One of the unique features about the Librem 5 is its modular cellular modem and WiFi/Bluetooth cards. This not only aids in repairing hardware, it also means when new, compatible cards become available (or previous cards unavailable), we have the flexibility to change modules.
Up until December 2022 all Librem5 phones had been shipping with the Redpine RS9116 M.2 module. New Librem 5 Phones are now shipping with the SparkLAN WNFB-266AXI(BT).
That’s pretty cool. I placed an order from Purism yesterday. If I had waited a day, I definitely would have picked one of these up. I’ll probably order one eventually.
Yeah, I checked that right after reading the article and I already got the shipping notice for the previous order. It’s fine though, I’ll just order the new card later.
Ok thanks, I’m hoping in general the BT will perform better with this card. I just emailed support about the upgrade procedure, I’ll report here what they tell me, unless you want to enlighten us @dos?
Usually it’s just a matter of making sure your OS is up-to-date and replacing the card. Only in case your phone is old enough that it has been shipped without firmware jail flashed on it you’ll have to do that yourself.
How do I check this? Is there a shipping date, when the jails were flashed? In the article I did not found any hints.
What about active support for the redpine module? As I read in the article, programming the driver for that one is not finished yet. Do you plan to cancel support for the redpine, so it is better for me to change to SparkLAN?
In summary, I love to tinker with my Librem5! Thank you Purism =)
If there are firmware files in /usr/share/firmware-librem5-nonfree/firmware/brcm, you’re all set.
Apparently SiLabs is resuming support for its mainline Linux driver for Redpine cards, so if that actually materializes we’re going to pull all their improvements into our kernels.
a) Does that mean the new modem is in L5’s shipped since January first or starting February first?
(I would think it is the first option, but the article seems somewhat belated if this really is the case.)
b) Is there a command to check which modem is on board?