Some laptops (notably Thinkpads) enforce a whitelist of PCI IDs for wireless cards - an "unapproved" card will display a warning in the firmware and won't be visible by the OS.
The excuse if I remember right is FCC compliance, but I call BS given that most other manufacturers successfully get away without it.
That is interesting... I never knew that until now...
Are there any other defining features of the cards that are accepted or the cards that are rejected other than PCI ID? (i.e., Manufacturer, Chipset, MAC, Country Of Origin, Year Manufactured, ?, ???)
Also (and I say this not to you, but to the Internet at large) --
If every PCI ID belongs to a Manufacturer (a company -- and they do!), and some companies cards are accepted and other companies cards are rejected, then...
Wouldn't rejecting some manufacturers Wi-Fi cards -- be in conflict with Federal Trade Commission Antitrust regulations?
