The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

Just to hook everyone up, I made a great find reticently.

If you have a new laptop with only a expresscard slot Startech makes
a great serial port adapter. It has a real UART not a prolific PL2303 usb-to-serial chip.
It can program the 2006-08 controller in about 20 second flat.

Here is the link : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...06&Tpk=ec1s950

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

Thanks for the info. Last year I had looked for one that was more then just a usb serial converter but didn't find it.

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

A warning to anyone who sees this and decides it's just what they need: "ExpressCard" is not the same thing as "PC Card" (which used to be called "PCMCIA Card").

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

I ordered mine from Amazon and got it today. It downloaded at least as fast as our laptop with a real serial port, if not faster.

There are several good PCMCIA cards, but this is the first ExpressCard that I've seen that works well.

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

For those who have PCMCIA card slots, try using a Siig PCMCIA 1 port serial card, loads code in about 20 seconds as well. (Much faster than the prolific usb adapters)

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

As far as I'm concerned the Prolific is basically junk. The most inexpensive way to go is with the usb-serial cable with the FTDI chipset, previously covered here:

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...70&postcount=4

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

I found that the two-port version (EC2S950) was the same price, so I chose to go that route. It arrived the other day, and I can report the same results as the other folks: downloads are quicker and more reliable. The only drawbacks I see are mechanical. It seems like the connector between the breakout harness and the card is pretty fragile, and pre-disposed to breakage in the near future. :( I wish there was some easy way to strain relieve it, but short of mounting the laptop on a plywood panel I don't see any obvious solution. I'll be packing the old USB->RS232 adapter just in case.

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

I used hot glue to strain relief mine.

Re: The poor serial port less laptop owners with a ExpressCard Slot
 

Can anyone confirm if this works with a MacBook Pro running Boot Camp? Thanks.