspire Ones out there don’t suddenly give up the wireless ghost.
As for the OS, it’s true, Linpus recently changed the FEDORA distro but Acer IS providing solutions and workarounds, albeit not as fast as you might like.
If you head over to http://www.acer.com/aspireone/support/files/connect.html you’ll find “Mobile Partner” which is “a 3G connection manager for Huawei 3G dongles”. I’ll hopefully get a video up soon showing this program in action.
Of course, everyone’s free to do what they want with their A1. Personally, I’m leaving mine just the way it is.
2XTURBO wrote, on January 30th, 2009:
the wifi on my wife’s Aspire One, 160GB XP stopped working today. I spent a few hours trying different fixes, even a complete restore but nothing helped. I have a good signal, but it won’t connect. Using the wire works fine, just no wireless. Is there a fix to this problem yet? I see it’s been known about for atleast 6 months.
And last poster, when will you say it is a system wide problem? When 50% of the cards malfunction? It is definitely a huge problem and Acer doesn’t even acknowledge there is one. You are a fool to think otherwise.
Their support website doesn’t even work properly, there is no way to download drivers. What kind of company is this?
Michael Walsh wrote, on January 30th, 2009:
@2XTURBO Where did you get that 50% number from? This post has 340 comments (including answers and advice) and ranks #1 in Google for “Aspire One wireless problem” so it’s not exactly invisible.
Even considering the ratio of posters to people with the problem, I think Acer’s sold a great deal more than that. Until they can successfully replicate it, or the numbers increase dramatically, then what’s the point of acknowledging the problem beyond the customer support centers?
When real problems arise – like the LunchApp ActiveX issue, they correct it almost in real time (that patch was up less than three days after it surfaced).
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I may be a fool, but at least my feet are on the ground.
Moshbox wrote, on January 31st, 2009:
I don’t have one yet, but I’ve been reading as much as I can before I take the plunge. With regards to the wireless issue, I wonder if anyone has tried changing the preample from ’short’ to ‘long’ on their router?
I understand this won’t help for roaming, and isn’t the fix for a card choice that clearly has QA issues.
I only mention it as I have two other small wifi devices w/ internal antenna’s (OQO Model2 & Nokia E71) which both gave me constant connectivity issues at home. On some random google tip I switched my router to use long preample and I’ve yet to have wifi issues with either device ever since.
Brian Smith wrote, on February 1st, 2009:
I have an Aspire One ZG5 running XP, at my weekend house I have the problem that many have described, I lose the wireless connection after a few minutes. Interestingly, I don’t have this issue in my primary home so apparently there are compatability issues that contribute to the issue. In my case the dropping of the internet connection definitely seemed to be related to the netbook hibernating.
The following very simple solution worked for me. I turned the network adapter power save mode to off and the problem stopped, here are the steps:
- click “Start”
- click “Control Panel”
- click “Classic View”
- doubleclick “System”
- select “Hardware” tab
- click “Device Manager” button
- click “+” to left of “network adapters”
- doubleclick “Atheros AR5007EG ….”
- click “Advanced” tab
- select “Power Save Mode”
- select “off”
- select “OK”
Wayne wrote, on February 1st, 2009:
I agree 110% – turning off power saving settings in the wireless makes all the difference in the world – not sure how much it will imapct battery life yet – anyone have any idea?
Soumen wrote, on February 2nd, 2009:
I have bought Aspire One, 160GB Linux. I have some queries:
[i] How do i compile C & java Program?
[ii] Who do i Connect internet?
[iii] How to install GNU C?
[iv] How to install Windows XP?
Morris Lee wrote, on February 2nd, 2009:
@Soumen,
you are looking forward to programming?
use the icon at the bottom right to connect to wireless, or just plug the cable in(RJ45) on the left side.
GNU C, they should provide the instructions, make sure it is for linux fedora(if it is a windows program, then check out wine)
installing XP requires an external USB CD-ROM, load the disk in there, press the start button, press F2 when the acer logo shows up, then change the first boot device to USB CD-ROM
armida valdez wrote, on February 2nd, 2009:
hi everyone, anyone out there who can help me with my problems?
i bought my acer aspire one notebook with linux system here in dubai, uae.
1.im using the messenger with webcam its ok but i cant make a voice call my family are using ym and me also. 2.then i try to download skype on my laptop i saw it was successfully downloaded it but how come i dont see it my desktop. i want to see it also with an icon but i forgot my password (the one i enter do?
3. im using a usb adapter so that i can get more signal inside my room coz im only using a signal from another rooms internet connection but i dont work, what will i do with it?
please help me im really gettin wsorried and confused. thanx and regards in advance.
Morris Lee wrote, on February 3rd, 2009:
@Armida,
for skype, you can install skype from the drop down list here
http://support.acer-euro.com/drivers/notebook/as_one_110.html
if that failes, you can try this
http://www.theacerguy.com/2008/07/getting-skype-on-the-aspire-one/
Joseph wrote, on February 4th, 2009:
@All
Here is the response from Acer Technical Support I recieved for a resolution to my wireless problem. I will keep you all updated as to the results of this fix. -Joseph
Response (Camron B.) – 01/28/2009 08:12 PM
Dear Joseph,
Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you.
In Windows there is a power mode setting for the wireless driver that may help this issue. Please go to Control Panel–>System–>click the Hardware tab and select Device Manager. Click the + next to Network Adapters and double click on the Atheros wireless Network Adapter. Click on the Advanced tab, select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and change the Value on the right to Off. The default setting is Maximum, which will cause issues such as you describe.
Respectfully,
Acer America
Online Technical Support
brian wrote, on February 5th, 2009:
Hi,
Thanks for keeping the discussion going.
My experience with the Aspire one has been that of continual let-down. The specs in this laptop are great for the price, but I’ve only had trouble with it.
The first time I sent my One in, it was for wirless problems (corrupt packets, causing sftp to fail). Acer made me ship it in the first time, and they replaced the motherboard and wifi card, claiming a liquid spill was the problem. I was charged $200 US. It did not fix the wireless problem and they wiped my linux install and data, replacing it with their in-house Linpus Linux Lite (I was running Fedora 10).
The second time, after much arguing with their service reps on the phone, they agreed to pay to have it shipped in. This time they just wiped my Fedora install and data again, and did nothing to fix the issue.
So here I am, out 200 extra dollars, with the same malfunctioning laptop.
Thanks Acer, I’ll never be buying from you again.
Brian
jo wrote, on February 6th, 2009:
FIXING THE SETTING HERE SOLVED MY PROBLEM QUICKLY AND EASILY – THANK YOU ACER GUY!!
WHY ON EARTH WOULD THE DEFAULT SETTING BE SET TO WHAT IT WAS??? MAKES THE WIFI USELESS!!
SEE BELOW FOR THIS SIMPLE FIX THAT SOLVED EVERYTHING FOR ME FROM ACER GUY – IT’S ALSO AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE – BEST ADVICE EVER
UPDATE: Found this on the web. worth a try no?
…there’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.
veetek wrote, on February 6th, 2009:
ive replaced atheros with intel 4965
and it works like a charm
the only problem ive got is that the intel doesnt want to inject under backtrack3
does anyone have a solution for that ?
Morris Lee wrote, on February 7th, 2009:
@veetek,
Why are you required to use injection? this site is not intended for any hacking. besides, i don’t think any of the new intel cards are capable of hacking (not very good support I recall)
please do not discuss on this matter.
james braselton wrote, on February 8th, 2009:
HI THERE YOU SAY YOU HAVE PROBLEMS WITH ACER ONE RUNNING LINUX AND ALSO ACER ONE HAS PROBLEMS WITH WINDOWS HAVE HAD PROBELEMS IN THE PAST WITH IBM GATE WAY AND DELL SOO I WENT TOO SWITCH TOO MACS COMPUETS OUR FAMILLY USES MACS IN FACT I AM GOING TOO BUY A SSD SOLID STATE MACBOOK SOO I WONT HAVE HARD DRIVE FAILUERS I HOPE THAT HELPS OUT GOOD LOOK.
Morris Lee wrote, on February 8th, 2009:
@james braselton,
Can you please not use caps for your entire paragraph, rather hard to read. Macs, they work, sure, but not as compatible as Windows softwares. yes, you can use bootcamp and so….. but aspire one is like 1/4 price of macbook air, yet smaller and more versatile, where as the windows version is more familiar to majorities of consumers, which one would the consumer choose?
By the way, that is like no help at all. SSD’s have lifespans as well, please go read some articles about SSD’s write cycles, it is significantly less then a normal HDD does. SSD is still early at stage and there is no question about it.
