wniemcow

So please be easy on the flames or lack of knowledge.

Ok so after looking at some of the items people have for sale- and rethinking this whole CARPC setup.. I have a couple Noob Questions.

Could i not run a normal Dell Desktop in the trunk with some form of power converter? Pro's and Con's for this?
The reason i ask is i have a pc in my closet colecting dust i wouldnt mind putting to good use. Its a p-4 dell - not sure of specs but its not that old.

Also, went to local car audio shop here in plantation - and they suggested i buy a TVIEW setup (standard touch screen radio thing). If i went that route i would imagine it would have some form of VGA connector in the back that i could plug a CARPC into. So - that means i could pay the 600$ (unit and installation) and add the CPU later or would this not work?

I dont know the TVEIW specs (doesnt arrive to shop until tom.)

So i guess what i am getting at is i dont feel like gutting the car - and i want to look stock (in terms of lcd fitting in the consol - 2007 mustang)

I have a PC - hate to build another if i can use the one i already have..

What are your thoughts?

wniemcow

The desktop i have in closet is a COMPAQ
I believe it is Compaq dc7700 Small Form Factor PC (EN342UT)
Could this be converted to a CARPC?

Anyone up for a trade

RedGTiVR6

regarding your computer, you need to find out if it has any special power requirements.

Some of those small form factor mass made computers use a special power supply.

If it's P4 it's going to be power hungry, which means you have to find a PSU that can support it.

Regarding the screen, I'd double check that the screen does have VGA inputs. Very few car audio screens have VGA inputs.

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Bugbyte

Use an inverter to run the computer. Before doing that, search on "inverter" and "noise" to get an idea of what could be the result.

Remember that you will have to rig it up to start manually each time. You will also have to shut it down using the power button or the menu each time. You can hibernate to prevent booting up each time but will have to wait in the car until it is finished hibernating each time, or until it has shut down.

Cutting the power is an option but YMMV and *could* scramble the disk at some point.

Some inverters will draw power even if the devices plugged into them are off and could drain your battery.

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