laptop supplies

[Danthegorrila]

Yes Ive read all the last links but can anyone help me?

Where can I get a 12 VOLT laptop?
I have a small transformer but it uses about 4-5 amps, so I want a PV laptop that can go straight off the boat supply.

To link up with the SSB I want to have serial ports rather than USB, although 1 USB would be good, to run be able to Windows 98 (not ME or XP) and have loads of hard drive space and a reasonable speed.

I have a machine that meets all of these except for the 12 volts can they be doctored?

PB

 

[AnneW]

I have a Jornada 820 which has a full keyboard, built in modem, serial plug and extra memory through flashcard on the side. I operate a chartplotting system on it and link this to my GPS. It has a 10 hour battery and operates directly on 12v DC. It is about half size between a PDA and a normal laptop. But operates on Windows CE not 98. It cost £800 but you can now buy them second hand on ebay for about £250.

 

[zefender]

'Standard' cigar lighter 'car' adaptors are available for most laptops. Or have I missed something?

 

[bedouin]

I haven't seen a laptop that charges on anything as low as 12V for ages - most are in the 14-20V range.

I would guess that some/most would run on 12V, but probably not recharge the internal battery. You can get special cords that boost the voltage from the battery enough to charge the battery.

As an alternative, you can always run the existing mains adaptor off a cheap inverter - this often turns out to the be cheapest option.

 

[colvic]

4 to 5 amps sounds about right, and you wouldn't notice it in a car with the engine running but on a battery not being charged you'll soon see the drop.

If you don't do much motor sailing, see about increasing the charge to your battery or installing additional battery(ies) so that you have plenty of capacity. If you have a charge system such as Adverc you'll put in most of the output from your alternator so a 75 amp alternator running for an hour will put in about 70amps, about 14 hours use for the laptop. A good investment as it gives you far more battery capacity that can be used for all sorts of other things as well as the computer.

They are on the net (Adverc) and address your query to Brian...a very helpful chap.


Phil

 

[seahorse]

Keep it simple, I use a £50 150 watt inveter which runs & charges my laptop & is also useful for other electrics on board.

 

[mdrifter]

We're using an IBM ThinkPad 390E bought 2nd hand from Alpha Technology. It is run on board directly from the 12V boat supply. The appropriate plug was bought from Maplin. To reduce power consumption you can remove the internal battery and the floppy/cd assembly. You cannot fully recharge the internal battery from the 12V supply but I've never found it necessary. On shore supply you could run the laptop using it's ac supply which provides c.16V which will charge the Li-ion battery which was provided. The ram is 128Mb and the HD is 6.4Gb and it's running Win98SE. It has only the one DB9 serial port and we have a single USB for which we've bought a usb/serial adaptor from www.easysync.co.uk or it might be .com. This is one of the neatest adaptors and costs c.£21, far cheaper than the Belkin monstrosity! It appears to cope with all the radio/tnc software/hardware thrown at it so we may go for the "twin" for c.£35. As a very rough guide any laptop which is using c.10.8V Ni-Cd or Li-ion battery will run from 12V.

 

[stubate]

I agree (i own a computer shop) keep it simple, prob with plugs etc is that laptop mfrs are sneaky and use all sorts of odd ball connectors and voltages.
I sell a 350 watt invertor for £50 + vat I took one to Greece this yr on flotilla and it worked a treat. Charged the Dig Cam, and laptop not a prob
stu

 

[Danthegorrila]

Thanks I have a small inverter but it uses a lot of power, I.m looking for live aboard time when there is no shore power and the computer on maybe 6hr per day. So the loss of 3 amp is alot.

Thanks

PB

 

[Danthegorrila]

Are they I have not been able to find one that does not go to 240v first?

Any idea wher I can get one?


PB

 

[davel]

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.targus.co.uk/product_details.asp?sku=PA360E>Targus </A>

Dave L.

 

[Danthegorrila]

Thanks, Yes i'm talking to Brian a lot, we already have a 170amps of charge power but for life on board when most is coming from a wind gen every bit is worth trying to avoid 4 amps x 6-7 hrs is 30amps per day or 20% of daily use which is too much to waste in transforming voltage.

I'am still looking for the right bits

thanks again.

PB

 

[Danthegorrila]

thanks really useful I will try to work though your idea it seems like a good solution

PB

 

[zefender]

If you look at Dell, Compaq and Toshiba dealers or websites, a car adaptor it is generally a low cost optional accessory of about £25. I've used mine like that for years, without problem.