In car Child entertainment

PJ,

there was an article in a back issue of Australian 4WD Monthly if i remember correctly on a bloke who had set up a similar arrangement in his GU Patrol. I'll try and track the edition down for you (or if anyone else knows it off hand....). He had the LCD's fitted into the head rests of the driver and passenger seats.

cheers,
Sam.

A mate had this set up in his 80 series and said it kept the kids happy (and quiet).

Geez, kids are lucky these days !

Hi PJ,

What I did was purchase a Laptop that plays DVD's. I power the Laptop via a Dick Smith Inverter ($99). The kids use heaphones that plug straight into the Laptop via a double adapter. The Laptop sits on a piece of wood that sits between the console and back seat. My kids are 9 & 6 and the viewing angle is perfect. The Laptop has a 14 inch screen which is a good size compared to most of the headrest monitors. When we are not travelling the Laptop is at home for the kids to use. We can also use the Laptop in a tent (if the weather is bad) or for checking emails via Dial Up connection (my mobile has data capability).

Regards
Phil P

Here's my solution which I installed in my falcon:
240 volt combo dvd/tape player in the boot powered through inverter.
Screen purchased through ebay mounted to top of centre consol
the player is controlled with the remote via a length fibre optic cable...one end of the cable is taped to the infrared pickup on the player. The other end is attached to the dash in front of the missus.
We do have to stop the vehicle to change dvd's/tapes though.
Cheap but it works.Hooroo

Get a hard disc drive A Big One say >80 gig and save all the games to it. Wont have problems with disc bounce etc.....watching movies may be a little different ...but then you dont need to shoot the baddies or worry about driving of the cliff when watching movies.

If you get the disc changed think about the mod chip which will allow you to run games from overseas. The standard chip will not run all games.

Some games wont copy due to protection but one can download them via an available network programme ie a differnt way of copying. A cd reader on your computer ignores copy protection and can in most cases read the dvd format and can will save it to the computer HD. All you need to do is get it across to the xbox via the network programme and cable to the xbox. Your local mod chip guy (those that do the sony playstations) should be able to advise. I am in adelaide so my contact is probably no good Wow! am I cute
Richard

PJ,
I noticed Jaycar had a 7" TFT LCD widescreen monitor suitable for dvds and Xbox, etc for $499 (cat QM-3752).
And a 5.6" version coming soon. Expect the smaller one would be cheaper.
Jaycar:
http://www1.jaycar.com.au/
rgds
Gerry

Samsung 15" monitor from Harvey Norman was $540.

Either Toshiba laptop with DVD read drive (you can upgrade from CD drive to a DVD drive), or better, Power Mac with DVD drive.

Advantage of laptop is you can download and view digital photos each day, view videos taken each day, watch a DVD if you must, and run OziExplorer (although on the Mac you need to run virtual PC and use a USB/serial adaptor).

I found that the monitor, if located centrally above and forward of the gear lever, can be viewed by all occupants. The top of the screen rises about 20 cm above the level of the dash and doesn't impede driver vision.

This monitor is better value than the smaller ones, and can be used at home after the trip is over. It runs off 240 v. The monitor I am using here in my office is a Microtek, and will run on 12v dc, an advantage if you don't need an inverter to run your laptop.

PJ you can most certainly run the gaming system in ur car, as you said its just a means of sorting out what type of monitor you want to use and how to mount it and the power source for the Xbox!

If you have ever been to a Street Machine or Rod show, near the noisy section, no not the Horsepower Heros at the dyno but the Decibel sound offs!! Have a look at the setups in all the promo cars, nearly everyone has (at least) an in dash monitor that plays the car mounted playstation or Xbox. There are some trick setups too, like the headrest mounted and roof mounted monitors. They even go to the extream of mounting the console out of sight, like in centre consoles and the game controllers plug into armrest etc!!

I know this is all waaaayyy beyond what you want to achieve, but if you had hung around at the Strathfield or Northfield shops they have masses of info for you if you find the right person outside of peak sales time!! Plus its usually the installers you want to talk to not the sales people, the installers are the craftsmen here!!

Dont be put off, you can achieve what you want relativley simply, just take ur time and talk to a few people! One of the best shock absorbers for mounting a playstation on is......a pillow!!! If its not a permanent setup in the car (ie bolted in) then the console sat between the two rear seats on a pillow works a treat, just watchout for heat build up, sometimes they do get pretty warm!

Goodluck
Matt.

PJ on the last cape trip we had a family with us 4 kids in a nissan they had a dvd set up . I was a bit worried how it would stand up to 21 days on the corrugations and bumps etc but not a thing went wrong. The kids all had there own ear phones with volume controls .
The only arguments there were was what movie to watch next.The parents said it was the best investment they had made . On the away to port douglas from sth of Syd they did to rockhamton in one day leaving at about 2am. Prior to the DVD they had trouble getting to the end of the drive way before the dreaded ARE WE THERE YET.
All the best
Eric
www.capeyorkconnections.com.au.
4wd Tag Along AdventuresCape York Connections

gday pj.
thanks for the post was going to ask about dvd/screens my self.
so far i found strathfield car radio has 12 volt dvd player for $199.
and ebey have 7.5" tft moniters for about $280 and most of the above posts saved me from asking .new job coming so no fraser this time:-((

PJ,
Im planning to do just the same,i have a GU Patrol, thats why i got onto the forum, i have an xbox that i want to install in the car, i have a 600 watt inverter so i plan to have it under one of the front seats and the xbox under the other, i have had the xbox moded so all the game are on the HD. i am going to buy a 6 or 7" small color tv that will mount on the consol between the front seats with a velcro strap to hold it down. The leads and thing will go under the rear mats and the kids will have to be a little carfull they don't pull on them. I have looked in the trading post and the tv's seem to sell for under $200 bucks. Its a cheap and simple way of doing it and the screen is in a good spot for the kids to view.
I am in the middle of setting it up as we speak as i have 4 weeks before we head off
Stuart.....