[DerAlte]

The real issue is not hardware (not even CPU power), but
1. Elegant mounting of the screen (7" tablets have a good chance of fitting in the 2DIN slots)
2. Availability of applications that have a User Interface suitable for single-fingertip touch operation and minimal intervention by driver

@venki7744, not sure on the forum, but some people have mounted even an iPad on the dash.

[venki7744]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

The real issue is not hardware (not even CPU power), but
1. Elegant mounting of the screen (7" tablets have a good chance of fitting in the 2DIN slots)
2. Availability of applications that have a User Interface suitable for single-fingertip touch operation and minimal intervention by driver

@venki7744, not sure on the forum, but some people have mounted even an iPad on the dash.

I think we can make a custom bessel using fiberglass and mount it. I follow soundmancaraudio (youtube channel) and fiberglassforum a lot and have seen many custom mounts for ipad. Eventhough I have no prior experience with FG I have all the materials ready for fabrication. Apart from the mounting, i am listing down other stuff that are required, please feel free to add
* Power supply
* usb sound card/dac
* Usb extender
* External hdd
* external optical drive
* front end s/w for ubuntu (any suggestions?)

Venki

[kaushikr]

Originally Posted by gotzuk

High Performance
The Intel® Dual Core D525 Processor with DDR3 support gives you all the power you need to run even the most demanding applications in banking, health care, retail or any industry. This keyboard PC can also accommodate any size of hard drive or capacity. Cybernet can also help customize your unit by installing a higher-capacity hard drive, or your chosen OS and productivity software. You'll be ready to go when you open the box.

The Intel Atom Processors are usually reserved for use in netbooks and tend not to be high performance processors. The D525 is better than the 475 or 455 which were single core. These configurations also have an intergrated graphics cards which may not be up-gradable.

This would translate into slow performance when trying to run mulitple applications at the same time or perhaps when you install a touch screen software over the OS.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by kaushikr

... slow performance when trying to run mulitple applications at the same time or perhaps when you install a touch screen software over the OS.

LOL I use an Atom 330 board with Windows 7, and use Centrafuse as the app central. Usually I have navigation running (Garmin) with music playing. Sometimes Internet radio - mostly Comedy Central. Very infrequently Skype telecon (parked by the roadside or stuck in a jam). I can surely edit documents and do mail, but I am yet to face a situation desperate enough to do it on the CarPC. Yet to feel lack of power.

A CarPC, unlike a desktop or laptop, enjoys one major advantage: the user is driving the car most of the time with eyes on the road, rather than fiddling with the computer and trying to extract the last drop of CPU juice!!!

Originally Posted by venki7744

I think we can make a custom bessel using fiberglass and mount it. ...

Wouldn't you want to make the mounting in such a way that you can remove the tablet and take it with you?

Originally Posted by venki7744

... Apart from the mounting, i am listing down other stuff that are required, please feel free to add ...

I am assuming you are discussing w.r.t. a tablet, since that is what you proposed.
* Power supply: depends. Almost all tablets can be charged off of USB ports, so at a pinch a cig lighter socket based mobile charger (the ones that feed through a USB port) should do. The ones that need a dedicated wall charger would need a low power low cost 12V to 220V inverter
* usb sound card/dac: Built-in in the tablet, no? Yet to see a tablet that doesn't have an EP socket. Higher quality sound card? Hmmm, there are a few external USB driven ones, but how does one install the driver? Would one get an appropriate driver?
* Usb extender: can be avoided since most tablets (not iPad) read USB pendrives and SD cards
* External hdd: use a 64GB USB stick? Safer
* external optical drive: why?????
* front end s/w for ubuntu (any suggestions?): Ubuntu is not popular in the unorganized Linux world of car PC related software. Slackware, Gentoo, even Redhat-derivatives are. The holy grail is getting the OS to fit in <100MB. But, if you are a hands-on person you can always manage to do a port, collaborating with other people on the net. There is LinuxCarPC, DashPC, PyMedia/PyCar (written in Python), Studio4car, etc. None of them is a commercial product - they are at best well-designed well-coded apps written by individuals

[kaushikr]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

LOL I use an Atom 330 board with Windows 7, and use Centrafuse as the app central. Usually I have navigation running (Garmin) with music playing. Sometimes Internet radio - mostly Comedy Central. Very infrequently Skype telecon (parked by the roadside or stuck in a jam). I can surely edit documents and do mail, but I am yet to face a situation desperate enough to do it on the CarPC. Yet to feel lack of power.

