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5 spot AC30 will not work with my mac

I hope someone has a suggestion. My new 5 spot AC30 will not connect to my Mac powerbook G4. When tethered, it shows up in the Verizon network manager, but when I try to connect the WWAN, it says that there is not a good signal and to try later (error 918). In wireless mode, it will never take the password that is printed on the back of the AC30.

But, the AC30 works flawlessly in both modes on my PC windows XP machine. Any ideas?

Comments

peteyrodriguez

Had the same problem. My PowerBook would see the device, but would not get connected to the net. Anyway went to the Verizon store today with my laptop, they had to put the laptop it on the network via ethernet, download new drivers and start the installation all over. So you may need a driver update.

wyofisher

Went in today, and did the same thing (downloaded the most current drivers and VZW manager), but it didn't work. I spent a long while on the phone with tech support, and looks like I'll need to try different equipment. But, it looks like they'll take care of me.

BacktotheMac

Hey, This sounds very similar to my problem. The Fivespot works great all over the house, both tethered and wireless, with my MacBook Pro. When I try to use it with my desktop PowerMac G4, I get the 918 error saying I have no coverage. Have tried all kinds of shenanigans, reinstalling, removing battery, etc. Spent an hour on the phone with tech support today. No luck. The problem computer has an Airport card (not extreme) and is running OS X 10.5 Hope someone can help me before I have a nervous breakdown. Does anybody know how I can download different drivers for this Mac, or what drivers I would need? I can't see lugging the whole tower in to a Verizon store...

unknown

BacktotheMac, thank you for your inquiry. Since your Fivespot works well with your newer laptop computer, it sounds like there is an issue with the settings in your desktop causing the issue.

If you haven't already, try uninstalling/reinstalling VZ Access Manager.

You can also try creating a manual dial-up connection while tethered.

If still not working after that, you may need to adjust your WiFi security settings. The Fivespot is most likely set to either WPA2 or WEP, but maybe your desktop doesn't support that security setting. Try changing from WEP to WPA2 or vice versa, or change to WPA.

BacktotheMac

It pains me to have to tell you this, mostly because you should already know how to connect such a popular computer to the Fivespot. There are many PowerMac G4s still in use. Mine just refuses to die, and I intend to use it until it does. I had to learn how to connect to the Fivespot WiFi the hard way, through trial and error, and am posting this to help others who own the same computer. My PowerMac G4 has an Airport (not extreme) card. That card only communicates in "11b/", not 3G, so the signal is rather weak and slow. When it works in wireless mode, it's great. When the signal is weak, it tries to load web pages, but can't seem to complete the job.

Two problems I discovered were that the old, Plain Jane Airport card cannot handle any type of security other than WEP ASCII, a five letter password. I had to configure the Fivespot to use that type of password at http://192.168.0.1/login.asp . The second problem was in the "Network Mode" selection, also at http://192.168.0.1/login.asp . For an old Airport card, you have to select "11b/g mixed." My MacBook Pro speaks "g", the PowerMac speaks "b". This way they can both connect wirelessly.

Once those settings are in place, you will need to use the Network control panel to connect your old PowerMac via your Fivespot. For whatever reason, VZAccess Manager does not make the connection. Select Airport as the connection type, type in the name of your fivespot in the 'Network Name' dropdown menu in the center of the Network window "Verizon AC30 XXXX". The Xs are whatever the 4-digit unique name of your device is. Next, type in the password and you should connect. Look at the Airport symbol in the top right corner of the screen to see how strong your signal is.

As I mentioned at the top of this message, my 11b/ signal comes and goes, so I am upgrading my PowerMac with an Aria Extreme 54 Mbps WiFi wireless PCI card. In a nutshell, this is a gizmo that plugs into one of the PowerMac PCI card slots (it's in the back of the Mac, Jack). It has an antenna that sticks out the back, and is supposed to do everything that an Airport Extreme Card can do, including 3G. Several reviews say it works seemlessly with Airport, so I am very hopeful the install will be easy. There are a couple of newer options for the PCI slot that give 4G capability, but I live in a remote rural area and do not think I will see G4 here for several more years. Thinking maybe the good ol' PowerMac will have catastrophic hard drive failure by that time.

Anyway, hope this post saves some PowerMac user three days of grief and hours on the phone with tech support.

unknown

BacktotheMac, as stated previously, this is a computer issue you are having since it works with one computer and not another. We can troubleshoot the Fivespot if it is having issues, but it appears it is not since it works fine on one computer. I gave some troubleshooting steps and also advised it is possible that the security settings of an older computer may not work well with the Fivespot. The third link I provided gave the steps on how to access the security settings which you mentioned.

In the future, I would recommend escalating computer issues to Apple directly at 800-275-2273. They will be better equipped at troubleshooting your computer.

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