More of the Wireless Broadband Malfunction
-Trouble with HP Laptops’ Wireless Broadcom Cards-Contact / Get Help
-HP QuickPlay Downloads
Okay, so after installing the 83 MB Nvidia gforce 6150 driver on my dv2120us, the wireless card worked until i shut down the laptop. After I re-opened it, I had problems. This time the wireless switch stays red instead of blue, and no wireless card is detected; once again, the broadcom wireless card has disappeared. Low and behold, HP update didn’t show anything, but windows update did, a 33 MB driver for the same Nvidia card. So i updated with that. No luck! But once again, the HP Update driver shows up again, and I have to re-install to make that shit work! I had heard of such problems with vista beta on HP laptops, but you would think both Microsoft and HP would have resolved the issue by now. Maybe it’s time to revert back to Windows XP Media Center Edition.
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April 27th, 2007 at 11:59 pm
Okay, if you extract the SP34488 download from the HP site for the Wireless Broadcom LAN NIC to your c:\SwSetup\SP34488A, just use the is.exe application file in that folder to install the driver. Then reboot your machine, and that will apparently resolve the Vista cum Broadcom Wireless LAN issue every time. And for this to function you need to have the SP34747 driver installed for the Nvidia Gforce 6150. I think this will work for the dv2000 and 6000 series with AMD Processors.
June 11th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
But isnt it to boring to have to execute that is.exe every time you turn on your laptop? there must be another easy way.
June 11th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Even that’s not a permanent fix, my friend. It’s defetive hardware. Only way to fix it is to get it replaced from HP.
March 17th, 2008 at 2:56 am
I really don’t know exactly how I did it but I was able to fix this on my hp6353 notebook after about 2 or more months of fiddling with it every other day. I agree , with everybody here was a combination one two punch from the makers of both hardware and software leaving everybody out to hang. When I finnally found a way to keep the driver showing up in the device manager, I kept fooling around with a combination of sfc scannow and such other vista repair options, but finally I thought I had it on a chase and I was right, the blasted computer started making all kinds of really funky sounds emminating from the direction of the broadcom hardware. then it stuck. I had to then keep turning the laptop on and off again almost like trying to park the hard drive because If I didn’t do that it would keep making this unbelievable racket the shut itself off. Well anyway when that finnally seemed to park correctly and then restarted a few times…. it stopped making that racket and the wireless is working correctly now.
Now if I go to the microsoft site update , it has options to update the broadcom and some other crap. I won’t do that test yet until I have some good testing the way it is. Good luck to you all , summary is I think it is both a hardware and driver screw up but you will make it work if you are persistent on the obsesive degree.
March 23rd, 2008 at 11:37 pm
If you decide to send your laptop to HP to repair the wireless problem, when you get it back DO NOT update the bios. I sent mine in for repair and when I got it back it worked fine for almost 6 months, until the HP update popped onscreen with a bios update. After I updated the bios the wireless problem started all over again. I gave up and ended up buying a usb wireless dongle that solved the problem for me.
March 24th, 2008 at 3:51 am
I have been having the same exact problem that is described above. When this first started happening, i contacted hp through their chat customer service. They told me to download the driver updates off their website and update the bios. This did not work. I have been messing around with the settings and rolling back the drivers when i got the chance but none of this fixed the issue permanatly. If i restarted my computer, it would work sometimes and then go off or vice versa. My newest theory on why this happens is that it has something to do with the laptop overheating. We all no that these laptops shut off when they got to hot. One day i turned on my laptop and the wireless was working… then after about a few hours it dissappeared and my computer shut itself off immediatly. WTF? i quickly tried to turn it back on and the wireless did not work. Then after about an hour and a half of letting the laptop sit and cool off i turned it back on and the wirless was working fine. could this be happening becuase of the heat inside the laptop?
March 24th, 2008 at 5:21 am
I’m sure that heating has a part to play in it. However, the issue is ultimately about defentive hardware, even if it is caused by heating up.
But I haven’t necessarily seen the corelation between heating and the disappearance of the wireless card. It vanishes because of some kind of a conflict between the the broadcom hardware and the motherboard, which hp and broadcom have apparently been unable to resolv.e
May 28th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
I just got mine back from HP repair for the same problem. They say it was a thermal pad problem… whatever that means. But it works now, so I guess thats a win.
