Old iMac needs wifi

My daughter bought a used 4-year old iMac with 21" display (one piece). Works great, but it's in an upstairs bedroom without ethernet connection. The iMac has no wifi capability.
What are some ways to make this economically "wi-fi" connected to the router downstairs?

If it's a 2007 iMac, it would have wi-fi (airport)...

I agree. Any 4 year-old iMac already has built-in WiFi (Airport).

- Nick

Look in the Networks section of System Preferences and turn WiFi on.

Have only ever seen one 2009 iMac without an Airport Extreme card and it was from a college where ethernet ruled supreme. Was it possible to purchase education models with no Airport card?

@harryb2448-
Yes, I think that is precisely the case. it is a 2009, and was purchased from a university after their "3-year rotation" was over (for PC's they replace after 3 years, for Macs, they only replace after 4 years!).

And we have looked in the Networks part of System Prefs, and it says "no airport card available."

So -- now. What's the best option? Can you buy airport cards for these? Or is an external device better?

With your model info you should be able to get the correct part # for the card. I also found OWC very helpful in finding the one I needed for my old G4. I can knock down a house and rebuild it no problem but cringe if I have to open the computer but all the worries were for nothing, installation was a breeze.

So -- now. What's the best option? Can you buy airport cards for these? Or is an external device better?

Click to expand...

Replacing or installing an airport card in a 2009 iMac is a difficult task since the entire machine has to be disassembled. (display panel must be removed) You may be better off with an external USB wireless device for that machine. Just be sure to find one that will work with the version of OS X you're running.