riding with a laptop?

6199 Views 27 Replies 14 Participants Last post by P07r0457, May 29, 2009

hpimichael02

Discussion Starter · May 17, 2009

hey guys, i know some of you guys are useing laptops for your GPS... well i spent $420 on my Delrome GPS and love it , but i would love to have the advantage of having it on a big screen ... so with me gonna start school for programming in the fall im gonna fork the cash out on a laptop... now i brake everything pretty fast lol ... so i was thinking on the Military Panasonic Toughbook CF-28 laptop TOUCHSCREEN would this be an okay alptop for the offroading???

its got a few cool features, its a touch screen and its rugged and it has a better chance of dealing with the FL sun, and looks like somthing i would loveto carry to class to .... lol ... anythoughts from the guys who run with laptops? i kno i need a RAM laptop mount as well...

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CoyoteFireGuy

· #2 · May 17, 2009

I think that would be WAY more then ok. That is what the cops on my police department use. Those things are indestructible!!!! I have seen one fall of the roof of a ford explorer :x and hit the pavement and start right up with no problems. :m2:

fir the mount, you might check out a company called Havis Shield.

JBaer

· #3 · May 17, 2009

We use them in my squadron. They are rugged. I have never seen one of ours with under a 1/4" of dirt on them. I know i have i dropped some of them a few times. Touch screen is pretty neat. Im not a big computer guy but some of my co-workers that know computers don't like them to much. I don't know why but i will ask for pros and cons Monday when i go back to work.

hpimichael02

Discussion Starter · #4 · May 17, 2009

that would be great Jbear.... reveiws on the net are always different from people that have to use them oin a daily basis.... i tend to drop things allot or forget in on my roof. stuff like that , thats why im leaning towards this one...

the roadie

· #5 · May 17, 2009

Depending on what kind of discount you're getting, they could be a great value. Overkill for my application, so I got a one-rev out of date tablet with sunlight readable display. But I did drool a lot over toughbooks and their competitors. Latest models all seem to be around $4K.

Bowhunt_Pro

· #6 · May 17, 2009

In my iopinion cheaper is better if you plan on leaving it in the vehicle. Hate to see some scum bag steal a big money laptop. You can get used toughbooks for pretty reasonable prices. I chose a compaq with a 12" lcd for my use and got the mount on eBay. It was less expensive than the RAM by far and Ive used it with no issue for 2 years.

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hpimichael02

Discussion Starter · #7 · May 17, 2009

another question, is it still comfortable for the passenger to sit in the seat as well or no ??

Devilz311

· #8 · May 17, 2009

If you're determined on getting the Toughbook, make sure you pay attention to what type of screen it has... We just purchased two of them for use in our Ambulances, and the touch-screen ONLY works with the Stylus. It's a digitized screen, and will only respond to the tip of the stylus, and not your finger.

On the other hand, at my other job we have the Toughbooks with the simple touch screen; it's so much easier to use with your finger while you're driving... :x

Bowhunt_Pro

· #9 · May 18, 2009

hpimichael02 said:
another question, is it still comfortable for the passenger to sit in the seat as well or no ??

No issues I've had a 230lb guy sit there.

JamesDowning

· #10 · May 18, 2009

I also think it may be overkill. First of all, if it's your every day computer, think of weight (carrying to class etc). Also a laptop that stays in the truck while on trails won't see much abuse. It will rock around and vibrate a bit, but overall it's pretty safe.

My main recommendation to anyone buying a laptop is NOT to get a laptop from the manufacturer's 'home/ home office' section. Get a 'business' laptop. They are built much better, and have less of the 'frills'. In my experience the business laptops perform better and handle abuse better.

I have the ram-mount laptop mount. I wish the tube was a few more inches towards the middle of the vehicle. The tube slightly gets in the way of the passenger's left leg. I also sometimes wish I had a slightly smaller screen. I have a 14 inch, which works great for home and lap use, but on the road I wish I had a 12. :m2:

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Bowhunt_Pro

· #11 · May 18, 2009

The 12" is perfect for the truck and some of the new "netbooks" are 10" or less. They are small, light, cheap and have a solid state hard drive. On extreme cold days my HDD wouldn't spin up until it got some heat. The downside is for home or school they are too small and they don't have a built in cd/dvd drive. My mount sits very close to center right over the shifter. Since my shift interlock has been disabled I just grab the shifter and pull it into gear. I don't have to push in the lock button.

Silver Trooper

· #12 · May 18, 2009

hpimichael02 said:
hey guys, i know some of you guys are useing laptops for your GPS... well i spent $420 on my Delrome GPS and love it , but i would love to have the advantage of having it on a big screen ... so with me gonna start school for programming in the fall im gonna fork the cash out on a laptop... now i brake everything pretty fast lol ... so i was thinking on the Military Panasonic Toughbook CF-28 laptop TOUCHSCREEN would this be an okay alptop for the offroading???

its got a few cool features, its a touch screen and its rugged and it has a better chance of dealing with the FL sun, and looks like somthing i would loveto carry to class to .... lol ... anythoughts from the guys who run with laptops? i kno i need a RAM laptop mount as well...

For in vehicle you would be hard to beat a Toughbook. Check out these sites:

http://toughbooktalk.com/

http://forum.notebookreview.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1012

the roadie

· #13 · May 18, 2009

JamesDowning said:
The tube slightly gets in the way of the passenger's left leg.

Did you see how I modified mine to fix this position problem?

JamesDowning

· #14 · May 18, 2009

the roadie said:
Did you see how I modified mine to fix this position problem?

Not sure if I did... if you have a chance... can you link me? If not, I can search later.

Chewy1576

· #15 · May 18, 2009

Taking this idea one step further:

Use one of these little Atom-platform nettop or even a MacMini! Use a touchscreen monitor mounted up front on a stand so that either the driver or the passenger could use it. USB Bluetooth adapters to interface with a Bluetooth GPS receiver mounted on the dash, 3G USB adapters for data (given that there is service where you go), and a wireless keyboard with USB interface. Most of them have built-in WiFi as well so you can load maps in the driveway and head out from there if you don't want to pay extra for the 3G service. Mount a webcam on the dash or rear view mirror for recording trips. If you are lucky to have a data connection, you could even stream your video feed or instant upload to YouTube or Trailvoy

I'm just dreaming now, but the possibilities would almost be endless!

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PAblzr

· #16 · May 18, 2009

hpimichael02 said:
I know some of you guys are useing laptops for your GPS..... so with me gonna start school for programming in the fall im gonna fork the cash out on a laptop.....

Have you thought of this.....

Check with your school before purchasing. They most likely have minimum specs they want all students' computers to meet. If you are majoring in programing your minimium requirements may be even higher.

The school might have an arangement with a manufacturer or retailer that gets you a discount.

:m2:

the roadie

· #17 · May 18, 2009

Spin the top mount around and bolt it to the transmission tunnel.

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JamesDowning

· #18 · May 18, 2009

the roadie said:
Spin the top mount around and bolt it to the transmission tunnel.

Are those existing nuts? or did you add those?

the roadie

· #19 · May 18, 2009

I sliced the carpet to get down to metal, and cheated and put in something I found called a "body bolt" which is some sort of high strength sheet metal screw with fine threads and a conical point. I should have put in some nutserts. Someday. It had to be watertight.

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kevinwilesjr

· #20 · May 18, 2009

A tough book was the way I wanted to go, but for the money I bought a 15.4" HP notebook and it has stood up to quite a beating. I bought my mount at "You Do It Electronics" in Newton, Massachusetts for $200 and it is awesome.

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