May 28th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
I bought my hp dv9428nr last summer, and the wireless disappeared at startup about a month ago. This was so terribly frustrating, but after about 5 attempts at rebooting it would turn blue and be detected. When looking to find a solution to this problem I stumbled upon this site, which explains that it’s a malfunction many hp users are experiencing. I tried the Nvidia download which so far has seemed to work. Thanks for the advice. When I go back to the US this summer I still might trade it in since I don’t know how long it will last. I do know that this is the last time I buy an HP laptop. Let me know if you get around to organizing a class action suit. Thanks.
May 31st, 2008 at 1:51 pm
take it all back. it’s stopped working again…
May 31st, 2008 at 1:58 pm
cvwiz. Do you have Roxio installed?
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:00 am
Yes, I have Roxio installed.
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:02 am
Get rid of it and see if your wireless card comes back. It has for a couple of people, it may for you too.
June 3rd, 2008 at 2:20 pm
I uninstalled Roxio, and so far so good. I’ll keep you posted if I have further problems. Thanks for the suggestion.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:43 am
I do believe removing Roxio has resolved the wireless detection problem. I have since shutdown my computer and started up without any problems. For dv9000 this may be a solution. Thanks again for your advice.
June 10th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
I did the Roxio option and it worked fine… for only one day until I had to restar the laptop because of all the Vista updates. I am using a Tablet tx1000 series with home premium
The problem came back after installing the Nvidia update from MS. The so-called sp34488a only works and does not finish the install proces, although the last dialogue box shows that the installation process has finished and that the broadcom wifi has started, nothing happens, only the bluetooth signal stays on
The blue light is working fine, and since the bluetooth is still running smooth, i guess is not a problem with the switch, but happens the same way, if I turn off the laptop (or go into standby) the re-start process does not take the driver and it disappears from the list, even if it still appears as installed on the Programs and Characteristics menu
I know, I know, if I am developing such a hard feeling for Vista, HP and Broadcom, why oh why did I bought the stuff???? What can I say… just a human with flaws
June 10th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
OK, continuing with the long series of the one-two; so far, I did a combination of three actions: 1. Completely removed all of the Roxio sw, 2. Did the battery/cable-off and switch on for some more of the 15-30 sec and finally 3. Did not allow the update of the nVidia drivers… so far…
BTW I am using a tx1232la with Turion64×2, nVidia GeForce (something I do not recall) and of course the infamous Vista with its Home Premium spawn
lets see….
June 10th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
I hate to say it but my laptop is back to its old tricks and takes numerous times to start up. What a pain this is!
June 11th, 2008 at 12:58 am
When I was facing this problem, I didn’t know about the Roxio fix. However, I can confirm as per Ysrael’s and other people’s observation that installing the nVidia update made the problem worse, although in my case it eventually popped up even when I didn’t make the update.
However, a combination of going back to an older driver and ridding your pc of roxio may actually solve the problem.
cvwiz, sorry you’re having problems again. Do you have an nvidia or ATI based video card?
June 11th, 2008 at 2:55 pm
OK, guys, bad news, I really hate to accept that the motherboard and service painful trip is the only option ahead
Yesterday after a couple of standby stops (yes standby and not turning off neither restart nor hibernating) the problem arose again, so I will try to mess the rest of this week with some harder stuff, like hitting the card and taking the hardware to a group therapist (and in the meantime see if registry modifications and other things work)
Sadly here in LA a class action is only a dream
June 11th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
What Anna from HP Total Care says:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=2699642&postcount=5
June 11th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
What Anna from HP Total Care says:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=2699642&postcount=5
Also check the Link on the same page for servicing and updating
June 14th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Thanks Asif.
Holding the button down for 30 seconds and taking the battery and power supply out worked for my friend’s dv2120us laptop (Windows XP). Before, her internet would only work right after she fully reboots her computer to the factory default settings. If she shut off her computer and turned it back on, her WLAN would disappear from her computer entirely. Once again, thanks again
June 25th, 2008 at 11:39 am
I’ve found that the problem isn’t going away, but holding down the start button at start for at least 10 counts seems to help. “Restarting” wasn’t working at all. On someone’s suggestion on this blog I tried holding down the start button, and that got my wireless back. I’m not able to hold it down for more than 10 seconds on my unit without it shutting down down again. My built-in camera often doesn’t work in much the same way as the wireless. If my computer’s been on for a long time it just stops detecting that the camera is there. I need to send it in to repair these problems. How long does HP usually take to make repairs? I will do it in LA this summer. Does anyone have any idea?
