There are CardBus-USB and CardBus-SDHC adapters that are as slim as the slot, meaning you can use one in the bottom slot, and a traditionally oriented adapter in the top slot.

I can't think of any CardBus cards that extend below the slot, but the commonly available newly manufactured USB 2.0 and 802.11g adapters available on eBay both don't extend into the upper slot and stay fully in the footprint of a Type II card. To use one of those USB cards properly though you will want a powered hub with a slim connector.
The USB cards come randomly with either VIA or NEC chipsets and are indistinguishable from the label, and you may have compatibility issues with the VIA ones on a laptop that new.

onethirdxcubed wrote on 2026-09-01, 20:07:

The USB cards come randomly with either VIA or NEC chipsets and are indistinguishable from the label, and you may have compatibility issues with the VIA ones on a laptop that new

Oh, yes, I remember VIA chipset cards not working properly on newer laptops, but these were Core 2 Duo laptops from 2006 and later. They should be OK in Pentium 4 era systems like the Inspiron 8200.
https://cloakedthargoid.wordpress.com/laptop- … ansion-cards-1/

Thanks guys. I actually have one of the slim USB cards on the way. Good to know about the potential pitfalls.

I'll look into the wireless adapter, I couldn't find anything slim but admit I didn't consider something "modern".