Bartop from Laptop without harming laptop

[Vigo]

Has anyone built a bartop arcade from a laptop without having to gut/dismantle or damage the laptop? I have my wife's old laptop that I was thinking of making a bartop from, but my wife doesn't want me sacrificing the laptop, for the cause. I also don't think it is a very dependable laptop, and it would be nice to know I could just easily swap out a different laptop of similiar size if things broke down.

My initial idea was to clamp the laptop to the bezel area with some sort of bracket, kinda like a mirror would be mounted. Then have the keyboard sit on an incline under the control panel. It would have to be an incline to have room for the underbelly of the control panel.

Anyone do something similar or have ideas on the best method for doing this?

[Donkbaca]

I would just build it like a regular bar top, and hook the monitors and controls up to a docking station, and dock the Laptop when I wanted to use it...

[Vigo]

I would just build it like a regular bar top, and hook the monitors and controls up to a docking station, and dock the Laptop when I wanted to use it...

Well, I'm trying to do this one on the cheap, so I plan on using the actual laptop monitor. I'll be even just hacking a usb gamepad for controls




......Besides, I'm saving my only spare monitor for when I mame that taxidermied goat. 

[scofthe7seas]

Hahaha like you could have a long ug' extending CP where the keyboard would fit under as you slide up the laptop screen to the bezel and attach it with velcro.

[Donkbaca]

A mame taxidermied goat would look oh so sweet next to my bb filled shoalin toe stab practice bag. 

You would need an uber-thin CP top... I am guessin you would need it to be metal, and the controls would be the keyboards length away from the screen.... 

I think the Velcro would work....

[scofthe7seas]

When the laptop is out of it, you can use it for puppet shows.

[JohnEDollar]

Vigo:

You can do a mod on your laptop, like this guy did on YouTube: 

(Modification turned out great, without harming his laptop!   )

- John

[chillinwater]

Haha ,that guy made me laugh, not his creation but the delivery!

This sparked my imagination for possiblilities.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10307674-1.html

Cant vouch for any of the specs, so these might be better to wait for next gen versions though unless your not worried about battery life or actual touchscreen usage.

I remember seeing some at Frys' (reasonably cheap) and was going to get one for my girlfriend but the swivel hinge was worrisome (breakage after heavy use?) and it didnt have a built in dvd drive which was a concern but these may or may not be huge obstacles if plugging into a bartop.

[scofthe7seas]

On a more serious note than my previous posts; I don't know how cheap it would be, but the laptop could lay down all the way open and slide under from the back with a 45 degree mirror above it.

[JohnEDollar]

Haha ,that guy made me laugh, not his creation but the delivery!

Yeah, the guy does have a sense of humor.  

You can see his finished product here (Time index 3:24):  

(Still think it is a nice project.)

- John

[chillinwater]

Nice, i totally want one now! Wish I could see his plans. I guess I'll just watch his video over and over again for entertainment too.

[Vigo]

Thanks for the idea's that have come in!

On a more serious note than my previous posts; I don't know how cheap it would be, but the laptop could lay down all the way open and slide under from the back with a 45 degree mirror above it.

That's a pretty darn clever idea. I like the old school nature of using a mirror as well. I'll have to read up on the whole mirroring/flipping the display thing, see how well it would work.


@JohnEDollar: Thanks for the videos of that guy's Lenovo bartop.....I was a bit concerned at the first video about how bulky the thing was, but it really turned out. It's a great proof of concept that what I was thinking of doing is possible. I think I would want to make a few changes to make it feel less like a laptop inside a bartop, maybe add a bezel around the screen and secure the laptop in place, and lower the whole thing down. (I won't need a separate keyboard).


I think I have some measuring and math to do. I want to see what would fit better, a mirror design or a design similar design to that Lenovo bartop.