So I'm thinking about putting a PC in my car.

Anyone familiar with doing this ?

I was thinking about this :
Link

Would it be enough to play 720p HD .wmv movie files through Windows Media Player ?

Is it a good choice or is there a better / cheaper way?

That's a nice ready-to-go solution.

With a car PC, the trickiest bit is the PSU. Once you get a PSU assembled, the PC itself isn't that hard.

Loking at the parts on that, it should do everything that you'd want it to, and you should be able to upgrade it with any mini-ITX motherboard that comes along later, as well as HDD and RAM. Video is going to have to be on-board.

That looks pricey to me for 512M RAM and the HDD size, but RAM and HDDs are relatively cheap, and that should be easy enough to upgrade. Well, if it comes with an OS, that price isn't nearly as bad.

I built a CarPC last year. It was a hell of a fun project, right up there with my LLPJ. As you know, I started parting it out last week, not because I didn't like the CarPC but because I needed the money.

As far as the linked PC, I agree with SG. It looks like it would fit your requirements, but it does look a bit pricey. There are definitely cheaper methods. Here's my CarPC project over at MP3car.com. I used what's called the "Ghetto Install". Basically I just installed an old e-machines I had lying around. I didn't put it in a custom case or anything, I just strapped the PC in my trunk. Also, I didn't use a DC-DC power supply, I just wired an inverter. I did fabricate a custom console for the touchscreen on the interior of my car. This is the "cheap way out" - but it worked just fine for me for over a year.

I don't like the inverter solution, but it's simple and cheap.

My main reason for not liking the inverter is an old one, as I no longer compete with my car stereo, but competition rules forbid using an inverter. (Seems kind of dumb to me, since all SMPS circuits used in car audio by their very definition include an inverter.)

I suppose that the inefficiency of taking DC, ramping it up to AC so that it can be converted back to DC is a bit on the befuddling side as well.

I would also want to take care that the inverter is not operating at all when the car is shut down.

I hear ya. But I used it because it was cheap and easy. A DC-DC power supply is going to set you back about $100, my inverter was $40. I set the bios of my PC to turn the PC on anytime it received power. I set the inverter to be controlled by a relay. So i'd flip the inverter relay switch - the PC would boot up. To shutdown I would use the "Shutdown" or "Hibernate" command in windows. Once the PC had shutdown I would turn the inverter off. I used lighted switches so it was obvious when the inverter was on. I used my CarPC in this fashion for over a year and I never once killed my battery by leaving the inverter on.

Well this is what I'm thinking.

A Dell Optiplex SX280: -- $250
3.0 ghz P4
1gb Ram
40gb Harddrive (will replace with a 500gb I have)
DVD/CDRW drive
Samll form Factor (9.5"x10.25"x3.5")

DC-to-Dc adapter with brainstem ---- $125
XM PC adapter -- $50
10.4" Touchscreen --- $250
GPS --- $50

The one thing I am concerned with is the 10.4" touchscreen. See I really want a HD touchscreen , but it doesn't seem like there are any out there. The 10.4" are all 800x600 native and I want at least a 1024x768 but preferably a 1280x768.

I was thinking about a 10.6" Samsung with controller , but how would I add touchscreen to it?

Any ideas or comments on my setup?

Would it play 720p WMV videos fine?

Also how do you add FM?

Thanks for the help

I would like to see at least 1 more GB of ram, but as is it should be able to play 720p WMV's pretty decent.

As for FM, you could go with something like this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16815100017 since it does have an FM antenna input as well as being an ATSC/NTSC tuner, that one is a bit pricier than I would go, but after looking at the model Dell your looking at, I don't see any PCI slots on it, so the $20 route is out of the question.

Well I'm running through all the possibilities.

Looks like the Dell will have the most power/harddrive/dvd that I need.


But like i said the big drawback is the 800x600 10.4" touchscreens on the market. I don't know if I will be happy with them.

But I was also looking at tablet Pc's. Then just take off the screen and extend the lvds cable. The 10" are 1024x768 and the 12.1" are 1280x800 but I don't know if I can fit a 12.1" in my dash. I can mod a 10.4" or 10.6" to fit pretty easily.