Justin R. wrote, on February 9th, 2009:
I just returned my Aspire One to the retail store because of the wireless issue that so many on this forum talk about. Nothing fixed my computer; I tried it all. Does anybody know if the wireless card in the old 8 GB SSD machines is the same as the newer 120 or 160 (?)hard drive models? I assume the machines are the same. But, perhaps, Acer has picked up on this problem. Thanks!
Morris Lee wrote, on February 9th, 2009:
@Justin R.
the wireless adapter on the SSD ones are the same card, but you never know if it is the harddrive talking too much power, then the wireless is not getting enough
Don wrote, on February 11th, 2009:
Acer 1, well I had mine one week and three days.
it runs xp. It’s going back to the store and not for an exchange…. what a pile of junk. I had to flash the bios – it would not boot, locks up all the time. hard drive is starting to make a ” clicking” sound
I’m a tech for over 15 years and I know when the drive is starting to click, it will fail soon.
So all i have to say – JUNK IT!
Malik wrote, on February 13th, 2009:
Help I bought my Aspire One Acer A150 yesterday and what I thought was a good PC, it turned out that I have spend all day today trying to get wirless working. It really sucks as I am unable to connect wirelessly even by having the Acer next to my Router. All my other PC’s etc work fine on wireless network. Am very disappointed and will have to take this back and get refund!
Ron wrote, on February 13th, 2009:
I bought my Aspire one in November and have had an issue with connections on metro transit. It works fine everywhere else but on the bus trip to and from work. Have tried many updates and driver installs with no results. Then I read this thread and tried the power save off fix and TADA!! it is fixed. Thanks Acerguy!!
aien wrote, on February 16th, 2009:
hello, i am from the philippines. my sister has an acer aspire one with windows xp home. for a week now, we are trying to make her wifi work. status is connected, signal is excellent but we cannot browse any webpage or use IM. i thought that it fails due to the router configuration but later realized that is not the case since i tried connecting my asus eepc and it worked (eepc wifi connection has been working flawlessly for three days now). i spent hours reading this blog and tried some of the things posted here including: turning off the power saving mode, updating the driver from the acer official website, unchecking QoS Packet scheduler and keep restarting the system repeatedly. im hesitant of doing some of the other things listed here like the bios update since im not sure if it will void the warranty of sister’s aspire one. please help. thanks.
danielle wrote, on February 18th, 2009:
hi,
im currently in mexico on research and my aspire one will not boot. when i power it on, the screen is black and it doesnt respond to basic key strokes (ie, indicator light for caps does not come on). ive heard of some shadiness with the acer depot center in mexico city (which is quite far from where im at). any advice about how to fix a boot problem without bringing it to a service center?
mikeB. wrote, on February 18th, 2009:
I’ve had my ACER aspire one for a few months now, and it has worked perfectly up until about a week ago. it connects via wifi but it is VERY slow, under 100 kbps when doing a speed test. my other laptop is about 5000 kbps and my desktop is over 7000 kbps. So something is going on with the wireless connection on my acer. I guess i will have to take the time to read through all these posts about wifi problems
Morris Lee wrote, on February 18th, 2009:
@aien,
try looking through the wireless router settings and look for wireless channel, put it to channel 6.
@Danielle,
either your BIOS is corrupted, give this a try http://macles.blogspot.com/2008/08/acer-aspire-one-bios-recovery.html
Vietnamatta wrote, on February 18th, 2009:
If the, in-built I’m assuming, wireless card is such a problem, why can’t you just buy a wireless USB separately, surely that should solve the problem?
Morris Lee wrote, on February 19th, 2009:
@Vietnamatta,
When a customer buys a product, they like it to work, not to spend more money on it. buying a wifi dongle will result in a more bulky laptop, something sticking out all the time is easy to get bumped on, thus breaking the USB port
erkme73 wrote, on February 20th, 2009:
Well, looks like all the different drivers for the Atheros did not work for my 3-cell 120GB AAO. I bit the bullet and bought the intel card from ebay (new $15 incl shipping). But after installing the drivers and software, I get a yellow (!) and ‘cannot start (code 10) error. I contacted the seller, thinking it maybe defective
Has anyone else seen this after a swap?
Morris Lee wrote, on February 20th, 2009:
@erkme73,
I had an intel card in handy, so I swapped to it(since there “appears” to have problems with the original card) but mine is working just fine
my card is an intel 3945ABG.
erkme73 wrote, on February 21st, 2009:
That’s the same card I have. yet, I get the code 10 error. The seller said that he does not provide tech support, and all his cards come “from the same batch” so he suggested I get a refund. Strike.
Morris Lee wrote, on February 21st, 2009:
@erkme73,
maybe you should try for an exchange?
aien wrote, on February 22nd, 2009:
WIFI NOW WORKS
to all who posted suggestions, thank you. i first restored my sister’s aspire one to its default settings then tried again the suggestions written in here plus the new suggestions since my last comment (also made a restart of the unit’s connection to wifi after every suggestion then finally restarting the system–don’t know if restarting made a difference. anyway, it has been working for 2 days now without slowness or network interruption). there’s no need for me to bring it back where we bought it. thanks again.
michaelk wrote, on February 23rd, 2009:
Just to add my 2-cents, I bought four D-150’s with XP Home, 6-cell batteries and 16gig HD. They’re for a sales application at tradeshows. All four exibited the same issues noted above. I’ve tried all of the ‘fixes’ noted, with no improvement.
I did, however, find two things that worked for me. Your mileage may vary… First, on one machine, I upped the memory to 2gigs, and loaded a copy of Vista Ultimate I had lying around. (Thanks, Microsoft!) It works beautifully.
On the other threee computers, I set an acess point to ‘open’ (no encryption, no security, just an SSID) Again, it works beautifully, even after standby… No, I don’t advocate open access points, but since, in my case, wifi will be used for print only, and nothing will be shared, I’m probably OK with it until Acer gets a fix.
Johnf wrote, on February 25th, 2009:
Hi, just to add- I had some wireless problems too (aa1, linux) but i’m pretty sure it was down to overheating. So i don’t have the aa1 on my lap or a duvet, but on a surface where there’s air circulation at the vents on the front. no problems since … love the machine!
thanks to everyone who puts in the effort to make stuff better for the rest of us …
pali wrote, on February 26th, 2009:
hey acer guy,
I brought acer aspire one about one month ago. The problem is the right tab is not function anymore. At the synaptics device’s icon, it showed the right tab is always click, even tough i didn’t do it.
I have try to reinstall the software, remove my batteries for few hours before plug in back, but it doesn’t work. Can you help me with this?
Thanks!
Deb wrote, on February 27th, 2009:
I just purchased the new 10.1 Acer Aspire and it is a great computer except for this darned network card AR5007EG. From the very start I have had problems connecting via WIFI. I can connect via cable. I have tried just about everything here. Rebooted both modem, router, and netbook numerous times. Downloaded the latest driver just released yesterday from Acer. Not to mention changed the power settings on the network adapter. I keep receiving an “Acquiring Network Address” and that’s it, nothing more. There aren’t too many unlocked networks in the neighborhood and the weather is too awful to go to a “hotspot” or the library. I have just about had it with this computer! I am just about to contact Amazon to return it. My three year old Gateway has no problems connecting. I don’t know what the problem is. The card can see my WIFI router and others in the area, but I just can’t get beyond the acquiring network address part, I have tried repairing as well and that doesn’t work either.
I can’t afford to throw $300 away on something I can’t use to access WIFI for school. Please, are there any other suggestions? Thank you.
Frantisek wrote, on February 27th, 2009:
Supposingly you do have updated driver (it is a tricky question which one is the best, e.g. I am using not the latest one, but it works for me) and no filters set up on the router you are not aware of which could block the access of the computer to your network, you could try to set up your network as open (no WEP, no WPA), to connect the computer an only then when the network address is acquired to change your setting to a secure network. This trick works with many routers – worth to try.
Frantisek.
Jeff wrote, on February 27th, 2009:
I was having the strangest Internet issue. Wireless connection worked fine when the machine was plugged in. But when Acer Aspire One was running on battery power alone, in exact same location with exact same ‘excellent’ Internet signal, I was not connecting.
I called Acer Customer Support. They wanted me to send the machine in for service. Yikes.
Then, I read this tip above:
“UPDATE: Found this on the web. worth a try no? There’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.”
Followed the steps, unplugged the power cord, and tried to connect on battery power alone. Yay! It worked, it worked, it worked.
