Wireless Signal Boosters

Is there any way to boost the wifi reception on a laptop?

I have a Compaq Presario V6500 series, it has an internal wireless card of some sort (not pcmcia). I need to boost the reception to reach a neighbor's router, it sort of works sometimes with my Sony Vaio S460 but the Compaq has weaker reception. And yes, I've talked to my neighbor - they said it would be okay, I tried to get a cable/dsl line but cannot get service at the moment because this is a new area. Can I buy a router and hook it up to my laptop, would it work as an antenna/signal booster? Or is there some kind of external antenna I can buy for an internal laptop wifi card? Any solution will be gladly recieved, I would buy internet but can't :( and I am desperate.

Public Comments

1. go on eBay search for a "500MW wifi" that should boost your signal with 15times the strength Just like they say on tv not sold in stores
2. you could get a better wireless card and get it installed that would be your best bet
3. Forget the internal wifi card and use a PCMCIA wifi adapter with an EXTERNAL antenna socket. The PCMCIA card will not necessarily improve the situation much, but the flexibility to use a better antenna will help a great deal. You can then choose from a selection of hi-gain directional antennas to get out to your neighbour's router. Try googling for "cantenna" for some home brew hi-gain antenna ideas.