Decisions, decisions.

Check this out. They have other models that are even smaller, and some very cool looking 12VDC power adapters. Scan their website, and check out what they have. If done correctly, (one thing I was thinking about doing) is you could mount a 7" touch screen LCD in a double din dash, and mount one of there "Pico" computers behind it. So that way you dont have to have a PC box under a seat or in your trunk, It'll all be right there in the dash. Now as far as the HD goes, I dont think the pico can do it (can do DVD fine), but it might be able to do HDWMV. The unit at that link, from what i been told, can do HDWMV, but might have trouble with Blu-Ray.

I had a car PC for about a year until my car was broken into and my monitor stolen . I used a cappuccino pc and a carnetix P1900 psu. It worked great. The psu started the computer when I turned the car on and put it into hibernation when i shut the car off. I haven't gotten around to trying to re-install it, so if you're interested in the psu, pm me.

http://www.mp3car.com has all the info you could want.

Wow so I think I got it worked out.

Here's what I did.

10.4" Touchscreen in the dash. 800x600 resolution. I might put in a 10.6" 1280x768 Samsung if I can get a touchscreen that will fit it.

Hp Slimline S3300F under the front seat. It is a 4"x13"x11" computer so it fit perfect.
Specs:
AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor 5000+(2)
2gb Ram
500gb Harddrive
6.1 surround sound card.

I added a Geforce 8400 Video Card with S-Video out. So I can run Navigation up front and movies on the back 2 headrest monitors.
I also took out the power supply and added a M4-ATX Power Supply to run off DC with turn on/off hibernation control.
I modified my XM Direct to work with the PC.
I added a USB GPS system.
I added HD radio to have AM/FM using my existing car antenae.
I added a Griffin Powemate knob for direct sound control.

I am debating adding a LG Hd-Dvd/Blu-Ray drive. I already have a 3' Sata cable and a modified 3' Sata Power cable so I can munt it in the cupholder area. Just don't know if Blu-Ray and Hd-Dvd would be overkill on a 10.4" screen ?

All in all this turned out a lot more expensive than I had predicted to the wife. But I didn't want to have to upgrade for a few years. And with a brand new 2007 Yukon Xl I don't think I'll be changing automobiles any time soon.

Oh and when I say I have done all this I really mean I am in the middle of doing it. Pics will be added when I finish

Check here, I don't know what their prices are like, or what your size constraints might be where you have your current 10.4" mounted, but they do have a few varying sizes that might fit over a 10.6 well enough, as I have seen someone use a 12" touchscreen overlay on a 10.6" panel.


BTW I am really looking forward to seeing your results.

I put one in my car a few years back. I used a laptop with a Large HD (80GB) to store all my MP3 and videos, w/o screen (use it for another PJ ) Power used the easy A/C inverter. Then downloaded a copy of ??? something like Windows On-Screen Keyboard only better. Then I used an external CD/DVD drive in the dash under my Kenwood with aux in.

I had 2 problems, the first being that in CO during the winter the screen would drop below the minimum temp and freeze causing it not to work right for ~20-30 mins as the car warmed up. The second problem being I had HUGE glare problems during daylight hours, near impossible to see anything much less a movie. You would have to DIY a brighter light as the CFL isnt nearly bright enough for daylight use.

I had a screen like the one below only lower res, it also has a compsite in so you can easily add a rear camera to your car/truck if needed.

I dont have the car anymore or I would snap a picture for you.

Ebay listing for a 1280x1040 touch screen 7 inch

Yea glare on the scren is a huge problem .

I went with a 10.4" , 800x600 native touchscreen. But the glare was so terrible that I removed the touchscreen. Went with a touchpad and a Media Center remote from Gyration that controls the cursor, volume, Windows Media Player playback,etc.

Now I made a mistake and forgot to hook the screen to the regulated power supply and it blew up. So I started researching better screens. The screen I just bought is a 10.4" 1024x768 native resolution screen. It has 400nit brightness and it is the ONLY screen on the market with TRUE 180 degree viewing. It is made by a Avionics company for NASA and the US Government and Boeing 747's and flight simulators.

