Scion xB '06, in-dash Atom 330, Lilliput 889GL; details, pictures, links. Index: pg 1

**HiJackZX1** · 01-07-2009, 03:37 PM

I think you are so crazy for using ELO panels. Four 17 inch screens put together dont even equal the weight of the ELO. I do have to say though, they are high quality. My only other thinking as to why they are heavy is to keep the screen from moving when placed ontop of a POS station. Have you guys maybe thought of buying regular LCDs and just adding a touch kit? I think a ELO 17 inch goes for about $550? You could get a 17" for $180.00 or less and the touch kit for about $120.00= $300.00. Benefits would be very light weight, cheaper, thinner. The Cons would be, it wouldnt be as tuff. If you ever need to replace the ELO, you could go that route.

**rdholtz** · 01-08-2009, 08:20 AM

Originally Posted by HiJackZX1

I think you are so crazy for using ELO panels. Four 17 inch screens put together dont even equal the weight of the ELO. I do have to say though, they are high quality. My only other thinking as to why they are heavy is to keep the screen from moving when placed ontop of a POS station. Have you guys maybe thought of buying regular LCDs and just adding a touch kit? I think a ELO 17 inch goes for about $550? You could get a 17" for $180.00 or less and the touch kit for about $120.00= $300.00. Benefits would be very light weight, cheaper, thinner. The Cons would be, it wouldnt be as tuff. If you ever need to replace the ELO, you could go that route.

Well, crazy is a term we hear a lot, but it's relative. Some people think anyone who'd put a PC in a car is crazy; they probably don't realize that every car produced today has multiple computers; we're just adding one we can control. So MP3Car people are only relatively crazy, right?

The price on Elo panels isn't bad when you get 'em on eBay. Josh got this for about $170 delivered, I believe. These panels may be heavy, but they're hellaciously tough, and very bright and clear. It's fine in sunlight, and Josh has to turn the brightness way down at night.

There's no back or sides on the unit, since it came out of a kiosk. The next time I'm up there -- in a week or so -- we'll put together a plastic surround for the sides, but we'll leave the back open for cooling. It'll be a good chance to find out if my plastic welding skills can come up to the standard of Josh's TIG welding.

It'll also let us change that harsh lower right corner you can see in this image:

Click image to enlarge.

If you're the passenger and you're not careful getting in, that corner can put a real whack on your knee. We need to fix that by making it rounder and thicker, and maybe even adding a softer surface.

Of course, it'll will only matter to you if you bump into it painfully hard; it won't damage the panel or the mount. It's a very solid system.

**MeeM** · 01-08-2009, 09:37 AM

I'm toying with the idea of using an Eee PC as my car PC instead of my current plan which is to use a mini-ITX mobo under the seat. I don't intend on taking my car PC out of my car once it's in there. I like the fact that installing the Eee in my dash will be easier in that the whole system is in the dash, as opposed to the LCD in the dash and the system under the seat, with cables running in between. Then again, having the LCD independent of the system is good because if I decide to change the car PC, I can change the system under the seat and the LCD will still be fine.

Can anyone help me decide which route to take?

**fone** · 01-08-2009, 02:00 PM

Originally Posted by rdholtz

If you're the passenger and you're not careful getting in, that corner can put a real whack on your knee. We need to fix that by making it rounder and thicker, and maybe even adding a softer surface.

Of course, it'll will only matter to you if you bump into it painfully hard; it won't damage the panel or the mount. It's a very solid system.

A fast option would be to buy those protectors for table corners that are used to prevent small children from hitting table corners, although it may not look nice.

**rdholtz** · 01-08-2009, 03:05 PM

Originally Posted by MeeM

I'm toying with the idea of using an Eee PC as my car PC instead of my current plan which is to use a mini-ITX mobo under the seat. I don't intend on taking my car PC out of my car once it's in there. I like the fact that installing the Eee in my dash will be easier in that the whole system is in the dash, as opposed to the LCD in the dash and the system under the seat, with cables running in between. Then again, having the LCD independent of the system is good because if I decide to change the car PC, I can change the system under the seat and the LCD will still be fine.

Can anyone help me decide which route to take?

I started out planning to put a PC under the driver's seat, but changed to the netbook-in-the-dash. I originally was fascinated with the EeePC 901's size-to-power ratio. It fit into my dash as is, and had enough power to do just about anything I wanted. It handles Centrafuse with grace. I loved the idea that I could take the PC out of the car whenever I wanted to.

