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TV for the van.

R

Rocketman

Veteran Expediter
So, I'm considering a TV for the van soon. I've got a few choices of where to get one...and a few questions.

1. Are the units sold in the truckstops AC or DC powered? If both are available, which do you recommend? (I have a generator and a single aux battery)

2. If I run it off an inverter, will the single aux battery power the tv and a laptop for 3 or 4 hours? Thats probably the most I would ever run it off the battery alone and I rarely use anything else off the battery...maybe charge a phone or headset.

3. What size do you think is best. I'm thinking that a 19" is good for the close quarters in a truck or van. Any suggestions?
 
Doggie Daddy

Doggie Daddy

Veteran Expediter
#1 never buy anything (especially electronics) from a truck stop.

#2 IDK.

#3 bigger is better, with todays flat screen, thin case tv's they can be tucked away quite easily using minimal space.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using EO Forums mobile app
 
Turtle

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
Rocketman said:
1. Are the units sold in the truckstops AC or DC powered?
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They might have some flat-screen TVs that are DC powered, but like everything else at a truck stop, they'll be even more overpriced what what you're getting than the AC-powered units are.

If both are available, which do you recommend? (I have a generator and a single aux battery)
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I'd recommend the AC version, since if you ever want to remove it from the trucks and use it in the house you could do that.

2. If I run it off an inverter, will the single aux battery power the tv and a laptop for 3 or 4 hours? Thats probably the most I would ever run it off the battery alone and I rarely use anything else off the battery...maybe charge a phone or headset.
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Depends on the Ah capacity of the battery. But yeah, it will. The TV will pull 27 Watts (about 2.5 amps from the battery) in ON mode, and about .3 Watts in standby (sleep) mode. If you add a satellite receiver box, that will pull an additional 5 amps or so from the battery per hour. If you do add a satellite receiver box, you will want to physically unplug it when not using it, since it'll draw nearly that much power when it's turned off. They do make an extension cord with a on-off switch at the end so you can reach it and not have to physically unplug it. It accomplishes the same thing.

3. What size do you think is best. I'm thinking that a 19" is good for the close quarters in a truck or van. Any suggestions?
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19" to 22". I used to have a really cheap Sanyo in here until it died (did the same thing that all of them do, so it wasn't the rough ride of a vehicle that did it) and it was a 19" screen. It had a relatively wide bevel-frame around the viewable screen, but the entire thing was about 21". I replaced it with a Samsung that is a 22" screen, and with the relatively thin bevel-frame it's barely any larger than the Sanyo was. But for where I have mine mounted, I wouldn't go any larger than that.

This is what I've got, and this is where I bought it:
Samsung 22" Class LED 1080p 60Hz HDTV UN22D5003 - Best Buy

These are the HDMI Cables to get.
 
R

Rocketman

Veteran Expediter
Thanks for the info. That is about what expected to hear although I wasn't sure what others were using in regard to the ac/dc question.

Thanks again!
 
LDB

LDB

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
Think (way, way, and maybe a third way depending on your age :D ) back to when you were a kid and sat on the front row at the movies. Then think about what size screen you want. From 4-5 feet away I'd think 19" would be plenty big enough with even a 13" being adequate. I don't think you can get a 13" at all any more and 19" is more and more rare I think. Good luck finding whatever you want.
 
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BigCat

BigCat

Expert Expediter
Fwiw I bought a 19" Vizio hd flat screen from amazon for my truck for $98 and I have prime membership so I get $3.99 overnight shipping. It worked fine with my inverter and came with free wall mounting bracket.
 
R

Rocketman

Veteran Expediter
BigCat said:
Fwiw I bought a 19" Vizio hd flat screen from amazon for my truck for $98 and I have prime membership so I get $3.99 overnight shipping. It worked fine with my inverter and came with free wall mounting bracket.
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Yeah, I was looking around last night and saw some pretty good deals. Walmart even had one on the shelf here for $78 or something. I'm not sure what size it was though....probably 19. I'm really looking for one with built in dvd and most of the cheaper ones dont have that.
 
billg27

billg27

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
If you get a TV with built in DVD, when it fails in several years from now, you can still add a stand alone DVD, VHS or satellite receiver. New tv's have lots of plug in spots. Some even let you plug your laptop right in to them. Then you could stream video and movies right from your laptop.
 
xiggi

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
billg27 said:
If you get a TV with built in DVD, when it fails in several years from now, you can still add a stand alone DVD, VHS or satellite receiver. New tv's have lots of plug in spots. Some even let you plug your laptop right in to them. Then you could stream video and movies right from your laptop.
Click to expand...

If the DVD part fails yes but not if the TV part fails.

Sent from my Fisher Price - ABC 123
 
billg27

billg27

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
True, I assumed that the DVD player would fail a lot sooner then a TV set. I picked one up from Wally World, I think it's 19-21" with built in DVD player for $158. It's ac only but I have a inverter generator so it works for my cv just fine. Bought the extended warranty for like another $15 for 3 years.
 
LDB

LDB

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
The advantage of the all in one is space savings plus only one unit to power, for as long as it works. Yeah, eventually something will quit but until then it's convenient.
 
Turtle

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
I have a DVD player. It's call a laptop. If I want to see that on the big screen, I just connect an HDMI cable from the laptop to the TV.
 
ebsprintin

ebsprintin

Veteran Expediter
I've only used my laptop for watching anything. I'm thinking next vehicle might have a projector instead of a screen.

eb
 
R

Rocketman

Veteran Expediter
ebsprintin said:
I've only used my laptop for watching anything. I'm thinking next vehicle might have a projector instead of a screen.

eb
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I like the projector idea. I've looked at them, but it looks like a good set up would get expensive? I'm wanting to keep the cost down for now, but might take another look later. I think a projector would be awesome and might possibly be a better fit for my setup than a tv.

I have a laptop and Im not a movie buff, so the point is well taken about the tv/dvd combo. My main goal is to be able to watch the Nascar races.
 
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