Supposed to be one of the best sunlight readable displays on the market.

I'll do comparison shots when I get it in.

If its in your budget, tinted windows will cut the glare BIG TIME...

Heck no I can't afford tinted windows. I have to invest another $1000 in this DA%^& car pc......

hey jonjandran what kind of usb gps did you get I thought about getting one for my laptop. I figured this was cheaper then one of those you see everybody has stuck on the windshield. Plus I could find the software that I like and upgrade maps and stuff via the web. Let me know. Thanks.

I'm using the GlobalSat BU-353. Costs around $40 on Ebay and it works perfect. It has a super strong magnet if you want to mount it on your car roof. You will probably need a USB extension which is about $7 on Ebay because it only has a 5' cord. I got a 10' extension and put it on my roof

Sorry I guess I should have asked what software you are using? I see there are a ton of different options. Did yours come with software? Thanks again

No it didn't come with software.

I got iGuidance V4. it is regarded as one of the best for the car.

About $100 new , cheaper if you buy it used on Ebay.

If you have a spare polarizer you could try combining it with a ¼ wave retarder to make a circular polariser and place it on the screen. Or buy a ready made one from polorization.com.

DJ

The more I think about the more I realise that a Car PC is never going to be on my list of projects, as cool as they are, (or can be).

We have two ways out of town, north or south. Kinda makes GPS route finding a little bit redundant!

Here's my results:

Well I finally finished "most" of my project.

First the car. It's a 2007 GmC Yukon XL :





Now for my sound : I have a Kicker Solobaric 12" powered by a Sony 900 watt mono amp :



Now for my carputer setup :

HP Pavilion Slimline S3300f
10.4" Shark 800x600 screen
M4-Atx 250 watt Power Supply
XM Radio via Xm direct and Mp3car.com Xm adapter
HD radio via Visteon HDZ300 and mitch's HD cable
GPS via iGuidance v4 and BU353 Antenna
Ergonomic Touchpad
Griffin Powermate
3d Conexxion Space Navigator
Gyration Media Center Keyboard and Remote


PC Specs:


Processor : AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor 5000+(2)
Memory : 2048MB
Memory speed: PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM
Graphics : NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE 128MB
Hard disk drive(s): 500GB 7200RPM SATA
Primary Dvd: SuperMulti DVD Burner with LightScribe Technology
Dimensions : 13.89 x 4.21 x 10.87 in THIS THING IS PRETTY SMALL

First thing I did was add a low profile Geforce 8400 with DualView.

Second thing was to buy a M4-Atx and modify it to fit in the case.
I had to re-wire the 24 pin Atx connector to work with the HP Slimline proprietary plug :



Then I had to make a case for it to fit in the HP case :







Here's what the inside of the HP Slimline looks like without the power supply :

When I moved the DVD drive to the center console the M4-ATX went in it's spot.

Now for the Dash.

Here's what it looked like before:


I had a Clarion VRX765VD in the dash with a XM adapter and a Video Ipod adapter.

I decided that wasn't enough and put in a 10.4" Shark :


I had to move the air condition controls down. I also removed the 2 cigarette lighters and anti-skid control underneath it.
I had to trim the dash bezel and modify behind it just a little bit.
I also had to remove the 10.4" screen from the case and trim the front monitor bezel for it to fit.
I then had to extend the OS board wires 3 ft for it to fit in the center console.





Next up was to move the DVD player into the center console.
I had to extend the power and Sata wires about 3ft.
Then I took a Dvd rack from a PC and adapted it to fit in the console.
Then I trimmed the center cup holder area to flush mount the Dvd Player.



