Laptop in a picture frame cabinet

[Dervacumen]

Good day all,

Since I purchased an X-Arcade about two years ago, I've become increasingly determined to build my own upright cabinet with a custom control panel (since the X-Arcade is notably missing the Spinner and Trackball and permanent 4-way stick).

Since I have an extra laptop and the X-Arcade is plug and play, I thought I would also do something with that combination.   Here's the idea.

Open my laptop all the way.  Enclose it facing backward in a nice picture frame and brace it with a stiff 1/8" or 1/16" backing board.  Put my favorite picture to match the decor of the house against the backing board.  Cover it with glass.

Flip the "picture" around so I am looking at the laptop opened up in side a frame.  Make a bezel of some sort to block off all but the display.

Route the power button and external PS2 keyboard port to the bottom of the frame.  Add a couple of sturdy male pegs to the back of the X-Arcade.  Mount a couple of female brackets into the wall just under the "picture".

Hang the "picture" on the wall wherever I want a nice picture.

Any time I want to play out in the front room, I simply turn my "picture" around, get the X-Arcade out of the closet, insert it into the wall brackets and plug it into the bottom of the frame.

When I'm done playing, I turn the picture back around, unplug the X-Arcade, and it is again unobtrusive.

Should be a very straightforward implementation.

Any thoughts appreciated,
Dervacumen

[BarontheFirst]

Interesting idea. I have seen ppl go as far as sinking there cabs into walls but I haven't heard this idea before. You plan to use a laptop so my first thought would be power. Are you going to just take it down to charge it or run power in the wall? Second are you comforitable with the screen size. My cab is in my living room in a corner and as far as an obstruction it is far out of the way and it is full size. Then again my wife let me do it! You might not be able. Well it is a different idea hope it works out for you! Good luck!!!

[JonnyBoy]

I think it sounds pretty cool. You may want to consider making your own CP though, just for that finishing touch. Can't wait to see it.

[ChadTower]

Why go to that length?  If it's just a laptop, why not fold it and put it in a drawer if you need it out of sight?

[flampoo]

We want to hear the word BUILD! It is an original and interesting idea, however, it's not much toward the idea of building an arcade. What you've actually got is muntifunctional artwork.
Trust me... Once you're done you'll want more. Since you do have a laptop, why don't you construct a bartop arcade? They're not intrusive and they're easy to build. Cheaper than a full size arcade that's for sure.

[menace]

i scraped up a free p2-400 and built it into a picture frame--its a fully functional pc still so theoretically i could load it up with mame and play it but since i already have two other mame machines (including the cocktail the frame is resting on) i figured there wasn't much point.  At any rate, once it was done, she liked it very much.  The dongle is removeable and i have full access to the cd-rom and pcmcia slots.

It was constructed exactly as you think--I opened the display, rotated it 180 and then closed it--the laptop is wedged it and the frame is removeable in case I need to get into it.

[ChadTower]

I still don't get the point.  You took a fully functional laptop and made it into a static photo?

[Sinner]

I still don't get the point.

[menace]

exactly, i can put all our photos on cd and have them change once every 20mins or something--I'm really liking it.

[ChadTower]

Ah... you can buy woodframed LCDs that do that right out of the box, actually.  I have one.  The memory space is a bit limited, though, takes probably 25-30 good photos.

[Dervacumen]

The point for me is that I bought an X-Arcade a long time ago, and since I'll simultaneously be building an upright cab with a custom CP, I want to utilize the X-Arcade rather than sell it.  Add an extra laptop, and there you go.
It's as much a proof of concept thing as a real arcade cab.  A vanity thing.  Kinda like putting expensive rims on a car that already has factory rims installed.
The real fun will be my upright cabinet.

menace: I like what you did here.  I may ask you a few questions as I build this up.

BarontheFirst: I'll route the power input to the edge of the frame as well, and strategically place the picture somewhere near a power outlet.

Thanks to you all for support, I'll keep you apprised as I move forward.

Derv

[quarterback]

Ah... you can buy woodframed LCDs that do that right out of the box, actually.

[AlanS17]

Does the laptop have tv-out? If it does, you might wanna consider hooking that suck up to something bigger like your tv.

[Dervacumen]

The laptop does not have TV out, and really doesn't have the best display in the world.  I'll only be emulating a few golden age titles on this machine.  As I said, this is more of a proof of concept as anything else.  It's better than having an unused laptop around.  And I like what menace has done.  I'm now considering it as a dual purpose machine.  First and foremost for emulation, second for a dynamic picture holder.  I'll have to think about that a bit, to see if it makes sense.

[robotman2004]

Why don't you guys have a look at my little project to do this at grynx.com.
http://www.grynx.com/index.php/projects/laptop-on-the-wall-walltop/

It's a laptop in a frame, 21mm thick (so it fits inside a regular frame), no hd, boots on cd and uses WiFi to get on to my network, and then starts launch.cmd (on my server) and does whatever I tells it to do there.
Right now it hangs inside my living room and runs a slideshow of wedding pictures. And if I want to change the slideshow then I replace it on my server and reboot the WallTop.

Works like a charm, completely (!) quiet, and you only have two thin wires for power to it.

Cheers,
Chris

[ChadTower]

Now that is pretty cool. 

[ras2a]

Thing is, this should be naff, yet it's strangely cool - I want one.  You could try having various screensavers on there, like therapeutic waterfalls etc

[quarterback]

Thing is, this should be naff, yet it's strangely cool - I want one.

[RayB]

Don't forget porn.

[quarterback]

Don't forget porn.

LOL

[ChadTower]

Some things are not meant to be subliminal.

There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that belongs in your face more than boobies.

[RayB]

There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that belongs in your face more than boobies.

Literally.

[ras2a]

Some things are not meant to be subliminal.

There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that belongs in your face more than boobies.

PMSL! - Classic

[NIVO]

I beleive your all going the wrong way with this one. Its a perfect "hang it in the bathroom arcade!"  With a wireless controller, you can pinch off some aliens while takin a dump. Multitasking at its finest 

[ChadTower]

You want to share a controller that people use while they're taking a dump?

[NIVO]

the lysol is in the bathroom bro hehe

[ChadTower]

I don't trust people to use it, plus, someone would drop the thing in the toilet and not tell anyone.

That, and an LCD in the bathroom would be dead in short order because of the humidity from a shower.

[dweebs0r]

you can pinch off some aliens while takin a dump.

Pinchin' off a loaf and an alien at the same time.

-Dweebs