If I had it to do all over again, though, I would still use the EeePC, but I'd choose a different model. While the 8.9-inch model 901 works well, I wish I'd bought the 10.2-inch model 1000H. The 901's keyboard is simply too small to use for any length of time -- at least for hands like mine -- and that limits its utility out of the car. It lacks a hard drive, so I have to plug a portable USB drive in for my music collection. The 1000H comes with a large (up to 160GB) hard drive.

And I'd use the larger netbook differently -- much as you propose to do. If I'd bought the 1000H, I'd disassemble it and build its screen into my dash; the PC portion could live behind it. That system eliminates the cable runs, and that's a very good thing. But it does make upgrades problematic; we're pretty much stuck with what we have until we replace everything. That seems okay -- the PC will probably outlive the car, anyway.

I'm keeping the EeePC 901, but I'm thinking right now that I'll be leaving it in the car full time, and switch to an iPhone or Android phone for my occasional use outside the vehicle. I still have it set up to return the vehicle to stock if I ever decide to sell it, unless the buyer loves the carPC enough to pay for it.

Having said all that, and having worked on both the PC-under-the-seat and the netbook-in-the-dash projects, I strongly recommend the netbook. Add about $100 to the installation for the aftermarket touchscreen. That system gives a lot of bang for the buck. But I also recommend that you choose the netbook carefully; other than a memory upgrade or added storage, it makes sense to stick with whatever comes in the box. Anything else you do -- like adding a USB sound card -- reduces the benefit of buying a ready-to-go system.

You might want to consider waiting just a bit before buying a system; it appears that Asus will be producing some factory touchscreen models this Spring. That really will be a ready-to-roll solution right out of the box. The astonishing part of it is that the complete computer system, with touchscreen, will likely cost about the same as a good Xenarc or Lilliput touchscreen. Wow.

**rdholtz** · 01-08-2009, 03:25 PM

Originally Posted by fone

A fast option would be to buy those protectors for table corners that are used to prevent small children from hitting table corners, although it may not look nice.

That's a very good idea, fone. Right now, Josh has the passenger seat out of the car while he gets the PC issues sorted out. If we get the seat reinstalled before we get a chance to re-do the bezel, I think we'll do just that -- put a protector on temporarily. I'd rather go for safety than beauty. Even a rubber ball with a piece cut out would work well enough, though it certainly wouldn't be as visually pleasing as your suggestion.

**MeeM** · 01-08-2009, 08:56 PM

Originally Posted by rdholtz

I started out planning to put a PC under the driver's seat, but changed to the netbook-in-the-dash. I originally was fascinated with the EeePC 901's size-to-power ratio. It fit into my dash as is, and had enough power to do just about anything I wanted. It handles Centrafuse with grace. I loved the idea that I could take the PC out of the car whenever I wanted to.

If I had it to do all over again, though, I would still use the EeePC, but I'd choose a different model. While the 8.9-inch model 901 works well, I wish I'd bought the 10.2-inch model 1000H. The 901's keyboard is simply too small to use for any length of time -- at least for hands like mine -- and that limits its utility out of the car. It lacks a hard drive, so I have to plug a portable USB drive in for my music collection. The 1000H comes with a large (up to 160GB) hard drive.

And I'd use the larger netbook differently -- much as you propose to do. If I'd bought the 1000H, I'd disassemble it and build its screen into my dash; the PC portion could live behind it. That system eliminates the cable runs, and that's a very good thing. But it does make upgrades problematic; we're pretty much stuck with what we have until we replace everything. That seems okay -- the PC will probably outlive the car, anyway.

I'm keeping the EeePC 901, but I'm thinking right now that I'll be leaving it in the car full time, and switch to an iPhone or Android phone for my occasional use outside the vehicle. I still have it set up to return the vehicle to stock if I ever decide to sell it, unless the buyer loves the carPC enough to pay for it.

Having said all that, and having worked on both the PC-under-the-seat and the netbook-in-the-dash projects, I strongly recommend the netbook. Add about $100 to the installation for the aftermarket touchscreen. That system gives a lot of bang for the buck. But I also recommend that you choose the netbook carefully; other than a memory upgrade or added storage, it makes sense to stick with whatever comes in the box. Anything else you do -- like adding a USB sound card -- reduces the benefit of buying a ready-to-go system.

