Connecting USB WiFi adapter to PocketPC

[pilgrimme]

My HTC P3400 does not have wi-fi. That sucks. But it does have a USB connection. Will I be able to use my USB Wi-fi adapter (purchased originally to use with my notebook) to give my pocket PC wi-fi connectivity. If I can plug this adapter into my notebook and get wi-fi, does it mean I can plug it into WM and get wi-fi too?

Will drivers for the adapter be an issue in WM?

[Brad Adrian]

I won't say that it CAN'T be done, because I don't have that particular model to play with. However, AFAIK, there aren't any WM-specific drivers that will let you take advantage of the USB port for WiFi.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

I don't think the P3400 has USB host or USB OTG - in other words, your USB connection is client only. This means that you can't use any peripherals through the mini-USB port, even if you could find the drivers for them. For a quick test, try attaching a USB flash drive - the OS has drivers for those installed as standard. If it works you've got a chance.

...and Welcome to PPCT!

[pilgrimme]

Is USB host/ USB OTG a hardware limitation or are there drivers to overcome this? Is it a WM limitation?

[pilgrimme]

Just found this on MS website:
Universal serial bus (USB) On-The-Go (OTG) is a technology standard defined by the OTG supplement to the USB 2.0 specification. This standard lays out a method whereby portable devices can interact directly with other portable devices. The OTG supplement extends the USB 2.0 specification to allow devices to dynamically switch, on the same port, between operating as a USB host and a USB function.

Windows Embedded CE supports USB OTG as of Windows Embedded CE 6.0.

Windows Mobile supports USB OTG as of Windows Mobile 6.

Does this mean that I cannot get it to work on WM5, even manually with workarounds?

[Cybrid]

Just found this on MS website:
Does this mean that I cannot get it to work on WM5, even manually with workarounds?
Nope. I think the limitation is partly physical. On Aximsite, they've been attempting this with no success. Apparently on the X50/51 series, the CPU is USB host capable, the OS is too but the motherboard is not wired to enable functionality. At best you face the same challenge.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

Cybrid is right - it's essentially a hardware limitation. Any PXA-processor equipped device has the required hardware built onto the chip, while the Windows Mobile OS have had HID and Mass Storage drivers since 2003. The problem is, it's up to the individual manufacturer to make the necessary connections from the processor to the USB port, which many don't. The list of host-capable PDAs isn't terribly long.