A CarPC, unlike a desktop or laptop, enjoys one major advantage: the user is driving the car most of the time with eyes on the road, rather than fiddling with the computer and trying to extract the last drop of CPU juice!!!

That is good to know.
What RAM is the setup running with. Can it handle the occasional games?

With Atom Processors for Netbooks which usually are built with 1/2gb of RAM, the general feedback is that they're slow and can be used satisfactorily for internet browsing only. The screen resolution is also a cause of complain, with a 10" screen.

Perhaps these things are useful to know when considering a completely built laptop (keyboard) that was mentioned by gotzuk.

But guess, it also depends on what is expected of the setup.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by kaushikr

... What RAM is the setup running with. ...

2GB

Originally Posted by kaushikr

... Can it handle the occasional games? ...

Kids' games, yes. I don't allow the next level in my car, nor is it necessary to have them. There is life outside the car - we don't live in a car.

Originally Posted by kaushikr

... the general feedback is that they're slow and can be used satisfactorily for internet browsing only. ...
But guess, it also depends on what is expected of the setup.

As you rightly said, it is completely dependent on what expectation we start with. If one starts with an expectation of limited capabilities, or rather capabilities just enough for the tasks, one is never disappointed.

[mercedised]

I need a reliable yet cheap 7 inch touchscreen, DC-DC PSU 160W, and a low power CPU-MOBO combo. How will an i3 work with 160W PSU?

Please suggest a good website or place to buy them. I am from Indore.

[gigy]

You can try this link for the display.
7 Inch HD Touchscreen Car Monitor (HDMI, AV, VGA) | eBay

I have a vm70 from short-circuit.com lying unused but not yet decided to sell it of.

[monty9991]

you can look at my setup which if up for sale in classified section.

Originally Posted by mercedised

I need a reliable yet cheap 7 inch touchscreen, DC-DC PSU 160W, and a low power CPU-MOBO combo. How will an i3 work with 160W PSU?

Please suggest a good website or place to buy them. I am from Indore.

[mercedised]

Originally Posted by monty9991

you can look at my setup which if up for sale in classified section.

Thanks, I have PM'ed you, please have a look at it.

[lateshnair]

Hello,
Does anyone know if this motherboard is available in India. This is the best MB for carpc I have come across so far, little expensive but prefect for the car pc. I did some research on ebay global easybuy, price is around 17-18k. But if bought in US its about 200$.

In Bangalore its not available I searched the entire S.P road. :(

Here the MB details:

ebay global easybuy link

Amazon link



Thanks

[DerAlte]

PicoITX is generally used more in industrial controls and outdoor displays. Not very economical for CarPC, since there are simple workarounds to problems when using conventional ATX or microATX boards - which cost a third of this board.

These boards are not available in electronic markets. Via has an Indian distributor based in Ahmedabad IIRC. Look up the Via website for the dealer in Bangalore.

[bullboy]

This is the best MB for carpc I have come across so far, little expensive but prefect for the car pc

I did not understand why you think so apart from size.
They are many sucessful implementations on mini and micro ATX form factors.

[lateshnair]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

PicoITX is generally used more in industrial controls and outdoor displays. Not very economical for CarPC, since there are simple workarounds to problems when using conventional ATX or microATX boards - which cost a third of this board.

Thanks. Agree, with you its not economical.

Originally Posted by bullboy

I did not understand why you think so apart from size.
They are many sucessful implementations on mini and micro ATX form factors.

Yes, there are many successful implementations and that is exactly why I'm so motivated to build one for my car too

Idea is to fix the entire system into the 2 din space, instead of fixing the pc cabinet under the seat or in the boot.
If the MB is small I can easily mount it behind the touchscreen plus less wiring.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by lateshnair

... Idea is to fix the entire system into the 2 din space, ...

Search - at least 1 member here has created an elegant CarPC installation with a microATX board in 2-DIN space.