Thanks.
jo wrote, on February 28th, 2009:
ok yes the above does work – only problem is the unit keeps defaulting back to the “preamble” setting during the course of a session – i am finding i have to go back every 15 minutes or so and once again reset the adaptor to powersave mode – off
anyone have any ideas how to disable it from continually defaulting back?
also these little aspires over heat really quickly and seem to then the touchpad starts going really crazy
any help with these issues would be most appreciated
Morris Lee wrote, on March 1st, 2009:
@jo,
I would try removing any software for notebook control you have installed, stuff like Notebook Hardware Control(NHC) might change those settings for you.
as for overheat, there is nothing else other then cleaning out the fan and have a good ventilation while using it.
lin wrote, on March 2nd, 2009:
Is there a consensus about this issue?
I have an aa1 with Linux, and the connectivity issue is annoying. It shows the wifi as connected with excellent signal, but the browser will not connect. All connectivity is lost, even through the ethernet cable.
Ship it back to amazon / acer?
lin wrote, on March 2nd, 2009:
And for the record, my aa1 has this problem from startup. Overheating is not an issue in this instance.
J wrote, on March 2nd, 2009:
As far as I can tell, there are several different problems with the Acer wifi.
After all my connection problems, I tried upgrading my Linux model to the latest Network Centre. This works fine until the machine goes into standby. Then I have to completely reboot the machine to get Network Centre again. Oh, and it won’t store passwords any more.
If you have just bought it, I would demand a refund Lin. This will save you months of hassle.
jo wrote, on March 2nd, 2009:
thanks all – perhaps i will consider returning it…
morris – i have not installed any notebook hardware control software that i know of – unless something like that might have gone in by way of a windows ‘priority update’ or
if it came with something like that already installed in it?
is there a way i can check to see if i have any of that kind of software installed?
should i just do a search of my hard drive for notebook hardware control?
also it is windows xp not linux – don’t know if that makes any difference –
as for overheating, it is brand new? starts to feel really hot after using for about an hour – maybe this is normal?
thanks for your help
jo
lin wrote, on March 3rd, 2009:
Acer support helpline gives me two options:
1. Speak to Acer software support at £.50 per minute.
2. Send the unit in for repair. This option is free unless it is a software issue.
I don’t want to pay for either option, but do I take the risk of paying for software repair in the event that it is not hardware related, and send the unit in?
I have already tried:
1. Flashing the Bios
2. Installing Fedora 10 i686 xfce
3. Re-installing factory Linpus from ISO recovery.
None of these software fixes resolved the connectivity issue. The network connection shows full connection but will connect the browser/e-mail/etc. It seems to work in the mornings, but not in the evenings.
Do I risk option 2, and giving acer more hard earned money?
erkme73 wrote, on March 7th, 2009:
While I can’t blame anyone for not reading this entire thread, I do find it amusing to see every 10th post or so someone new has a revelation about turning off the power-saving mode – as though they are the first person to discover it. People are so predictable.
JG_Clement wrote, on March 9th, 2009:
Chalk me up as another A150 user having flaky wireless performance.
I have found one thing for sure that works.
If I have a KEY string longer than 8 characters, the Acer will not resolve an IP.
At 8 characters, it works everytime.
My usual 13 character, was a no go for the Acer, but was fine for everything else on my system… a PS3 and a Wii.
I have upgraded the driver, downgraded the driver. Re-installed factory settings from the recovery partition. All for nothing…
The KEY length was the culprit for me.
M. Anthony wrote, on March 13th, 2009:
Thanks!
Turning off the power-saving mode was all that was needed. Quick and clean!
JG_Clement wrote, on March 13th, 2009:
oh..god…
Scratch that.. does not work this week.
Ponderous man.. friggin ponderous.
Morris Lee wrote, on March 13th, 2009:
@JG_Clement,
sorry to hear that it is not working again, I actually use Mac filter and disabled SSID broadcasting for my wireless(too lazy to type in the wifi password each time I reinstall OS XD)
you should try that.
JG_Clement wrote, on March 13th, 2009:
I think I now own a $400 shiny blue serving tray… because it sure isn’t a “NETBOOK”
JG_Clement wrote, on March 13th, 2009:
Yah ok Morris do you REALLY think that is what we should do to get this working?
How ’bout then I leave my front door open and my car running in the driveway, place my wallet on the sidewalk and tattoo my social insurance number on my forehead…
Just for this frigging thing that doesn’t do what it’s supposed to be BUILT FOR?
I wish this “computer” had a nutsack so I could kick it!
Ruby wrote, on March 17th, 2009:
Help,
I have an acer aspie one linpus linux, the connection manager box has gone, no connection, wireless icon gone, cannot open network center. How do i get it back.
Thanks
Ruby
Anna wrote, on March 18th, 2009:
Hey Ruby,
I hope this works!! If you look at the bottom of your screen and on the far left at the bottom you’ll see an arrow…well if you click on that you icons should return. I f this is the same thing that happened to me when I first got mine too and I didn’t what, what!!?? It is just a way to hide that bar. I hope this worked for you.
Annastacia
NewJohnny wrote, on March 18th, 2009:
I have had the wireless adapter disappear from Device Manager three times so far. All three were due to lack of ventilation. The difference for me is I’m running Vista. I think that confirms overheating as a cause (certainly not the only cause).
Ruby wrote, on March 18th, 2009:
Hi,
thanks for reply but that is not the problem, i had it and now it’s gone all the other icons are there, and when i hover over network center in settings i also get nothing. I don’t want to use the recovery disk and was looking for another option. It happened after the system froze for no reason, and have heard this is a common problem with acer aspire one, what a piece of S**t this thing is, i’ve only had it 11 weeks and now i cn’t conncet tio wireless or dial up because the connection manager has gone. Any ideas morris lea? you helped me get skype before …….. thanks
Morris Lee wrote, on March 18th, 2009:
@Ruby,
The nm-applet is the network icon, but it seems like your network-manager is completely disabled or not running at all.
nm-applet is used on most linux distro, someone had the icon disappeared, you can try either these lines:
sudo nm-applet
or
sudo NetworkManager –no-daemon
made it appear again, give that a try, if that fails, means your network-manager is not working. To restart it, try this:
sudo NetworkManager restart
give this a try as well
sudo NetworkManagerDispatcher
If you don’t know how to run the commands above, press Alt+F2 to bring up the Run window, and type in “terminal”. a command prompt like Windows’ cmd.exe. In this window, you can enter the commands I have dicribed above.
Good luck!
Richard wrote, on March 19th, 2009:
Great PC, shame about the Acer “formal” support.
Have had problems with wireless on Linpus, Fedora 10 and also Ubuntu on the Aspire One for the ast 4 months. Have now given up with the stock hardware, and just swapped the internal wireless module for an Intel replacement. Works fine. Easy install – ok voids warranty but from what I can see it is not worth the paper it is printed on given Acer’s “customer last” response …
I now have a proper Netbook. Suggest Acer change their supply channels – the original wireless device was clearly never validated in real world conditions.
Michael Walsh wrote, on March 19th, 2009:
@Richard, “customer last”?
Ouch. That hurt. Considering that this blog was started (two-and-a-half years ago) by an Acer guy (sic) and that most of the solutions proposed on this site come from Acer support people (there are more than a few lurking in the forum section too so you’re getting real-world assistance without the cost – just don’t tell anybody..).
OK, nothing we can do directly for your warranty or Acer’s OEM suppliers but you can’t say we’re not trying, or that we don’t care. That’s not fair on those of us who do.
OK Rant over. Glad you got yours fixed
Michael Walsh wrote, on March 19th, 2009:
@Richard, OK, I take that back. Didn’t see the inverted commas around “formal” before hitting submit. Apologies. Heads up appreciated. Pride restored.
Poonie wrote, on March 20th, 2009:
My wife and I bought a brand new Acer One 8.9 running Windows XP on 03/15/09. We’ve tried many, many solutions for wireless. At home we have an Apple Airport Extreme, which is a really nice router and easy to set up. We have two other Windows machines and a Sony PS3 cannected to the Airport. But even though the Aspire keeps telling us it has located and is connected to the network, no Internet! We tried taking it to Starbucks, where even a monkey can connect to the Internet using nothing more than a banana and some string. Same problem. Really, if it’s this hard why should we keep the damn thing?
bill daurie wrote, on March 22nd, 2009:
can download skype on my acer one 8gig harddrive.
Richard wrote, on March 22nd, 2009:
Michael
I appreciate my comments were equivalent to firing a “semi-automatic Blunderbus from the hip whilst being blindfolded” and are not that constructive …
Positive thing is that I have stuck with what is a good PC ! I purchased my Aspire some months back to help me through an extended period of illnes and apart from wireless issues (now fixed) it does the job well.
