On desktops and laptops, several WiFi chips don't require non-free firmwares to be loaded.
Several cases exist:On phones, the only WiFi chip that don't requires a non-free firmware that we know of is the OpenMoko FreeRunner wifi chip. The firmware is in a flash chip.
Device | WiFi chip | driver(s) | USB OTG Host |
---|---|---|---|
GTA04 | Marvell 8686 (W2CBW003) | libertas_sdio(mainline, cfg80211) | Yes(?mA) |
libertas_tf_sdio(patches, mac80211) | |||
LG Optimus Black | Broadcom BCM4329 | Yes(?mA) |
With wifi driver, either the firmware implements the wifi operations (scanning, association, and so on), either the driver implements it.
When the driver implements it, the