You might want to consider waiting just a bit before buying a system; it appears that Asus will be producing some factory touchscreen models this Spring. That really will be a ready-to-roll solution right out of the box. The astonishing part of it is that the complete computer system, with touchscreen, will likely cost about the same as a good Xenarc or Lilliput touchscreen. Wow.

Thanks for your input. I've got a lot of time on my hands for the next month so I'd like to build my system within that time frame. After that, I'll be quite busy with university and possibly part-time work.

I made the exact same connection: the Eee PC, which is basically a complete car PC apart from amplifier, will cost just as much as a lilliput or xenarc 8" sunlight readable LCD. That's what made me consider the Eee a lot more. But having it all sitting in the dash makes it a bit awkward because if I had to make mods to it, I'd have to pull out the console and dash again. The upside, though, is that it's a cleaner install and the only cables that need to be run are from the Eee to the amp.

It would be comparatively much easier if I had it under the seat because I can unplug everything and pull out the PC to modify/repair it. Then again, it's a car PC, and I wouldn't be modding it as much as I would mod a desktop PC. After all, how much time do I really spend in the car? Only enough to listen to MP3s, a few video clips, maybe the occasional movie or sitcom episode.

This morning I woke up with my head set on the mini-ITX mobo, and I planned to buy it this afternoon. Now, I'm not so sure...

**dMand** · 01-08-2009, 10:10 PM

Originally Posted by rdholtz

Well, crazy is a term we hear a lot, but it's relative. Some people think anyone who'd put a PC in a car is crazy; they probably don't realize that every car produced today has multiple computers; we're just adding one we can control. So MP3Car people are only relatively crazy, right?

The price on Elo panels isn't bad when you get 'em on eBay. Josh got this for about $170 delivered, I believe. These panels may be heavy, but they're hellaciously tough, and very bright and clear. It's fine in sunlight, and Josh has to turn the brightness way down at night.

There's no back or sides on the unit, since it came out of a kiosk. The next time I'm up there -- in a week or so -- we'll put together a plastic surround for the sides, but we'll leave the back open for cooling. It'll be a good chance to find out if my plastic welding skills can come up to the standard of Josh's TIG welding.

It'll also let us change that harsh lower right corner you can see in this image:

Click image to enlarge.

If you're the passenger and you're not careful getting in, that corner can put a real whack on your knee. We need to fix that by making it rounder and thicker, and maybe even adding a softer surface.

Of course, it'll will only matter to you if you bump into it painfully hard; it won't damage the panel or the mount. It's a very solid system.

For .99 cents, here's something that you could possibly add to the corner:
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?partnumber=262-833

I came across the device while thumbing through the parts express catalog that came in the mail yesterday. There are 352 pages of great electronic stuff. Sign up, and they'll send you one for free too.
Perhaps you can mod the piece to suit your needs?

**MeeM** · 01-09-2009, 06:32 AM

rdholtz: Since you've modded your Eee some what, can you tell me if it will be easy to extend the LCD cable so I can turn the LCD around?

**rdholtz** · 01-09-2009, 08:00 AM

Originally Posted by MeeM

rdholtz: Since you've modded your Eee some what, can you tell me if it will be easy to extend the LCD cable so I can turn the LCD around?

Actually, I haven't done anything more than max the memory to 2GB, which took 5 minutes at the most, and didn't require me to disassemble the unit.

I'm still thinking about separating the screen from the main body, and I would probably extend the video cable by cutting it in the middle and soldering in an extension. I haven't opened it up yet, but that's on my path when I do the touchscreen addition. There are some good videos of that process, especially this one on jkkmobile.com. Since this video was produced, the touchscreen kit manufacturer has come out with kits that are solderless.

Here's an article on adding a touchscreen, this time to a 900.

Here's an article about taking the EeePC 901 apart. It clearly shows the video cable.

But your path may be easier. Asus announced at CES on January 6th that the EeePC T91 and T101 are coming out in the next 3 to 6 months; these are tablets, and their screens simply turn around and lay flat against the unit. You can mount the whole thing in the dash without separating the parts. If I were to start my planning right now, that's the path I'd go -- if I could wait that long.

Here's a link to the brief jkkmobile comments, which links to other comments. Since they've just been announced, information about the units is still pretty sparse.