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Getting a PowerBook 1400 Networked
Posted by: akator70 on 2026-01-31 04:06:35
I've just purchased a 1400cs/133 and it's lovely (other than the typical issues with a PC card door not closing and hinge cracked plastic).

I've read through everything I can over the last several hours but I haven't been able to figure out a good answer to this question:

What's the best way to network a PowerBook 1400 now (in 2026)?

As far as I can tell it comes down to 2 options:
  • A PCMCIA WiFi card (Orinoco or compatible listed here), but all will require a dedicated WiFi connection to deal with the obsolete WEP security.
  • A 3com EtherLink II or compatible PCMCIA card with a 3C589C or 3C589D chipset and dongle. It's difficult to find one of these complete these days and it seems the cheapest option is to buy them separately.
These options seem to cost at least $30-35 each.

Is there anything I'm missing? Any caveats?

I personally lean toward wired connections whenever possible because of speed and reliability.

Edit: I've gotten spoiled with SCSI drive emulators also providing emulated DaynaPORT and WiFi. It would be incredible is there was something similar for a 1400 but if there is, I can't find it...
Posted by: akator70 on 2026-01-31 07:48:38
Something else I was wondering: from what I've read, all of the compatible PCMCIA cards are 10BaseT and not 100. Is this correct?

Other than having to connect to something using the defunct WEP security, are there any other issues with using one of the WiFi PCMCIA cards? How is the speed compared to the Ethernet PCMCIA cards?
Posted by: Snial on 2026-01-31 08:14:05
Something else I was wondering: from what I've read, all of the compatible PCMCIA cards are 10BaseT and not 100. Is this correct?

Other than having to connect to something using the defunct WEP security, are there any other issues with using one of the WiFi PCMCIA cards? How is the speed compared to the Ethernet PCMCIA cards?
You also need to check if your card is compatible with the version of Mac OS you have. The same is true for ordinary pcmcia Ethernet cards.
Posted by: AlpineRaven on 2026-01-31 16:35:52
I gave up with PCIMCA cards - I have a box full of them - either they are cardbus types - PowerBook 1400 uses 16 bit cards so just heads up.
As my PowerBook 1400 has ethernet card in it which works really well.

You still can buy ethernet card for PowerBook 1400 on ebay every now again but its getting rarer now as I just noticed used to be a couple on ebay years ago and now there isn't any - maybe you'll be able to find one in Japan.
Cheers
AP
Posted by: 3lectr1cPPC on 2026-01-31 16:51:04
I have some Farallon ethernet PCMCIA card which is specifically Mac compatible and works well.
You can also use a hacked driver to get the very common 3Com EtherLink III card to work on certain Mac OS versions.

See: https://www.floodgap.com/retrotech/mac/enet3c589/

Also, if you have a PiSCSI, it can emulate a SCSI ethernet card. PiSCSIs are a little expensive (since you need a Raspberry Pi) but well worth it in my opinion. They give you a web-based interface for file transfer which I find a lot more convenient than something like an external BlueSCSI would be. The Ethernet emulation is just a bonus on top of that really.
Posted by: pl212 on 2026-01-31 19:00:57
There is also the rare Ethernet card that uses a unique-to-the-1400 slot:

https://68kmla.org/bb/threads/powerbook-1400-internal-farallon-ethernet-drivers.30383/

I made sure I got one of these in 1997, not realizing how useful it would be...
Posted by: 3lectr1cPPC on 2026-01-31 19:05:21
Yeah, that's the card that @AlpineRaven referenced. There were similar cards made for the PowerBook 190 and 5300, which I believe let you keep the video output port.
Posted by: Snial on 2026-02-01 00:42:11
Yeah, that's the card that @AlpineRaven referenced. There were similar cards made for the PowerBook 190 and 5300, which I believe let you keep the video output port.
My PB5300 had a combo video/ethernet internal card, but I never used the Ethernet. It was great to have the extra video as I could hook it up to my Sony 15" and get an amazing 800x600 resolution in colour, given that the PB5300 was mono... and only 100MHz!
Posted by: AlpineRaven on 2026-02-01 01:55:14
My PB5300 had a combo video/ethernet internal card, but I never used the Ethernet. It was great to have the extra video as I could hook it up to my Sony 15" and get an amazing 800x600 resolution in colour, given that the PB5300 was mono... and only 100MHz!
Yeah, that's the card that @AlpineRaven referenced. There were similar cards made for the PowerBook 190 and 5300, which I believe let you keep the video output port.
Yep that would be Lupis Video & Ethernet card that was for PowerBook 190/5300 series with an adapter - I had that one too - but PowerBook 1400 is different one and If I recall correctly - there isn't one combined ethernet & video in one.

Cheers
Posted by: croissantking on 2026-02-05 04:41:13
Yep that would be Lupis Video & Ethernet card that was for PowerBook 190/5300 series with an adapter - I had that one too - but PowerBook 1400 is different one and If I recall correctly - there isn't one combined ethernet & video in one.

Cheers

Isn’t it Lupus - like the disease
Posted by: A24A on 2026-02-05 15:00:09
Edit: I've gotten spoiled with SCSI drive emulators also providing emulated DaynaPORT and WiFi. It would be incredible is there was something similar for a 1400 but if there is, I can't find it...

Another option would be a real Dayna Pocket SCSI/Link connected to the SCSI port of the 1400cs/133 (and getting power from the ADB port or a separate power adapter).

Macintosh PowerBook 1400cs/133: Technical Specifications - Apple Support

support.apple.com support.apple.com
Posted by: akator70 on 2026-02-05 15:07:41
Another option would be a real Dayna Pocket SCSI/Link connected to the SCSI port of the 1400cs/133 (and getting power from the ADB port or a separate power adapter).

Oooooo... shiny new gadget I didn't know existed before now. Thanks for that.
Posted by: A24A on 2026-02-05 15:19:38
Oooooo... shiny new gadget I didn't know existed before now. Thanks for that.

Yes, shiny new gadget from 1995.
🙂
A user's guide can be found on the web.

You would have to check whether or how the appropriate DaynaPORT software can be used with the PowerBook's system version, though.
Posted by: croissantking on 2026-02-09 01:57:52
Isn’t it Lupus - like the disease
Oh no wait it’s Lapis
Posted by: LaPorta on 2026-02-09 02:20:49
There's the DaynPort PC card option as well: I have one of those.

In fact, if you could find the appropriate dongle, I also have a Global Village PowerPort Platinum Pro that has two ports on it (one for ethernet, one for a modem). It didn't come with the dongles, but if you could find one somewhere, I'll give you the card for free as I don't need it.
Posted by: Snial on 2026-02-09 03:08:01
It turns out I have a sonic PcCard ethernet adapter that should work with my PB1400c too. I'll try it and provide an update!
Posted by: akator70 on 2026-02-09 09:56:52
There's the DaynPort PC card option as well: I have one of those.

In fact, if you could find the appropriate dongle, I also have a Global Village PowerPort Platinum Pro that has two ports on it (one for ethernet, one for a modem). It didn't come with the dongles, but if you could find one somewhere, I'll give you the card for free as I don't need it.
Thank you for the kind offer. If I can acquire an Ethernet dongle for it, I'll take you up on that.
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