I started with Linpus, then modded this slightly after checing on various support sites (sort out fan noise, open up right click menu,loading a few “extra” progs, etc. Then changed to Fedora 10 (Linpus’ brother – see http://jorge.fbarr.net/2008/11/10/fedora-10-on-the-acer-aspire-one/). In both cases, wireless worked to start (maybe 50% of the time) with but failed completely after updates.
Then changed to Ubuntu (there is some good support on their website – recently updated especially re fan noise – see https://help.ubuntu.com/community/AspireOne)and had the same wireless experience.
Tried various wirless hacks (ndiswrapper, madwifi, etc.) and had similar unreliable connectivity.
In the end (actually last Monday) I changed the wireless module to an Intel device see http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=1443
Actually very easy to do – note a few things though …
- use a credit card to push the tabs supporting the keyboard down otherwise you will scratch the case
- the ribbon cable/tape connecting the keyboard and also the mouse pad to the mother board is released (motherboard end) by simply pulling up the lever across the length of the connecto. It needs almost no effort – think of the tape being pressed down to secure it and you will see how it works. There is also more give on the keyboard tape – should be enough room to get hand and screw driver in to lever the connector up.
- the existing wireless device (bottom right) comes out very easily. replace with the new one – note you use antenna connections 1 and 2 on the new card (forget the middle one – you do not really need to take the screen apart also …)
- remember to reconnect the mouse pad cable (I forgot (oops) and have no working mouse pad – I may get round to fixing this but have not really missed it with an external mouse ..)
- the Linux version just works as soon as I turned the machine back on (ok, did with latest Ubuntu). A Windows driver disc comes with the new card and I assume this will work with that version.
Of course, remember:
- no more warranty
- only attempt if you are prepared for the worse (if it ain’t broke then don’t fix it)
I found the Intel card via Amazon.
Before everyone tells me that really I have wasted my time and money as the wireless problem could be fixed with everyone being more open about the original drivers, etc., I am aware of this – but frustration with a good PC got the better of me.
I now use my Aspire more often than my desk PCs, and have actually been encouraged to try new Linux distributions, play around with hardware, etc. – all of which I would never had done had it not been for the basic robustness and ease of use of the Aspire One.
Keep up the good work – something I have seen on the web is that there is a very loyal following for this PC.
Jack wrote, on March 23rd, 2009:
Hi All:
I recently purchased an Acer One 8.9″…The Problem I have had was connecting to a secure wireless network (like most on this post)
I have the luxury of living in an apartment complex which has about 35 different wireless networks so I was able to connect to unsecure.
Anyways, Here is what I discovered…the issue is 100% based upon winXP with SP3…unfortunatley this Service Pack 3 comes pre-installed and cannot be removed. What I did find however is a work around. Go to this site and download the Atheros Client Utility. When installing it will ask if you want windows to manage your wireless connections, say NO, you want Atheros to manage…It will also ask if you want an One step login, select DO not install for this option…finally, select the checkbox for a system tray Icon.
This will stop windows from (mis)managing your security. Once installed from the system tray you will see an Icon that lloks like a bar graph…right click the icon and open the utility…you will see a “scan” button…this will locate your network…pretty easy from here…This took about 10 minutes to download and install and it has worked perfectly…FYI Atheros is the maker of the Acer One Wireless card.
here is the link
http://drivers.softpedia.com/progDownload/Atheros-AR5xxx-Client-Utility-520125-Download-35242.html
best of luck
Ne0-- wrote, on March 31st, 2009:
If you find that your Acer AspireOne’s wireless has been working fine until all of a sudden it stops working (i.e. no wireless networks can be found and the wireless adapter shows a big red X) then this may be a problem with a simple solution. The simplest thing to check before you do anything drastic, make sure that your WIFI adapter is ON (i.e. the LED indicator to the right of the silver marking on the lower right hand of the keyboard is on or blinking orange). You can turn the adapter on/off with the black toggle switch right in front and below the adapter LED indicator(on the front right side of the laptop). This was kind of bad design IMHO since some people who don’t bother to read the instructions may think that this “switch” is to open the screen. The other fault is that this “switch” is easily accidentally flipped just by brushing against it. Again, those who do not know the purpose of this “switch” may not even know they have turned the adapter off. Acer should have made this a “hard switch” and not a “springback switch”. Anyway, if this doesn’t solve your problems, then I would start looking at making sure that you have the latest OS patches/upgrades and drivers installed as many have described in this blog. Incidentally, I am running an AspireOne 1.6GHz, 1GB_RAM, XP Home SP3, 120GB and have not had any major problems (wireless or otherwise) to date.
Mike D wrote, on April 3rd, 2009:
My mom bought the latest Aspire One 10.1″ yesterday. The netbook had the very same wireless issues as posted above. Funny thing is, she has a 1st generation Acer Aspire One 8″ screen. Both the ‘1st gen’ and this newest Aspire One have the same wireless network card installed and the same driver version.
One would think Acer would have updated the driver in 7 months and a new production model later.
She took that one back and exchanged it for the exact same model (the red one). Same problems out of the box.
I did not bother flashing the bios, massaging the power save modes. I simply looked for a newer driver for the Atheros AR5007EG.
I found one after a lot of searching. It was on a website in the Czech Republic. Of course I was thinking that this had to be a trojan waiting for some sucker to download and install.
I downloaded it. Ran a virus scan on it. No viruses found.
I bit the bullet and installed this version: 7.6.1.184 dated 11/05/08.
I rebooted and lo… thus far the laptop has held it’s wireless connection for 2 hours straight. Previously I was lucky to get 3 minutes before having to repair my wireless connection.
Anyway.. try this driver. Download at your own risk. Run a virus scan on it. I will say that it worked for me.
Here is the URL:
http://www.atheros.cz/download.php?atheros=AR5007EG&system=1
laofmoonster wrote, on April 9th, 2009:
I have a 16GB 9.1″ Acer Aspire One on Windows 7 Beta. My Atheros modem disappeared from Windows a while ago. New drivers didn’t help. What *did* work though, was turning off the PC, taking out the battery, and turning it on while plugged in. Then, once the modem was detected, I turned off the “power saver” option as previous posters described. Now the internet works!
I suspect the problem is a weak power supply or overzealous power conservation, or both.
Andrew wrote, on April 9th, 2009:
Hi,
I just got a new Acer150 laptop and have a similar problem to most of you however my laptop does not over heat and does not cut off from the net ….
The problem i have is to get the initial connection.. all i get is aquiring network connection. I then press repair about 3 times with no luck and then all of a sudden just before i kick it…. it gets the connection all by itself….
If i do disconnect from the net then its impossible to start it again so i have to reboot it….
It seems i am not the only one with this problem on the small Island of Cyprus… Any help with this would be most appreciated..
Thanks…Andrew
mothersip wrote, on April 19th, 2009:
My solution to the dropped WiFi and other wireless inernet issues: Move your laptop/netbook farther from the router!!
I tried everthing suggested in this forum and every other forum when my 2 new Acer Aspire One 8.9″ netbooks would not keep a WiFi internet connection. I upgraded the Atheros adapter, I disabled Power Save, I upgraded the BIOS, I did all the Windows and McAfee updates – with no success.
Just as I was about to give up, I incidintally moved with my netbook to another room, and lo and behold – it immediately found my WiFi, connected and STAYED connected. When I moved back to the room with the router, it immediately dropped the connection.
I have tested this out with both my new Acer’s, and the result is the same. As long as I am about 30 feet from the router, there is no problem keeping my WiFi connections. When the netbooks are closer to the router, the either don’t find a connection at all (except for the unsecured networks of neighbors), or they drop several times per hour.
Amazing, but true. Try this out if you’ve done everything and still can’t keep your connection going!
Disgusted wrote, on April 20th, 2009:
I just wanted to say that, I bought Acer notebook for my daughter for xmas, and searched and searched for a cure to her wireless internet mysteriously stopped working, only about two weeks after she got it.. I sent in ticket after ticket, I searched and searched here.. only to find out.. a week ago..yeah..just a week ago.. that there is a lil switch in the thin face of the notebook for the wireless connection. *noted, shes been using a wireless thumb adapter. Should I be embarrassed or do you think that after 50 emails to acer and replies, that they might have asked me to check it?
Michael Walsh wrote, on April 21st, 2009:
@Disgusted,
You sir, have my full sympathy. I could say that this was a case of RTM if only there was one humans could understand.
We have been trying to get Acer to do half-decent quick start guides which would solve just this sort of frustration.
I’ve been toying with the idea of doing video versions myself for this site.
Some people call this oversight The Curse of Knowledge (when we know something, it becomes hard for us to imagine not knowing it – “Sir, isn’t it obvious???”). My father would have dragged Murphy’s Law into it.
