Mounting a laptop on the roof?

[Strettyp]

Waiting for a start date on some work on my van and was looking at a flip down monitor for the back seat passengers and then for watching at night when it's rainy etc

There seems to be a choice of Alpine or Xtrons, starting at £200 for a 17" going to around £600

For around £400 I can get a 17" laptop which would give me a much bigger range of viewing (netflix YouTube etc) and I could also use it as a laptop etc

I could also take it out when not in use rather than leaving it on display, but I can't find any purpose made solutions to mount it on the ceiling - obviously I don't want the thing pinging off the ceiling in the event of an accident so is the best option to mount it on the side - in which case I could just mount a normal monitor and plug stuff into that

Anyone got any top tips?

 

[czmate1999]

Tbh I’m not sure a laptop is the best route to go. I opted for an iPad Pro - I use it everywhere and in the van. For movie nights in the van I use a small portable projector and a external speaker - gives me a 50-60 inch screen...

 

[Strettyp]

I thought about a tablet but they have a finite screen size, I thought that having a flip down would allow it to be used while driving and also while chilling out, I've got a lwb and the head of the bed is near the tailgate

A screen would be ok with a firestick I guess but is there a happy medium between xtron and alpine?

 

[czmate1999]

I thought about a tablet but they have a finite screen size, I thought that having a flip down would allow it to be used while driving and also while chilling out, I've got a lwb and the head of the bed is near the tailgate

A screen would be ok with a firestick I guess but is there a happy medium between xtron and alpine?

It's a difficult one. i opted for my solution as it gave me most flexibility without having to 'do' something to the van...

 

[ceej]

Have you looked into just making a tiny media player/server from Raspberry Pi micro computer similar?
They are low powered, by USB and cheap!

1. Get a roof mounted monitor (I think you can pick one up for under £200) - Amazon link - https://tinyurl.com/eewhd3kf
2. Raspberry pi 4 starter kit £60 - PiHut store - Raspberry Pi 4 Model B Starter Kit
3. If you wanted to, you can hold your own media library locally so if there is no internet/crap signal etc. Or if you already have your own library of content - 1TB drive is about £50

All in all you can get a decent setup and with good functionality of the Kodi graphical interface.

There are a few guides on getting Kodi setup on the Raspberry pi and running Netflix etc on it e.g How to Run Netflix on the Raspberry Pi

Once setup just install the pi somewhere within reach of the HDMI cable, and you are good to go! Or can also use a projector like Czechmate suggested.

If you wanted to go all out, get a cheap 4G/5G travel router and you can create your own wifi setup e.g Router - Slate router - GL.iNet GL-AR750S-Ext then you don't have to mess about with any hotspots etc.

 

[Gavinsky23]

I have bought a Small projector and mounted it using a small camera bracket from the back of the pop top. Can use it with battery/USB power pack, has usb stick and also runs Amazon prime and Netflix etc. Very impressed for the size and I’ve made a large screen for when the pop tops up for the kids to watch. Very happy with it so far and going to see if I can set something up to allow the kids to watch when we are driving too.

 

[Strettyp]

Some good ideas, I'm looking for something that can be used for the kids on long journeys then also for when it's a rainy overnighter

I've seen a projector screen mounted to the tailgate which would be good for the latter, but might be intrusive for use while driving

Will have a think, the pi thing looks good and I guess that could be permanently installed as it's discreet

 

[Gavinsky23]

Only downside is it won’t work skygo but I’ll likely take our laptop and can connect them up for this if needed. Just need to be able to go somewhere now

 

[ceej]

Aye you are pretty limited if SkyGo is a requirement as they dont like giving you the power to consume content the way you want haha.

@Strettyp the Pi is a discrete unit its the size of your palm if not smaller. You can just buy the board itself and get a HeatSink case instead which is what I would recommend for leaving in the VAN as it aids cooling a hell of a lot more than those plastic cases, only 12 quid so its not more expensive if you buy parts individually.
Example: Aluminium Armour - Heatsink Case for Raspberry Pi 4

But just google it there are loads of options available and some people have made some cool uses of the Pi not just for the media, as well as built their own Control units. You can have programs that connect to bluetooth devices, so if you need something to log Battery consumption you can for sure use this unit for that as well.

EDIT:
Heres an example for Victron based Raspberry Pi setup if anyone is into that kind of thing - Homemade Pi: Open source Raspberry flavour | Victron Energy