Laptop instead of PC for the Z?
07-15-2003, 07:30 PM
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Laptop instead of PC for the Z?
I apologize in advance if the answer is already out there, but I've searched all around and didn't find anything. I have an extra laptop and was wondering if it was just as easy to use that as it would be if I had a regular computer. Also, are there any differences in how I would need to power the unit? Would I need a docking station? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have been trying to figure out how the power would get hooked up from reading all these posts, but there just doesn't seem to be enough information for the average joe who doesn't know a whole lot about that type of thing. Thanks all.
(Getting my Daytona Blue 350Z next week!)
(Getting my Daytona Blue 350Z next week!)
07-15-2003, 08:08 PM
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depending on how old your laptop is, you should just be able to get a cigarette lighter adaptor and power it that way. the only real downside is how the onboard sound might be (probably good enough) and how big a hard dirve you have in it now (likely easy to upgrade, but not terribly cheap 
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07-15-2003, 09:09 PM
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I have a Dell Latitude C600 running at 850MHz. Seems to run quick enough and the sound is fine. I could do the cigarette lighter thing, but I want this to be as invisible as possible. Oh, I also have a 20 GB HD in the laptop, so that's more than enough space for me.
I guess I'm just a bit unclear about how to plug everything together.
I guess I'm just a bit unclear about how to plug everything together.
07-15-2003, 10:16 PM
#4
well Id think youd want a remote screen? not sure what you were thinkin there. so youd have to do that....
as for powering it, youd get the ciggerette adaptor, then depending how its set up, you gotta get to the pos/neg leads, not nesesarrily just cut the wire, the actual adaptor might have resistors and stuff in it, so you gotta get to the very beginning of it all, then you can tap into the 12v line that runs right up the middle to the ciggerette plug next to the glovebox(assuming thats where you would keep it?) this can all be done behind the scenes with a small hole in the side of the glove box to run the power wire through.
depending on your level of knowledge, you may want to open the laptop up, and wire a momentary switch(defualt off) in parralel with the stock switch. them mount the switch somewhere easy(I put mine in the ashtray). otherwise itd be hard to turn it on...
thatd be it, probably not as hard as it all sounds. about 3hours of work, most of which is taking apart the center console to install the screen.
as for powering it, youd get the ciggerette adaptor, then depending how its set up, you gotta get to the pos/neg leads, not nesesarrily just cut the wire, the actual adaptor might have resistors and stuff in it, so you gotta get to the very beginning of it all, then you can tap into the 12v line that runs right up the middle to the ciggerette plug next to the glovebox(assuming thats where you would keep it?) this can all be done behind the scenes with a small hole in the side of the glove box to run the power wire through.
depending on your level of knowledge, you may want to open the laptop up, and wire a momentary switch(defualt off) in parralel with the stock switch. them mount the switch somewhere easy(I put mine in the ashtray). otherwise itd be hard to turn it on...
thatd be it, probably not as hard as it all sounds. about 3hours of work, most of which is taking apart the center console to install the screen.
07-15-2003, 11:19 PM
#5
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well before anyone else chime in, whats the purpose of the laptop? MP3? Video? Navagation? etc...?
This way we can offer more detail solution/suggestions.
Powerwise, the easiest is as stated, a cig adapter. BUT you have to make sure the output is the same. ie. Volts and Amps. Look on the power adapter (transformer) that's made for your laptop. OR you might have an internal transformer in which case an inverter is need to power it (but we'll get to that later)
Now, on an old IBM laptop that I have, the adapter outputs 16V at 3.5 amps. Now with this I would be forced to use an inverter cause the Z only output 12V (14V running). If yours is 12V the make sure you get a cig adapter for 12V and the correct amperage (but you can just replace the fuse in the cig adapter to match the amperage)
If the adapter output is higher than 12V you need to get an inverter to power it.
Hard to tell you how to wire the rest or suggest anything else without knowing what you going to use it for. Not going to tell you to do something and buy stuff if you don't need to.