Whatever, I’m sorry for your inconvenience, I hope Acer support people reading this take note, and mine’s a Guinness…
RogerR wrote, on April 22nd, 2009:
I bought an Acer 150AB from Asda for £150 (inc VAT) and love it. I am running Linpus and find the wealth of software freely available and which just works, is great. I have used Unix in various forms for many years and so that does not phase me.
The wireless can sometimes be a problem but usually retyping the security code fixes things.
I use putty and vpnc to connect remotely to my servers and thunderbird for email and firefox for web browsing. What is not to like?
erkme73 wrote, on April 23rd, 2009:
My struggles, documented above, included every possible attempt – including buying a new intel card. None worked. When I switched to the 3-cell stock batter with the 6-cell battery from another Acer, the problem went away. That was about 2 months ago – and the problem has not resurfaced. I’m still using the OEM wireless card.
On a side note, the screen ‘flickering’ that was ever-so-noticeable also went away when I bumped up to the larger batter. In the end, I think it may be a case of not enough current (mA) getting to the wireless card and screen on the 3-cell versions.
BTW, when I put the larger battery on the older Acer, Windows would not recognize it, and the remaining batter would be at 0% (and the power light had a fast blink). A bios flash to the latest version resolved that, and now the laptop shows 4-5 hours on a charge. Wife is quite happy = I am quite happy.
erkme73 wrote, on April 23rd, 2009:
Sorry that should have read “When I switched FROM the 3-cell to the 6-cell battery…”
gnuga wrote, on May 7th, 2009:
Thanks for bringing up the issues.
There is an acer aspire one review if anybody want to know a little bit a bit this product
Sean wrote, on May 8th, 2009:
All,
Jack, thanks for the info, although I wasn’t able to use the 7Zip file at the link. The following link has the Atheros Client Utility in zip form. Just scroll down until you see “Atheros Wireless Adapters” header and download form the link:
http://ictoinfo.umac.mo/wireless/drivers.html
This page has saved me. Thanks to everybody.
Damon wrote, on May 10th, 2009:
well I have read all of these posts and repair ideas and no luck. I am going to assume that a truly functional repair has not been posted? I have tried the “disabling power saver,” “reloaded the driver (even though I had the most current one)” and using the Atheros Utility. Nothing works. In fact now I cannot connect to the wireless at all.
daniel m wrote, on May 13th, 2009:
wow thank u for this websight, i thought i was alone with the web problem, i have hade my AA1 for about 5 month, i love this lil gewl.Ya the web browsing thing WAS a problem. I was seing my ATT phone and tethering off of it. Then read all the post. i did do the Change the power in properties and also the Xp update. did not have to upgrade the driver or Bios system, and WALA!!!! i am working, i am on the net while typeing this review on the AA1. I am not a computer savey guy, i just read and try out the post. any question email me at daniuel.miranda@live.com i may be able to help. Thanks guys for all the info
daniel
atalanta ga
daniel m wrote, on May 15th, 2009:
day 2, still working great, try it: change the power properties and then do the XP up dates that show in these post. no problems yet, i am typing and on the net with the AA1
daniel
atlanta, ga
Mike wrote, on May 16th, 2009:
8.9″ Device running Linpus.
My symptoms are that after a long period of the machine being on, the wireless will stop working – typically causing a browser crash – and the wireless on/off button has no effect – the light on the bottom right of the keyboard remains off.
After an immediate reboot the wireless remains off AND my expansion card (Left hand side) is not recognised.
Leaving the Aspire shut down for a while usually cures the problems.
I strongly suspect that internal overheating is the main cause in my case.
daniel m wrote, on May 17th, 2009:
3 days later still on the net!!!!
daniel m wrote, on May 20th, 2009:
6th day!! still working
Fred wrote, on May 22nd, 2009:
My sister has an AA1 Linux version. We put WinXP ourselves. We had numerous problems with the wifi (wifi kept dropping off).
I googled and found that Windows \Wireless Zero Configuration\ doesn’t work well with the Atheros wifi chip. So I downloaded Atheros Client Utility (ACU), installed it and used it to manage the wifi card (rather than letting Windows Wireless Zero Configuration managing it).
So far the result is good. Wifi has been working for 10 days now.
Note: You can also change the power saving settings from ACU easily.
daniel m wrote, on May 25th, 2009:
12 days lated still working, no problems. like i said i did the windows up date and changed the properties on the powere for the AA1, this has worked for me. Before you do the updated on your wireless card, check to make sure its current. the update i for the current version. i had the current version so i didnt do the card update. i just did xp update and the power properties. good luck!!!
daniel
atlanta, ga
hk wrote, on May 25th, 2009:
i bought an aspire one last week, and had the same wireless issues as many posts listed. i tried many of the recommended fixes, including updating all drivers, disabling the power saver, etc., to no avail. i called acer customer service (on memorial day) i got an agent in a few min. 866-621-2237 for the US. they transferred me to an india call center, where the rep told me to 1) make sure the wireless is on (move sliding switch at bottom right side of computer to toggle on/off- look at screen to see if device on or off as you do this). 2) uninstall the Atheros driver- goto start, right click on my computer, properties, hardware tab, device manager, network adapter, right click on Atheros, uninstall. 3) restart computer. funny thing. this worked. the wireless then connected.
anyway, just my 2 cents.
hk
Toms wrote, on May 31st, 2009:
I had wifi problems from the get go with this machine – D150. A new driver improved it, but there were still small disconnects that paused browsing. The connection indicator was always on – but sites would come back not found about 10% of the time, and there were mysterious pauses on page loads.
After updating BIOS, turning off power mode, loading 3 or 4 drivers from http://www.atheros.cz – have fun, I went out and bought the intel mini-pci card – model 5300.
My D150 has a door on the bottom that opens up to the mini pci card slot, so I did not have to dismantle the machine. It popped in and I connected the two antenna wires. The card has three connectors – but the third is for 802.11n.
Right now I am streaming music over wifi from itunes internet radio to my wifi boxes – perfect. This is a no brainer. Don’t waste time trying to get the Atheros card to work. They are just bad – period.
The Intel card was under $30 on ebay and I had it in two days via USPS. I used the Acer Intel WLAN driver from the Acer support website.
daniel m wrote, on June 3rd, 2009:
20 dats later, still on the net with the AA1
Horace P. Manure wrote, on June 5th, 2009:
Acer net book: $300
30 Hours of Tech Support and IT: $1800
Apple MacBook Pro: $1999
Not having another computer problem again: priceless.
Michael Walsh wrote, on June 5th, 2009:
@Horace
Very creative, although you could have had ten times that amount of support completely free of charge here…
Oh well, I guess there are some things money can’t buy, for everything else there’s The Acer Guy.
Morris Lee wrote, on June 5th, 2009:
@Michael,
And Oh my god it rhymes!
Matt wrote, on June 8th, 2009:
My acer one works great plugged in to the network, and on wireless it takes forever loading even google… trying to load more than 3 pages, forget about it!
Took it to work and it ran smooth all night un pluged power with power. Get it home same issue again,
I have a wireless B router, I know it is backwords compatiable but I think this is my issue. Is any one else experienceing the issue with Wireless B?
Thats just my observation
Stacey wrote, on June 13th, 2009:
I just got an Acer Aspire One and had the same problem…could not connect from my house but could connect in town at places with WiFi. I have a NETGEAR WGR614v7 router. I called both ACER and NETGEAR support, but got no help. ACER said it must be with the router having some security setting. The NETGEAR guy said the ACER would still see a signal. After spending 2 days, I solved the problem. I typed in 192.168.1.1 in the address box of EI, which took me to the NETGEAR site where I could access my settings. Under Advanced Settings I found SSID unchecked, which had something to do with blocking unauthorized clients. I still do not really understand. I checked that box, and now the ACER can get Internet with no problem. I do not understand why the NETGEAR guy did not think of that.
Powerplant wrote, on June 16th, 2009:
Micheal;
Like many before me i have been following your site looking for a “definitive” solution to this problem of wireless snafus.
Every visit i read some people trying certain solutions that work and others try the same solutions with no luck.
It’s been nearly a year. Is there no clear cut resolution to this issue?
Regards
howard wrote, on June 29th, 2009:
i am trying to access and use the built-in webcam(acer crystal webcam) in the aspire netbook but can’t seem to. can anyone help me with that?
