Powering Laptop/ANRB whilst out and about

[phil zech]

Afternoon All,

Now that the lighter nights and warmer days are with us (hopefully)

I will be venturing from MAN to LHR a few times with ANRB.

Please can people share their experiences of what they use to power laptop/ANRB

when battery/batteries runs out.

I will be in my car at the Visitors Centre and then at night in Rennaisance Hotel

Many thanks

Cheers

Phil

[Runway 31]

Phil,

I have a power converter which connects to the cig lighter of the car and you plug your laptop into.  I got it from Harlfords and it cost £20 to 30 I think.  You need to watch you dont run down the car battery when using it.

[Marpleman]

Hi Phil

Been using an in car adaptor from Maplins (£15) for the past two years - works a treat but concur about your car battery

I also bought a 230v /12v portable power pack that has usb connections as well as normal 3 pin laptop plug socket that let's me go totally car free,such as south-side at MAN to take pictures, which gives me approx 3-4 hours trouble free spotting but you need either a donkey or a small child to carry everything with you,(and you attract a lot of attention!)

If you're staying with your car, the converter is the best bet - you can see all the tail-gates up in the Viewing Park at MAN which normally means they've got a RadarBox or SBS on board

good luck

Rich

[Rotorsport]

Hi Phil,
Have a look here: http://www.maplin.co.uk/Search.aspx?criteria=invertor&source=15
Hope this helps.

Cheers,
H

[Jetcos]

Have to agree with all the suggestions, if I can add to that:

1) Make sure the Inverter has an alarm or shuts off before the car battery is in danger of going dead.

2) Carry booster cables

I like the battery booster pack idea, these can also be charged via the cigarette lighter plug.

Killed a few batteries while spotting... :-)

[phil zech]

Thanks for all your replys.

Cant wait to get out and about this summer.

Marpleman, will be joining the ANRB guys/gals at the AVP !

PS. Can I use "the other half" to carry gear rather than donkey or small child !!!!!!


Many thanks again

Phil

[radarspotter10]

Thanks for all your replys.

Cant wait to get out and about this summer.

Marpleman, will be joining the ANRB guys/gals at the AVP !

PS. Can I use "the other half" to carry gear rather than donkey or small child !!!!!!


Many thanks again

Phil

hi phil.
I used the laptop placed on my knees passenger seat of course lol small aerial on dashboard, it was amazing to see the number of aircraft going from say 6 to 200+ and the distant you will get 200+miles as we drive along going up and down the hills give it a try phil you will see what i mean.
from pat

ps:
I would get about 2 hours usage from my laptop battery

[Marpleman]

Thanks for all your replys.


PS. Can I use "the other half" to carry gear rather than donkey or small child !!!!!!

Phil

The "other half" is fine...........just wish mine was so understanding......

The only place she would offer to carry my gear, is to the tip!

pm me if you're going down the Viewing park anytime?

Rich

[rnsavage]

I have a Samsung NC10 notebook for travel, with a spare larger battery. All fits with RB into my camera bag rucksack, and camera and lenses! No issues with airlines yet with weight.

Get 3-4hrs from standard battery and 6hrs from the larger with RB running. Was able to have it running all day at FRA last year from 8am till my flight in the evening, and was the only one on the 'mound' at CDG with it running - all the others had there systems running at the hotel as they did not have laptops that could run that long!

Hope that helps

Rick

p.s. prefer south side at MAN, usually up most days...

[g0seg]

Just got back from Scotland after a quick lookaround the peaks. I use Lipo batteries for my notebook when away. You can get a couple on e-bay for around £17. They are 4Ah at 11.2V and are comparatively small. The drawback is that you need a specialist charger but fortunately they`re cheap as well. With continuous use they each last 2 hours. One word of warning. Lipos can be dangerous if ill treated - eg, shorting out can cause them to burn! Regards, Roger