OKDeric

Hey everyone, thought I would share my install of a Nexus 7 in my 06 F-150.

I decided to use a tablet in my F150. Originally I had a 06 Mustang with a Windows XP computer but it had several limitations I wanted to avoid. Given the amount of space in the dash I decided to look for an amp that could be installed in the dash and wired up to the factory harness. The amp I chose was the Pyle PLMRMP3A. The reason I chose this was due to the input jack and volume control ****. The amp itself is by no means a powerful amp. I was looking for something with similar output of the factory system.



You can see the amp temporarily zip-tied in place on the left.



I wanted the tablet to be removable easily so I could use it inside the house when needed and hide it so it wasn't stolen (hopefully). To accomplish this I used the Nexus 7 dock. Asus took forever to get this to the US but I had one a couple of days of them showing up online. I molded the dock into a spare bezel I purchased. To secure the tablet I molded it to one of those lexan back plates for the tablet, cutting it so it held the tablet against the pogo pins of the dock.





This allows the tablet to lock into place and since it is all molded in, doesn't look too bad once removed.



Here's a youtube video showing how it works when I insert and remove the tablet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=z2Ypipymng4

I wanted to stay cheap on the cost and I am at around $350 for the whole system. $200 I consider a wash since I purchased the tablet before I traded the stang in on the truck.

I still need to setup some tasker profiles so it makes the tablet sleep and wake with the ignition. Additional future plans include mapping out the CAN-Bus to see if I can detect when the steering wheels buttons are pressed and mapping them to provide function on the tablet. I also need to figure out a solution to offer hands free calling in my truck. I'm using an app right now but it is hit or miss depending on coverage.

The one downside to the tablet install is the front-end. I would love to find something that is skin-able without having to design something myself. With what I have today it gets me by but I really miss having the skin I made for the Windows install. Here's my tablet homescreen.



Let me know if there are any questions.

kevin777

Nice work, I believe this is the first set up I've come across that utilized a dock. Great idea, I want to get something similar because I would be taking it out several times a day. The permanent ones have a great look, but I like the function of snapping it out of the dock like that.

OKDeric

Thanks. As far as I know it is the first nexus dock molded into a dash. Because the tablet's contact points are on the bottom, it was quite the challenge to come up with something that wouldn't allow the tablet to move around. I did cut most of the edge of the lexan back cover off. Only about an inch actually secures it in place. This makes the tablet easier to remove from the pull-out point.

GATORB8

Steering wheel controls aren't can-bus, just variable resistance.

OKDeric

Thanks, actually what I'm looking for is to double the cruise controls as media buttons if the cruise control is off. This is why I am hoping to listen to the can bus to see if it gives status updates to what is enabled and what buttons are pressed.

despotic

Great work Deric! I was wondering if you might have some more pics of the bezel/dock molding process? I'm looking to do the same thing for my 2012 FX4. The sea in back is genius! I'm particularly interested in seeing how much of the dock you had to trim to pull this off. Since they're a little more tough to come by now I'd hate to make a mistake and wreck the one that I've got.
I still haven't made a final decision on what style of mount I'm going to fabricate but I am leaning towards the style that you've demonstrated.
Since doing this have you had any instances with of the tablet popping out of the mount on rough terrain or coming off of the POGO contacts?
Thanks again for this and your MP3car details.