June 25th, 2008 at 10:49 pm
It depends on whether they have the parts in stock or not. If they do, no more than two weeks. If they don’t, even they don’t know.
June 27th, 2008 at 1:00 am
Well regarding the webcam it workd by installing an updated driver directly from HP (I used to have the very same problem) now, going back to the wifi: I have found that only after I turn off the laptop (with the usual Turn Off option from the Start menu) and living it alone the suficient time to allow the HDD to stop properly, when I turn on the machine again, it recognizes the broadcom card and it keeps working perfectly throughout the day; ok now the downside:
if i have to put the machine into hibernation or stand by because I need to commute or change places, it will dissapear on the 90% of the ocassions so, I had to put to work a “Flintstone” technique: bought a usb wifi from Linksys (yes the guys that DO actually know how to make things work) and use it as a backup
Also, if you ever need a laptop while yours is on service, you need to tell the people at service that you need it and they will find one for you in order to keep you “working”
June 27th, 2008 at 1:06 am
(NOTE to the guys at the RIAA: when I wrote the word “Flintstone” not for a single second I thought of the song, nor the tune or any of its parts, also I was not using the word as trying to make any profit from it and I didn’t distributed any related memorabilia or asked anybody to do so)
July 4th, 2008 at 3:37 am
I “think” i “may” have fixed this permanently, for myself. Heres the story:
For some reason or another my laptop suddenly decided to refuse to start up, instead, flashing a blue screen at me as soon as windows loaded, (not long enough to read), and then rebooting. After muddling about for a while trying safe mode and chkdsk from the recovery disk to no avail, i went into the bois and tried reseting everything to default. While going about and looking at what had changed i realized that in the boot options the network adapters part was set to [Disabled]. I changed that a voila! it works again! however i dont know if it will last. other thingsi have done that fixed it have lasted, at best, 1 day. Hope that helps!
September 20th, 2008 at 1:37 am
hi i just bought hp dv9646em, an i am having wireless problems as it does not detact any wirless network.please help!!
October 31st, 2008 at 12:57 pm
HP Tablet TX1260ea
Went for screen and motherboard repairs came back a couple of days ago and now the wireless wont work!! Light shows blue so I’m told its a ‘driver’ issue and not a hardware problem. Spoke to techie guys and they said restore back to factory settings. I have too much data to just do this willy nilly as a testing ground for hp’. HELP PLZ
October 31st, 2008 at 11:48 pm
Okay, Temp, Aidtya, there’s really nothing you can do but call and ask for a replacement.
Whoever tells you it is a driver issue is full of shit. The light is blue because that’s what it was when the driver was last detected. At some point if you restart it may turn red too. Defective hardware means a replacement, or you use a USB wireless ethernet card.
June 3rd, 2009 at 8:49 pm
Hello!!
I have an HP pavillion dv9000 17″ … The wireless is not picking up any networks and the light stays orange the whole time. I do not know what to do with it to make it work. It’s been like that for months. Once in a while it will randomnly work but then it wont for a long time. What should I do???? >_< HELPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!
June 4th, 2009 at 7:17 am
The easiest way to fix this problem is to buy a USD dongle / 802.11 card. Alternatively, you can burn your laptop and send me the video. I’ll be more than glad to put it up here.
August 21st, 2009 at 7:31 pm
I have a tx2000 and have been having several intermittent problems with different devices not working and not appearing in the device manager, for the last few months (my warranty expired four months ago). The latest problem is the wireless card not being listed in device manager and having no wireless internet. Previously the webcam, tablet function, and fingerprint reader stopped working and were not listed in the device manager. I was able to get these devices working again by playing around with the usb drivers listed in the device manager. I rolled back one of the drivers and now those three devices are working. Another problem I had for a while is that my laptop would crash and go to a blue screen about five minutes after I plugged in a device into a usb port (ipod, mouse, etc). Somehow I was able to get that problem to go away, but now my wireless internet is not working and I am about to take a hammer to the computer. I keep thinking that if I just mess with installing/uninstalling, rolling back drivers, or updating that it will come back but these motherboard issues people keep mentioning is frightening.