This way we can offer more detail solution/suggestions.
Powerwise, the easiest is as stated, a cig adapter. BUT you have to make sure the output is the same. ie. Volts and Amps. Look on the power adapter (transformer) that's made for your laptop. OR you might have an internal transformer in which case an inverter is need to power it (but we'll get to that later)
Now, on an old IBM laptop that I have, the adapter outputs 16V at 3.5 amps. Now with this I would be forced to use an inverter cause the Z only output 12V (14V running). If yours is 12V the make sure you get a cig adapter for 12V and the correct amperage (but you can just replace the fuse in the cig adapter to match the amperage)
If the adapter output is higher than 12V you need to get an inverter to power it.
Hard to tell you how to wire the rest or suggest anything else without knowing what you going to use it for. Not going to tell you to do something and buy stuff if you don't need to.
07-16-2003, 09:15 AM
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I appreciate all the quick help guys. You guys are awesome. Ok, so let me give you more details...
I want to use this primarily for MP3s, but also want to use GPS and stats on car performance. I have decided the best way to go is with an inverter (300w to give me room to expand), that way it's totally not visible. I also was thinking about using a docking station. That way, I could just slide the laptop out and bring it inside to load MP3's or whatever while not having to disconnect anything.
Here's my main question.... How do I make it so that it turns on when the car turns on and WINDOWS SHUTS DOWN before powering the unit off when I turn the car off? OR should I just simply bite the bullet and put a switch somewhere and power it on and off manually? That would give me more versatility, I suppose...if I didn't want to turn it on for a 2 minute ride down the block, I wouldn't have to.
As for the power adaptor, here's the details from the sticker:
------------------------------------------
Input: AC 100-240v 50/60Hz
: 130-170VA
Output: DC 20V 3.5A
Input Current: Max 1.5A
Output Power: Max 70W
------------------------------------------
I'm pretty new to all of this stuff...the most I've done is install stereo equiment in a bunch of cars, but I'm not really knowledgeable about this type of stuff. Hope this helps. Thanks again for all your help guys.
I want to use this primarily for MP3s, but also want to use GPS and stats on car performance. I have decided the best way to go is with an inverter (300w to give me room to expand), that way it's totally not visible. I also was thinking about using a docking station. That way, I could just slide the laptop out and bring it inside to load MP3's or whatever while not having to disconnect anything.
Here's my main question.... How do I make it so that it turns on when the car turns on and WINDOWS SHUTS DOWN before powering the unit off when I turn the car off? OR should I just simply bite the bullet and put a switch somewhere and power it on and off manually? That would give me more versatility, I suppose...if I didn't want to turn it on for a 2 minute ride down the block, I wouldn't have to.
As for the power adaptor, here's the details from the sticker:
------------------------------------------
Input: AC 100-240v 50/60Hz
: 130-170VA
Output: DC 20V 3.5A
Input Current: Max 1.5A
Output Power: Max 70W
------------------------------------------
I'm pretty new to all of this stuff...the most I've done is install stereo equiment in a bunch of cars, but I'm not really knowledgeable about this type of stuff. Hope this helps. Thanks again for all your help guys.
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07-16-2003, 12:46 PM
#8
one other bonus on running with a laptop is that there is a battery, thus if you set your suspend to 5-10 minutes of inactivity, you wouldn't have to worry about shutting down the pc when you turn off the car and it would only take seconds for the laptop to come out of suspend.
From my experience, a battery that usually runs for 2 hours should be able to suspend for over 16 hours. Factoring that if this is your daily driver, everytime your car is running, it's charging the battery. Of course, if you only do a lot of short trips, then you might need to fully charge the laptop once in a while.
From my experience, a battery that usually runs for 2 hours should be able to suspend for over 16 hours. Factoring that if this is your daily driver, everytime your car is running, it's charging the battery. Of course, if you only do a lot of short trips, then you might need to fully charge the laptop once in a while.
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