Shaun wrote, on July 2nd, 2009:
I have the XP/120GB/1GB RAM, 10.1” version of the Acer Aspire One. My wireless worked fine for a couple of months before I tried to install the full version of McAfee Antivirus Security which resulted in the Windows XP crash. I reinstalled the Windows and drivers using the Acer provided e-recovery. Everything else is fine except when it finds all available networks, secured and unsecured it doesn’t connect to any of them. The wireless tries to connect to the secure connection syslink and even prompts for the WPA key but fails to connect after several attempts.I tried to turn off the Windows firewall and also tried turning the Power save mode off but nothing works. I have another notebook connected to the same router and it works fine. I did not change the location or any of the other settings. I’ve even tried reinstalling the driver but no success either. What bothers me is, when it was working a couple of hours ago and after reinstalling everything to factory settings what went wrong?
Any advice?
Vas Kapsalis wrote, on July 4th, 2009:
I’ve just taken delivery of an AOA150-Ap with Limpus Linux. I had wifi problems, but now fixed. The cause is thermal, currently the UK is in a heatwave and all my wifi kit has been playing up. The solution is to put a fan on the devices that aren’t using forced air.
SF wrote, on July 4th, 2009:
thank you hk (from 5/25)! it was the dang wi-fi switch in the lower right hand corner. somehow it was turned off. turn it back on again and i got my wi-fi back. weird. of course this could be just a mirage. i’ve had zero problems in the 6 months i’ve owned my aspire. zero. then this morning the inability to connect to home wi-fi.
it was the switch for me!
Sam Lourie wrote, on July 5th, 2009:
Possibe Fix to Apsire ONE Wifi Drop off’s
Hi all, I too have had experenced poor wifi proformance with my aspire one, the wifi drops off twice daily if not more
Heres a possible fix im trialing
Flash Bios to 3309 or 33010
Clean install of Windows 7 build 7100 will all windows updates and driver updates from windows update. (runs really well) The wireless still drops off however i have found the windows 7 driver does not do it as nearly as much as XP or Vista driver.
Apparently by installing the Atheros Client Utility 8.0.72.0 should fix the problem. From what i have read the atheros wireless chipset dosent work verywell with Windows Wireless Zero Config.
Get it below.
http://www.station-drivers.com/telechargement/atheros/wifi/atheros_util_8.0.0.72(www.station-drivers.com).exe
Fingers crossed this will work. Ive done quite a bit of research on this issue.
I will post an update tomorrow
Sam Lourie wrote, on July 5th, 2009:
Update time,
Wifi has been running smooth with no issues so far, Windows 7 runs perfectly on 1GB ram, cant wait for full release.
I normaly would have had 2 or 3 wifi drop offs by now. so far so good
Ive also changed the wifi power settings to max proformance on battery and AC in the power saving options.
Will update again in afew days
Koulou Raki wrote, on July 5th, 2009:
I have the wifi problem, the wifi card disappears when i try to download files(6MB to 90MB) from rapidshare,megaupload or jamendo. Someone runs portscan or something like that and the wifi disappears.
If i download other stuff like moblin2(670MB), i don’t have problems.
Erik wrote, on July 9th, 2009:
I believe this is a hardware/firmware problem.
Reboot does not help, but shutting down and immediately starting up does. So it does not seem to be overheating either. Rather a hanged hardware, which lets go of its grip only on shutdown.
I have a 110, the version with Linux, SSD, 512 MB and 8.9″.
The problem with randomly disappearing WLAN was there from the start, when Linux and everything was out-of-the-box default.
I installed XP Pro and got all the latest drivers and SPs and the behaviour is the same.
I have four WLAN notebooks and two WLAN routers.
From the above, it is obvious that it is the A110 hardware/firmware having the problem, all other components work perfectly and the problem is not related to one OS or overheating either.
Sammy wrote, on July 11th, 2009:
Hi all. i thought i’d write about my experiences with my recently purchased AA1 150 (XP) in hope they will help someone. I had wireless problems, but slightly different than most of you here. AAO could connect to a Belkin router with no problem, the signal strentgth was excellent and stable. However, I could not browse internet. tried IE and Firefox, but the only thing i would ever manage to open (and only sometimes) was google. all other times i got the ‘ie could not display the web page’ message. had no problems browsing in public hotspots at a nearby university. the connection was strong and the internet very fast. my other non-Acer laptop had no problems browsing when connected to the Belkin router. i did some tests on AAO — ping to the router always almost worked. ping to a domain name address almost never worked. ping to an IP address worked sometimes. nslookup of domain names almost never worked. this suggested DNS problems. the XP net diagnostic tools almost always said it was a Winsock problem. sometimes they said there was no problem. tried every possible solution that was suggested on the internet. nothing worked. so after three solid days trying to fix the problem, i took the Belkin router back to the store and exhcanged it for a linksys. AAO connected to it immediately and had no problems browsing since then! the funny thing is my other laptop has the exact same atheros wireless card, just an earlier driver version (which at some point i also installed on AAO, hoping it would fix the problem, but it didn’t).
so, it looks like there was some incompatibility between the AAO, the Belkin router and possibly the modem. good luck! hope you’ll manage to resolve your AAO problems soon and will be able to enjoy your AAO as much as i do now.
Shan wrote, on July 17th, 2009:
My problem is my AA0 with XP see`s my wireless network but when i click connect to pops up with the message unable to connect to network because its out of range or something. This cant be as im sat feet from it and my other laptop connects no problems. Any ideas?
hittt wrote, on July 25th, 2009:
I suspect it is a BIOS problem, as it appears to be cross-platform. Note that it gets fixed with shutdown and power on, not restart, which means that the system needs to halt completely. I have read somewhere, that Acer closes the wi-fi after a critically low battery. So is it possible the BIOS reading wrong battery state, and the OS the right one? Maybe it is a wrong/unstable register that the BIOS reads to take battery info. Or else i give up. I will see if it manages to connect to eth0 (ether port). Or else it is atheros’s problem not Acer’s itself!
Guilherme wrote, on July 25th, 2009:
Well, my wifi was resetting every 20 min or so and it wasn’t even near my connection speed.
I just installed Win7 and it’s *WAY* better. I had 1 disconnect but changed the advanced power settings and choose to never put the wireless card in power saving, even on battery.
I’m using torrent + mp3tube right now with no problems.
Guilherme wrote, on July 25th, 2009:
Well, my wifi was resetting every 20 min or so and it wasn’t even near my connection speed.
I just installed Win7 and it’s *WAY* better. I had 1 disconnect but changed the advanced power settings and choose to never put the wireless card in power saving, even on battery.
I’m using torrent + mp3tube right now with no problems.
—
Oh, I installed ACU like Sam and updated my bios to 3310.
Santiago Aguirre wrote, on July 26th, 2009:
I recently bought an ACER Aspire One AOA150. I says it comes with a wireless card. How can I activate it ?
Morris Lee wrote, on July 26th, 2009:
@Santiago Aguirre,
There is a small switch on the bottom right edge of the netbook, flip it once to the right to switch on/off, statues is displayed by the light on top of it.
operat0r wrote, on July 29th, 2009:
* I also have the randomly stop working even tho I can connect and see APS .. BIOS 3310
* have not tried the Atheros util .. I will …
* full reinstall from base
* I also tried the F7 to disable ACPI/APM etc that totaly @W#$%ed it it would pegg the cpu with interrupts
* left backtrack (linux) on wifi all night not doing anything but it stayed connected
* it also may be something else as I can can’t even use my Alpha USB card I get the same thing I can connect but it does not DO anything..
* more info http://forums.remote-exploit.org/tutorials-guides/17695-acer-netbook-aspire-one-install-guide-aoa150-1570-a.html
Johnds wrote, on August 3rd, 2009:
I just bought a d250 acer laptop from Costco here in the us running xp service pack 3. It has a 2009 manufacture date. I does not see my wireless connection. I have read through the posts on this board and decided it is not worth fighting a losing ware. It is going back tomorrow for a full refund. I am amazed that Acer has not addressed this problem.
Good luck to all,
John
harvey k wrote, on August 5th, 2009:
I had a similar problem with my Acer computer that it won’t connect wireless to my router yet it will connect if I put a cable on it. The problem was that my router was blocking my MAC address. I enable the MAC address control feature and it was blocking my own MAC address. Well the solution was to either disable this feature or add the MAC address to the list. Adding it to the list and it works fine. n my router set up and it worked fine. I suppose that you can also disable this feature.
Stoner wrote, on August 17th, 2009:
Just a quick post FYI. I recently bought a AAO110 (3G, SSD & Linpus Lite OS) and found WiFi being dropped intermittently and/or Network Manager not launching reliably on each boot. Note I haven’t found it dropping my 3G mobile network connection when active. Have had some success using terminal commands to remove network files as posted on various forums, but cant be certain its not just a power off and boot that’s fixing the problem since it’s so intermittent. I sent details to Acer Euro support (06/08/09) together with my Installed-success.log and received the following reply:
“Regarding your enquiry,
At the moment there is no permanent fix for this issue, Acer are still looking into it
Regards
Jonathan
Acer Technical Support Team ”
I asked if they would provide fix alerts by subscription and received this answer:
“This [fix] will be released as a Live update, so you will automatically receive the fix for this issue, when it becomes available”
kober wrote, on August 20th, 2009:
I have the same issue with the atheros AR5007EG.
