I love it! It's stout, Made in America, and works really good! My dad has a really nice Gamber Johnson, but the $500 to $700 he spent on the whole thing (I can't remember exactly) was insane! The Ram desk was $200... at that price, I'm sure you can imagine I was skeptical, but what else was I gonna do? The reviews were fantastic! So, I took a shot in the dark and I think I hit the target. The mounting bracket fit perfectly and din't interfere with the mat. Even my Dad was impressed... that right there is saying something! I don't like the Garmins... they're hard to see, but you can't tinker with the map and trying to verify the location the GPS thinks you're asking for is near impossible! My Dad had Microsoft Streets & Trips and I liked it alot... worked REALLY well. Plus, I can see my maps, tinker with the routes... it's just alot nicer to work with. I also use the computer for music. It's got HD audio and when plugged into the audio-in port on the front of my stereo, it sounds awesome! So anyways, here are some pictures:

 

That looks real good

 

Looks good, and I know that you'll enjoy it.

WORD OF CAUTION... please try to minimize your "tinkering" while you're driving, for EVERYONE's sake. I've found that it is just too easy to get overly distracted with my system, and I'm not even running the GPS on it yet

I snagged a "like new" Jotto Desk for only $100 for my F250 back in the early spring, and I love it. The floor mount looks almost excatly like yours, but the articulating arms are different. I like the looks of your arms better, but the way the middle **** on yours is below the joint would cause serious interferance issues with my 2008 console.

I'm now gearing up for the installation of a new True-Sine Samlex 600 watt inverter and some A/C outlets so I can complete my mobile office by installing my printer and scanner in the back seat. Can't wait!

 

Hey Pete and Jon. How are you guys seeing your screens in the day time? When I use my laptop with AE, I can hardly see the screen with the glare when the sun is out. I guess there might be something wrong with my puter.

 

I have variable brightness on my Panasonic Toughbook CF-52, but since I have not been using it for GPS while driving, I typically leave the lid down to help make sure I minimize driving distractions. That said, though, my Garmin just died, so I may be porting the GPS functionality into the laptop very shortly. When I do that, I'm going with separate external mount antennas for both the GPS, broadband, and cell phone because I do end up in a lot of "way out there" locations where you might get one bar on the phone at the tope of a tall hill with no trees around you.

What might help you, Rick, is to orient the truck in a different direction so the sun is at a different angle.

Sorry, but I guess that was a longwinded "I don't have that problem right now".

I do know, though, that as far as daylight brightness specs go, the fully ruggedized toughbooks with the touchscreens have the brightest displays of all I reviewed over a year ago. My CF-52 is "semi-rugged", and I chose it mainly because it has a larger screen and I'm getting older.

 

I can see my Garmin very well while driving, but I don't think I could use my laptop the same way. I was thinking of getting one of those Ram Desk, but after using my laptop for AE, I don't think it would work well for me.

 

What kind of laptop are you using, Rick? Also, do you have it plugged into an inverter while you have it in the truck? The reason I ask is that most laptop displays will dim when running on battery, and that can easily make a difference as well. On mine, I have an option for increasing to max brightness when on battery, but that obviously drains the battery much more quickly, and that's part of why I'm installing the extra power inverter in the truck, and I chose to go with the more expensive pure-sine wave version to ensure clean power to the laptop.

Here's the link to the same Jotto Desk I have... http://www.jottodesk.com/s/438.pdf , and I was just SHOCKED to discover that this unit that I got for $100 is now selling for $340. WOW! I got a steal on mine!!

 

Not very good for ZF-6 trucks, but that's a great looking setup.

 

I really haven't had too hard of a time with it... I mean, there are times where I have to look a little harder, but the mapping software I have now has enough contrast differences between the different parts of the program that I haven't found it to be too much of a problem. And I have the glossy screen! Also, you might could get your front windows tinted some... I've been considering it, but haven't pulled the trigger on it yet. I'm not to sure I'd like them at night... but like I said, it's not too bad. Next time I'm out on the road in the afternoon, I'll try it out and see how it does. Also, Streets & Trips has a map with different contrasts that might help as well...

Pete:

The whole thing can be moved up and down... in other words, the main support tube is extendable. And to be honest with you, I don't see why the **** and arm couldn't be turned around. I could go out and check it out if you like. Oh, and thanks for the concern... I try to set it and leave it. I'll find songs, but that's about it and that's only when it's on a part of road that doesn't take alot of effort to keep the truck between the lines... you know, straight stretches or slow spots. That, or if I have to adjust the map... I know where everything is so I don't have to spend alot of time trying to find what I'm looking for on the computer anyhow. Plus, I like to sit back and enjoy the drive, not try to drive and do other stuff.

 

I know! I had thought about a ZF6 swap and a jump seat to replace my console, but I'm too spoiled with my gadgets and auto to do that now. Plus, I kinda live in my truck so, it might as well be nice. Oh, and it's a Lariat too so, gotta stick with the level of "assumed luxury".

 

Oh, and if you've got it on your seat, then that could be half of it... the stand picks the laptop up alot and the roof shields alot of the glare. I'm seriously considering a tint on my widows and if I ever have money to burn (like that's gonna happen), but the OEM sun visor that the Platinum and limited edition trucks came with. Should be nice!

And I'm also with Pete on the brightness... full brightness is pretty easy to see all the time. In your power options or using your function keys, you can usually manually bring the brightness back up. What OS are you using?

 

Pete, I have a Dell, Latitude D820. The instructions on the AE says not to use power from the truck because it may throw it into some kind of loop.

 

I'm usually in the pasenger seat holding the thing at all angles to try to get the best view of the screen.

I'm not sure what you mean by OS I'm using.

 

I'm told that's because the cigarette lighter and the OBDII connector are on the same circuit... the power point up on the bezel is on another circuit so I've been using that. So far, I haven't had any problems... but then again, everything still has the same ground. I ought to ohm out the chassis and the power point grounds and see if they're the same... I'm sure they are. If so, then my thinking as debunked! Plus, I don't run AE very long anyways... mainly for GPS or tunes. So, if it is bad, I could run AE on battery easy. It's a 12-cell and is good for about 3hrs. Anybody got any input on this?

 

OS... Operating System. What is it? I might be able to tell you how to adjust your brightness when running on battery if you haven't figured it out already.