First Car PC

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Seanie

First Car PC

Post by Seanie »

Hello All
this topic really makes me excited :)

i have never built a carputer before but love the idea of it

Currently i have a Pioneer bluetooth headunit with ipod control and some infinity speakers in the doors that run from the head unit

i would love to build a carputer that gives me:

Bluetooth
Total Music (ipod or wireless sync to from my home computer)
Sat Nav
and other bits i learn along the way

can anyone reccomend what i need in a check list of things to build and buy.
Is there a touch screen that will fit directly into the double din slot and bolt in?
do i need an amp if i ditch the headunit

Cannot wait for some replies
cheers all


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Marc2Turbo

Re: First Car PC

Post by Marc2Turbo »

Howdy! Well firstly.... Can open worms everywhere!

Car pcs are awesome, I had a fitpc2 running through a 7" touchscreen with blue tooth and gps usb donglea running software called centrafuse, final cost was a bit daft though. yes you will need amplifiers, you'll also need power conditioners and ideally a bios that is made for a car pc so it can handle a switched live to sleep/wake it.

Now for the bit you probably don't want to hear.... Given the recent price drop in 7" tablets (imo) you are better off running it all from that, unless you plan on running software that requires usb ports then it's by far the cheapest way as everything you listed is built in with the extras like accelerometers and digital compass. You can even root your tablet and use usb on the go to connect serial devices such as phidgets and arduino. Spotify now let's you download music to your tablet so you don't have to stream and can take your music with you, get it home in range of your wifi and sync automatically, Copilot is one of the best fully featured satnav systems available and it's dirt cheap for what it is! I'll be doing a how2 guide on installing a nexus 7 in the not so distant future. Hope this helps :smile:
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Seanie

Re: First Car PC

Post by Seanie »

Hay there
Now that is a great idea that is much cheaper, I cannot wait to see your install and how you make it look perfect the car.
Will it do the Bluetooth for hands free connected to your phone.
Is there a phone app etc. sounds like an excellent idea.

Do you know of any pictures of things running so I case see them.
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GazRev1Tubby
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Re: First Car PC

Post by GazRev1Tubby »

I blended a 10" android based tablet into my dash a little while ago.

I made it so that it slid in, and charged automatically. I also blended a 3 port usb hub below it, just above the heater controls

Image
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And a quick vid to show it working
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I moved my head unit to the glovebox, as I used it to control the source outputs, plus it allowed me to still play cd's if I felt like it

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I've removed it now though, and gone back to a double din head unit. I guess i'm just old school :laughing:
1996 BPU Supra TT ;)
The deuce will surely be missed, until the second turbo comes online :th:
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Howlin_Mad
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Re: First Car PC

Post by Howlin_Mad »

A couple of other options to look at:

Raspberry Pi (google it)

£25 for the board, runs off an SD card so no vibration issues, but you need a good 5v constant supply. Plenty of threads out there with people developing it for various application purposes. You'll need a screen though - no idea on prices and GPS USB dongles etc..

I have a Parrot Asteroid which is a pretty good piece of kit. Google maps (and sat nav) when tethered to my phone either via USB or Bluetooth, and voice activation that is surprisingly accurate :)

http://www.parrot.com/uk/products/hands ... t-asteroid

Not a true Car PC, but just offering alternatives worthy of a look at budget prices :)

HM
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Marc2Turbo

Re: First Car PC

Post by Marc2Turbo »

@gaz thats awesome! i was going to go with a behind the bezel kind of thing for a flush fit,
I'm liking the seperate headunit idea, I do enjoy a bit of radio every now and again, may even consider breaking a few buttons out and putting them on a digital IO board i've found that'll run on droid so i can do the basics from the tablet.

@seanie
Theres plrnty of installs about if you google "nexus 7 in car"

also the nexus has 4 dock pins on the bottom which are a very convenient power input and audio output which frees up the usb port for USBOTG rather than power. Using Tasker you can automate lots of functions like turning the screen/wifi/gps/bluetooth off when the power is removed to save battery life when it's on standby
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Seanie

Re: First Car PC

Post by Seanie »

How are you planning to install the nexus behind the dash and secure in place.
I cannot even think how on make it look neat
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Marc2Turbo

Re: First Car PC

Post by Marc2Turbo »

I haven't really got that far, but i do have a spare center console facia to play with so what ever i do it'll most likely involve 3d printing, grp and filler followed by a paint job! it'll be semi permanent so id rather it was secure than easily removable. I'm probably not going to be doing this untill the new year as performance mods are taking a priority and i'm not willing to give up my current nexus for the project!

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