Here's a pic of it coming out right up to the cupholders:



As you can see from the pics I also added a touchpad. The 10.4" touchscreen had way to much glare so it had to go.
I replaced it with a touchpad from here :
http://www.ergonomictouchpad.com/ergonomic_touchpad.php

This touchpad is awesome. It acts just like a mouse and has easy page scrolling and everything

I also added a wireless keyboard and remote. It's made by Gyration. Got it from CircuitCity for $24. The keyboard is small - 6"x12.5" and less than 1/2"-3/4" thick.
Also the remote controls volume, dvd playback, and it has built in mouse control with the gyration feature built in.

As mentioned I put the Dvd player in the center console. I also have the Creative Live! External in there:



I put the PC under the passenger front seat. It fits perfect with plenty of room for peoples feet in the back seat :



Here is a pic of the back seat area when the front seat is where it stays and the PC is where it stays.



I also have 2 - 9" Headrest monitors that can play what is playing in the front or anything else the backseat passengers want :



Right now they are running off composite but I have 2 - Vga controllers ordered for higher resolution. the 9" can display 800x480.

And here is a pic of RoadRunner running :

Looking good! I could never get Road Runner to work correctly for me. I ended up sticking with Frodo just because I was able to get it to work for me...

I have almost done everything I want to do but it's a hobby so I have plans

I have a 500nit 180 degree 1024x768 high res screen on it's way.

I also have a SpaceNavigator on it's way. This is a controller knob like the kind in BMW 7 series.

I am also changing out the DVD player for a HD-Dvd/Blu-Ray player, the LG GGC-H201

It's been fun but there has been some problems.
I didn't have regulated 12v power on the screen and blew one up and had to order another.
I have spent about 40 hours on this. It was quite tedious some of the wire extending and soldering.

And making everything work together has been a chore.

And I have over $1200 invested right now...... YIKES !!!

But it has been fun and I have quite a feeling of accomplishment.

Thanks for looking

Looks awesome dude!

No pull down projection screen though? What gives?

An update.

I added the Hd-Dvd/Blu-Ray drive.

I upgraded to the 1024x768 sunlight readable display. This thing is awesome. It uses a special Fringe Field Switching Technology to get almost 180 degree viewing angle from ALL FOUR ANGLES. You can literally be sitting anywhere and the Lcd has the exact same brightness/contrast as when viewed straight on.

I also upgraded the rear headrests. They have Toshiba 800x480 9.2" Lcd's in them, but they only had Composite/Rca inputs which looked terrible hooked up to a PC. So I upgraded the controllers to VGA to take advantage of the better resolution. It makes a HUGE difference. Text is now readable and movies look awesome.

Well here's some pics.

Okay I got to snap a few pictures of the headrest. Notice the VGA cord I had to run a bit in view. It wouldn't fit inside the headrest pole like the power wires did.



The controller that was in it was a standard composite only controller. Here is what it looked like :



Now what I had to do was strip out the old controller and OSD boards. I left the buttons in. Then I bought some breadboard from Radioshack and cut it down to the size I needed for the OSD buttons. Then I soldered on 4 tact switches. Then I wired these to the OSD board that came with the new VGA controller :






Then I fit it all back in the headrest :



And here is the MUCH improved image at 1024x768. The grain and lines are from resizing the photo. Sorry.

And here are some pics to show the awesome viewing angle of the new screen. :

The VisionTouch Sunlight Readable is on top installed in the dash.
The older Shark is on the bottom back in it's case.

These pics really show the off angle viewing advantage of the VisionTouch.




You can really see in this next pic that the Shark has a bad viewing angle from above But the viewing angle from all other directions were "pretty good".





And here's the new LG GGC-H201 Blu-Ray/Hd-Dvd player in the place of the Dvd player.

Now I get to watch all my HD movies in the car.

Some pics. Click on them to see the high res pics

Geez louweezz JJ, don't we have time and money to spend Seriously though, dam sweet set up you have going here. Overwhelming with envy

1. Very nice. (...said with Borat Accent!)
2. You have WAAAYYYYYYYYY too much time on your hands.
3. Really, Very Nice!

Thanks guys

jon,

you couldn't just have an ordinary carputer.

your install looks very clean and well thought out...and again we're all jealous . I don't know how the wife feels about all this but if you've got kids you're probably the coolest dad they know.