Build your own Raspberry Pi and XBMC-powered touchscreen car computer #piday #raspberrypi @Raspberry_Pi
lifehacker Australia posted this great project to build your own Raspberry Pi and XBMC powered touchscreen car computer.
A touch-sensitive car computer would normally cost you big bucks to buy and have installed, but Instructables user Zaqq shows us how you can roll your own with the ever-powerful Raspberry Pi, some affordable components and a little elbow grease. Best of all, it runs XBMC beautifully.
First, a warning: You shouldn’t use this — or any in-dash entertainment unit with lots of options and buttons and widgets — while you’re driving. I think we’ve all come to accept things like changing radio stations and pressing play or pause or fast forward, but managing a playlist is a bit much. Be safe.
This Pi-powered car computer is powerful. It boasts all of the features of XBMC, so if you have a passenger to keep the tunes pumping or who would love to watch a movie on a long road trip, this setup can definitely do it. You’ll need a Pi, of course (Zaqq recommends the Model B, not the B+), running Xbian on its SD card, a Tontexc 7-inch touchscreen, a small USB drive for your media, power supplies for the whole deal, and the wiring to hook into your existing car stereo system. A few more odds and ends (a coat hanger, glue, stuff like that) and you’re all set. Assembling the screen and setting up the Pi is actually the easy part, and we’ve actually shown you a similar setup that takes less than 30 minutes a little while ago.
Read more.
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Each Friday is PiDay here at Adafruit! Be sure to check out our posts, tutorials and new Raspberry Pi related products. Adafruit has the largest and best selection of Raspberry Pi accessories and all the code & tutorials to get you up and running in no time!