I have installed Windows 7 on my Acer Aspire one, i’m using the driver lastest driver (8.0.0.171) but i still have the same problem…
when i download big files the wireless drops off
and i have to shut down to fix it.
¿Anyone knows how to fix the problem?
cheryl wrote, on August 22nd, 2009:
please can someone help me connect wirelessly – have acer 3050
Michael G wrote, on August 26th, 2009:
Thanks to the folks who are taking the time to try and help the frustrated users.
My wife bought a d250 with Atheros 5007EG card and XP about 10 days ago. I’ve already reset power controls and downloaded the “new” driver from the Acer website (I say “new” because the version number was lower than the one on the computer itself.)
Today I rebooted my wife’s computer 4 times. The first, third, and fourth times I was not able to get connected wirelessly despite multiple attempts. The second boot connected automatically without problems.
Sigh.
I’ll try a few of the other suggestions I’ve read here, but I am leaning towards having my darling save her work and exchange/return the computer hoping for a better outcome with the next one.
It appears that most of the problems are with the Atheros cards. I’m disappointed that Acer hasn’t seen fit to replace them.
Michael G wrote, on August 26th, 2009:
Additional info: the original wireless driver installed on the computer was 7.6.1.244. The “new” driver from acer was 7.6.1.221. I see that version 7.7.0.329 is available at http://www.atheros.cz–do I dare update to this driver or should I just find a restore point and see if 7.6.1.244 reappears?
Thanks again to those on this site that are trying to help the users.
MORONS wrote, on August 26th, 2009:
Morons! You don’t need to download new drivers. I just recently bought a D250 at COSTCO and EVERYTHING works.
There is a SWITCH on the lower right portion of the D250. That SWITCH turns the wireless ON & OFF!!!!! MORONS WHY WOULD ACER SELL A NETBOOK WITH DEFECTIVE WIFI???
Michael G wrote, on August 26th, 2009:
[quote]
Morons! You don’t need to download new drivers. I just recently bought a D250 at COSTCO and EVERYTHING works.
There is a SWITCH on the lower right portion of the D250. That SWITCH turns the wireless ON & OFF!!!!! MORONS WHY WOULD ACER SELL A NETBOOK WITH DEFECTIVE WIFI???
[/quote]
My, what a helpful comment.
The switch was the FIRST thing I checked and it is ON. The wifi card is active and sees every wireless network in my neighborhood, about 8 of them.
I am delighted that yours worked right out of the box…my wife’s didn’t. There is something wrong with it. (We have three other computers that hook up to our wireless network flawlessly.)
Even if one-half of one percent of acer’s computers are defective — 5,000 per million sold
Chris S wrote, on August 27th, 2009:
Yep – this is a hardware issue for sure. I bought the Linux model – had problems with WiFi there (check Linux boot log you will see messages about IRQ#18 and no one caring!)
I install Vista on it, same thing, WiFi would ‘mostly’ work but would randomly turn off. Installed Windows 7 clean, used Microsoft and Atheros drivers, still the same random shutdown of the WiFi card – only a power down+restart and occasional use of the wireless switch at startup (not convinced) seems to resolve it termporarily.
I tried bring this to Acer’s attention however it was met with total apathy…. off to read the rest of the thread above now.
Mike Queue wrote, on August 28th, 2009:
I’m thinking the network card is bad, just my thoughts.
But it also won’t play a movie when I hook up a usb dvd keeps giving me “Internal Errors”
This is what I bought it for… meh!
Going to replace the network card and get rid of the lame movie player and see what happens.
Peace, Mike.
danielm wrote, on September 1st, 2009:
this workS, ive done it twice; only because i had to refresh the LIL AA1 for a bad dll file:
Hook your computer up to a router via Ethernet cable (to maintain your connection) and try this:
R+click My Computer>Properties
Select the “Automatic Updates” tab
Click the Windows Update Web site link (below “Turn Off Automatic updates”)also do this
There’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.”
Select the “Custom” button on the web site.
Update the validation tool (it seems to come up every time). Continue.
This should bring up a page where you can select the type of updates on the left. Mine had a selection for “Hardware, optional (2)”. Click that one, select both, and see what happens.
and dont forget to do the power adjustment
danielm wrote, on September 1st, 2009:
sorry i inserted this in the wrong spot: on the updates file go to customer buttons set up..
There’s a power saving option on the wireless adapter that is turned to maximum by default. To turn it off, right click my computer > properties > hardware tab > device manager… then find your wireless adapter in the list under Network Adapters, right click > properties > advanced tab. Select Power Save Mode from the list on the left and select Off from the drop down on the right. Press OK and close device manager.”
HAMNAZ wrote, on September 1st, 2009:
My ruby red Mini acer laptop is not getting wireless internet connection.Im getting the wired internet in it.its detecting wireless connections & showing connected & also signal strength nd all…but not getting into internet.when browsing its saying No connection.Can you please help me out.
Thanks
John Stampfl wrote, on September 2nd, 2009:
I was having no connection problems connecting to an open wireless network. Other computers, pc and macs had no problem. In Ubuntu linux on the same machine I have no problem. I switched out the three dlls that make up Windows XP Wireless Xero Connection with three early verions from an old Windows XP release and the problems went away.
John Stampfl wrote, on September 2nd, 2009:
A few more details Aspire one D250. All updates from Microsoft have been applied.
the WZC files changed were
wzcdlg.dll – 5.1.2600.2180
wzcsapi.dll – 5.1.2600.2180
wzcsvc.dll – 5.1.2600.2180
I don’t recommend that you do this change, except as a debugging exercise.
I deduce that the problem is related to the newer versions of the WZC and possibly interactions with the Athos driver, the version installed ended in 760.
Michael G wrote, on September 3rd, 2009:
An update on my dear wife’s Aspire One (D250)
Once connected everything is fine. But getting connected is still pretty iffy.
The updated driver install reset the power management on the Atheros driver, so I turned it off. That seems to have had the biggest positive impact, but getting connected is still only happening about 20% of the time.
The optional hardware updates included something for the atheros card–can’t tell if it helped or not.
The QoS thing is the weirdest. If the D250 doesn’t connect I can check the QoS thing, save the change, then uncheck it, save the change, and it connects about 50% of the time.
At this point I’m trying to talk my wife into simply saving her files and taking it back for an exchange.
John Stampfl wrote, on September 3rd, 2009:
More info on the Aspire One with wireless connectivity problems.
Model D150-1322 mfg date 9/04
Atheros AR5007EG – 7.6.0.260
Bios – V1.07
Using old WZC files from old XP release seems to fix for what I am doing. ie. connecting to open wireless network.
Seems like Acer needs to analyze this problem and post a definitive fix.
Michael G wrote, on September 3rd, 2009:
On a discussion thread on the acer site one user said that he had downloaded and installed the 7.7.0.329 Atheros driver and it solved his problems. Anyone else tried this?
I find the driver listed on the atheros.cz website, is that legit website? It calls itself an unofficial site…but if the drivers are good…
DMendoza85 wrote, on September 5th, 2009:
I experience the same situation with my brother’s AO D250, the problem turned out to be the mcafee antivirus installed by default on the netbook, the trial period expired and seems to block the Internet connection; in the past I was the same problem with the antivirus panda, reviewed for this problem did not occur. Uninstall the antivirus and replaced it for a full version, might be something like norton 2009 or something like this one.
greetings from Honduras
100% CATRACHO!!!!!
Michael G wrote, on September 6th, 2009:
I finally talked my lovely wife into returning her flaky computer and getting a new one. We live in a rural area and that meant a 2.5 hour round trip after work, plus dinner out, so it was late before we got home and tried the new computer.
Same Damn Thing!
Turned off the power management, checked and unchecked the QoS setting, and searched the internet (on my notebook–which has had no problems since I bought it a couple of weeks ago–one of three computers a PSP and a Wii that have had no problems connecting wirelessly).
Nothing seemed to work.
Instead of another 2.5hr round trip we took her computer to the local University and connected with no problem. Took it to the local grocery store dinning area and connected with no problem.
Went back home and found that our wireless router (Linksys wrt120N) had a firmware update available.
Installed the firmware update. So far the D250 is three for three on smooth connections at start up.
