CarPC and Centrafuse Install

[guruerror]

Originally Posted by adamw89_2000

...where do u put your dvds and things in like that at? is that on the mini computer itself or fo you have to get a seperate drive for that as well? an if you had a tablet, could u even use dvds?

I'm glad you asked...as I forgot to mention this. I don't use ANY optical media. Given that I was installing this in an off-road vehicle I eliminated as many moving and/or mechanical parts as I could.

The Mini originally came with and optical DVD (built-in) and a mechanical hard drive. I removed the optical drive and replaced the mechanical hard disk with a solid state unit.

All of my music is stored as MP3s on the internal hard drive. To add new tracks I simply put them on a flash drive, insert the flash drive into the USB port which I placed on my dashboard, and touch the Import button in CF's Library.

For movies I typically use a Patriot Magnum 128GB flash drive which plugs in to a USB port that I placed in the console box. This drive holds about 25 DVDs, so I can always have a selection of my son's favorite movies available for him to watch. For 'road trips' I use a 1TB LaCie Rugged external, mechanical hard drive in lieu of the smaller flash drive...the LaCie holds about 200 DVDs. At one point one of the CF programmers had developed a Hulu app for a previous version of CF...I'm hoping that he updates it for the latest version. Having Hulu available in the truck almost made my portables unnecessary.

Others on the CF forum have DVD/Bluray drives installed. Some in the dash, some in the glove box...search around on the CF and mp3car forum and you'll find more info. To use a optical disc with a tablet you'd probably have to use an external drive.

How do you envision mounting the tablet? The smallest Windows tablets I've seen is the HP Slate at 8.9"...I think that'll be a tad too big for the headunit opening; and maybe too wide overall to fit in the internal framework of the dash.

[adamw89_2000]

hadnt got to the details on how to mount it yet, i would prob mount it in the stock radio location, u could always turn them long ways... you could leave it width wise and i could always do some fiberglass work to make the bezel wide enough.. just some ideas... i wouldnt have to have a dvd drive but, i would like one when needed.... also ive got a ton of questions i will b asking on the forums cause im a total noob at all of this but not retarded so i think i can pull it off. i like the idea of the nicer screens a tablet has and of course price over the carpc.. less wiring... less everything except fabrication( which i happen to do bodywork and paint so thats easy for me) i want a dvd drive, be able to listen to the radio, use internet, weather navigation, hook up my back headrest monitors to it. thats pretty much all i need my system to do...

[guruerror]

Originally Posted by adamw89_2000

hadnt got to the details on how to mount it yet, i would prob mount it in the stock radio location, u could always turn them long ways... you could leave it width wise and i could always do some fiberglass work to make the bezel wide enough.. just some ideas... i wouldnt have to have a dvd drive but, i would like one when needed.... also ive got a ton of questions i will b asking on the forums cause im a total noob at all of this but not retarded so i think i can pull it off. i like the idea of the nicer screens a tablet has and of course price over the carpc.. less wiring... less everything except fabrication( which i happen to do bodywork and paint so thats easy for me) i want a dvd drive, be able to listen to the radio, use internet, weather navigation, hook up my back headrest monitors to it. thats pretty much all i need my system to do...

Sweet...if you're good at fiberglass fabrication you can really hook it up. I taught myself how to do it when I did my second screen.

Some thoughts:

One concern about tablets would be 'sunlight readability.' If it's a capacitive touchscreen (like the iPad) it's going to have a terrible glare. Also, if you use a tablet your only screen dimming options maybe gamma adjustment (which CF can do), but carpc touchscreens typically have a sunlight sensor and automatically dim when the ambient light dims.

Do you already have the rear headrest monitors? If they are composite input you may run a problem in general because you'll need a composite out from the tablet/pc and that is becoming hard to find.

The DVD player addition shouldn't be difficult...mount that sucker in the OnStar location.

[adamw89_2000]

yea i was reading something on mp3 forum about the readability of the tablets... they have got some new technology out there now on the newer ones thats supposed to be very good in sunlight??? my trucks tinited very good so that should help... fiberglassing wont be a problem... my back headrest i think are the composite input??? not sure what that means.... i only have a reg 6 disk up front so the back headrest r independent of each other.. dvd in onstar location is good idea....

[glennf1]

Wow! Very nice! Question though.. isn't that in front of the passenger airbag? I'm assuming you just leave it off judging by the pic so you don't have a monitor flying at you at 200mph in the event of a crash!

[adamw89_2000]

yes you leave the airbags out so in the event "god forbid it happens" you wreck. theres not objects being thrown into u..

[adamw89_2000]

guruerror, one question.... if i want to be able to use these devices along side my tablet lets say dvd, wifi, etc.. how am i hooking all these up to the tablet? theres not nearly enough ports or usb on them things to support multiple devices

[guruerror]

Originally Posted by glennf1

Wow! Very nice! Question though.. isn't that in front of the passenger airbag? I'm assuming you just leave it off judging by the pic so you don't have a monitor flying at you at 200mph in the event of a crash!

For my install I took the airbag module completely out. It's in a cabinet in my garage.

I bought a blown airbag module and stripped it down to the metal housing (the part that holds the air canister inside the dash) and used the housing as a mounting bracket to hold the the PC. The airbag switch is still on my dash as a 'place holder.' Eventually I will fabricate a plate with a on/off switch for the second display and a headphone jack for passenger audio.

...and before anyone chimes in about how 'dangerous' it is to not have airbags, blah, blah, blah...don't. I MIGHT agree if this was a some sporty, little, convertible number...but it's not...its a big, fat truck. And I don't wear seat belts or helmets either! LOL!

Originally Posted by adamw89_2000

guruerror, one question.... if i want to be able to use these devices along side my tablet lets say dvd, wifi, etc.. how am i hooking all these up to the tablet? theres not nearly enough ports or usb on them things to support multiple devices

Well, your wifi and bluetooth should be built-in to a tablet; but for everything else you'll need to shove those USB hubs in your dash...make all the ports you need. And I would recommend going with smaller hubs...I actually needed about 6 extra ports, but I went with two 4 port hubs instead of the single 8 port unit. Why? Because the 4 port hubs were shorter and I could easily stack two in the space where OnStar was, but the 8 would have been too long to fit.

The Moxa hubs I bought are kinda pricy...but StarTech makes and industrial hub that is WAY cheaper and offers 7 ports in a very small size. http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-M.../dp/B003AVPUZG I used one of these before buying the Moxas, but it gave me a problem one winter when the temperature consistently dropped below the 'recommended operating temperature' of the hub. It wouldn't turn on until it warmed up a bit...so I eventually went with the pricier Moxas and haven't had a problem since.

[06 SUT]

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