Matias wrote, on September 16th, 2009:
Finally got it to work after several days of trying different things.
But last couple things i did were:
updating driver to ver 7.7.0.329
http://www.atheros.cz/download.php?athe … G&system=1
still not working, also turned power save mode off.
and finally updated the bios with the latest version from acer.
and finally started working again.
Hope it helps.
Regards, Mat.
buidanhthuy wrote, on September 16th, 2009:
Thx you guys for the comment, I got A110 a few days ago, everything was fine ultil yesterday morning. Wifi wasn’t worked well. I cannt see any wireless connection. I tried to reinstall driver for WLAN, updated bios to the newest version, switched power save mode to off and reinstall Windows but nothing changed. I think that’s hardware issue and I can do nothing to fix it. So sad, ACER ONE
Fernando wrote, on October 2nd, 2009:
Hi everyone,
I bought for a couple of weeks the Acer One 751. But I started having problems when I make a cll through Skype. The computer crashes every fime minutes or so.
I would like to know if somebody can help me to figure out, if it is just a work-overload of the laptop or it really has a defect.
Greetings
Fernando
Morris Lee wrote, on October 3rd, 2009:
@Fernando,
can you provide more info? is it just skype? if so, try reinstalling the program
YvonneB wrote, on October 7th, 2009:
Hi All
I’ve been trying every site I can find to fix the wireless switch on my Acer Travelmate 290 which just would not activate.
I have tried reloading drivers, activating and deactivating the network connecting, reinstalling againa and again and nothing made a difference until …. finally found a fix that worked for me. Hope it helps.
Go to http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=281138
I used Orezavi’s link to upload launchManager from Acer, rebooted, and all was well. Hope this helps.
Yvonne
Harry Y wrote, on October 12th, 2009:
My Aspire One ZG5 was bought a year ago at Fry’s.
Problem: After a year of smooth running, the wireless adapter suddenly disappeared today. I have tried to reinstall the wireless driver (7.6.0.224) but a warning message reports that the “Device may not be present or could have been ejected/unplugged from the system. Insert or Reinsert Now.” Apparently the hardware cannot be detected by the system, even though the wireless indicator is on and a big-letter message shown on the screen “Wireless Lan Enabled/Disabled” when the wireless toggle-switch is slided.
Please help!
Morris Lee wrote, on October 12th, 2009:
@Harry Y,
did rebooting detect the card again?
Notanbago wrote, on October 23rd, 2009:
THIS SOLUTION WORTH FOR ME…
Firstly sorry but I don’t speak english very well, so I going to tell this in spanish
Mi computadora es la siguiente:
Acer Aspire One d250; Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3; Intel Atom N270 1.60 GHz; 1 GB de Memoria Ram, 160 GB de disco duro.
Mi adaptador de red inalambrico es el sig:
Atheros AR5007EG
Quiero mencionar primero los problemas que me daba mi conexion inalambrica.
Tengo un router Linksys, si la red inalambrica la dejo sin proteccion la computadora entra sin problemas, pero al ponerle proteccion WPA-Personal y metodo de encriptado TKIP, solo me dejaba entrar a muy pocos sitios de internet, a Youtube podia entrar pero no me cargaba los videos (y no hacia falta una actualizacion de Flash Player porque sin proteccion si los cargaba).
Intenté con las siguientes opciones, estas ya se han mencionado antes en ésta pagina:
-Desactivar el antivirus McAfee –> No funcionó
-Desactivar el Programador de paquetes QoS –> No funcionó
-Desactivar Power Save Mode –> No funcionó
-Instalar y utilizar el Atheros Client Utility for AR5xxx series WiFi cards –> No funcionó
-Tener conectada la fuente de alimentacion a la Netbook –> No funcionó
Lo que funcionó para mi fue actualizar el Controlador de mi adaptador de red inalambrico a la version 7.7.0.329, ya antes habia instalado otras actualizaciones, pero ninguna habia funcionado.
En el sitio de Acer no encontré esta actualizacion, asi que busque en el Google y la encontre en la siguiente pagina: http://drivers.softpedia.com/progDownload/Atheros-AR5xxx-Client-Utility-520125-Download-35242.html
Quiero advertir que el Controlador que pongo aqui es solo para el adaptador de red AR5007EG; si quieres saber cual es es controlador mas nuevo disponible para tu adaptador de red Atheros te sugiero que visites su sitio web: http://www.atheros.cz/
Y solo busca en el Google tu actualizacion de controlador adecuado.
Suerte.
– Translation to english (sorry by my bad translation):
My computer is the following one:
Acer Aspire One d250; Windows XP Home Edition Service pack 3; Intel Atom N270 1.60 GHz; 1 GB Ram, 160 GB Hard Disk.
My Wireless Network Adapter is:
Atheros AR5007EG
First, I want to mention the problems that my wireless connection gave me.
I have a router Linksys, if the wireless network I leave without protection the computer it enters without problems to internet, but if a put WPA-Personal Protection and TKIP Encryption, I can only enter to very few internet sites, I can enter to Youtube but don’t loads the videos (and don’t need an update of Flash Player because without protection the videos load well)
I tried with the following options, they already are been mentioned in this page:
-To deactivate the antivirus –> It didn’t work
-To deactivate the QoS Packet Scheduler –> It didn’t work
-To deactivate the Power Save Mode –> It didn’t work
-To install and use the Atheros Client Utility for AR5xxx series WiFi cards –> It didn’t work
-To conect to the AC power –> It didn’t work
The next work to me: I update the wireless network driver to the version 7.7.0.329, others previous updates didn’t work.
This update doesn’t be in the Acer’s site. so I search in the Google and I founded in this page: http://drivers.softpedia.com/progDownload/Atheros-AR5xxx-Client-Utility-520125-Download-35242.html
I want advice you, this update only works with the network adapter AR5007EG; if you want to know what is the newest driver for you network adapter Atheros I suggest go to de site: http://www.atheros.cz/
and search in Google for you recommended driver.
Good luck.
Microsoft and ex Acer Technician wrote, on November 23rd, 2009:
Simple Fix!!!
All you need to do is go to http://www.windowsupdate.com
Then select the custom option.
Then click on hardward and check off the two options for the adaptor, install them and it will work without any problems.
Good luck!
RRamjet wrote, on December 4th, 2009:
I can vouch for the above recommendation although I didn’t read closely enough and waited through about an hour of downloads and installations but I can get our brand new Acer Aspire 1 on the net wirelessly now.
JamesSpratt.org wrote, on December 7th, 2009:
Trying to fix this on the mrs’ laptop – so annoying, the wifi button is unresponsive and flickers between on and off at will.
Think as it’s still within the year that this should allow for a warranty replacement.
Was really looking for a registry fix that would just ignore the button and have wifi on permanently.
RRamjet wrote, on December 7th, 2009:
Well I spoke too soon. The wireless connection still indicates excellent but won’t connect Internet all the time. It’s an old Adaptec 802b router but my Dell notebook running 802b has no problems. An intresting note is that when I first turn it on it defaults to an unsecure Linksys router somewhwere in the neigborhood which shows a Very Low connection quality and still it connects directly to the net. It shows a much faster speed, 54 vrs 11 on my Adaptec so assume it’s g or FIOS. Wonder if the wireless card just doesn’t like the b standard. Also I keep promoting my Adaptec to the top of the wireless connection list and yet when I start up it still picks the Linksys. Is it telling me to go get a g capable router?
Richard wrote, on December 14th, 2009:
Hello,
I also have a Acer Aspire one D250.
I have installed iDeneb 1.6 and swapped the wifi card for a Dell wireless 1510 wireless-N, But for the life of me it won’t work.
Any one else have success for this wifi card and laptop??.
I have it installed in the second PCIe slot, as when it in the first slot all the operating systems see the device but cannot start it, i have tried the tap pin 20 method TNA, their is not buttons to turn on the wifi from bios either.
I though the DW dell 1510 was supposed to work in mac OOTB!!, but in my machine i guess not??,
any tips hints or personal experiences are more than welcome.
Kindest regards,
Rich
Morris Lee wrote, on December 15th, 2009:
@Richard,
I have BCM4311, used xXx build long ago, it worked out of the box, not too sure about what chipset the dell one uses, mine is taken out of a HP laptop if that helps at all
Morris Lee
The Acer Guy » Blog Archive » Merry Christmas to all 567,861 of you wrote, on December 22nd, 2009:
[...] to the Forum. In third place with 4.17% of all the traffic for 2009 (49,221) was the “wireless problems with the aspire one” article which shows how troublesome this was while in fourth place with 3.81% or (44,970) [...]
glyn wrote, on January 7th, 2010:
Hi … tried to put this comment under Aspire 6930