OESF Portables Forum
Everything Else => General Support and Discussion => Zaurus General Forums => Archived Forums => Deals and Great Z Buys => Topic started by: Anonymous on March 01, 2004, 03:57:20 am
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Radio Shack is closing out a couple of models of gooseneck cellphone mounts for $10 each. Possilby because their suction-cup bases scared away customers (it sure gives me the willies to think about an expensive cellphone or PDA being mounted with one).
But...
If you use a nail or screw to tap out the pin holding the suction cup release lever, you find a hold that you can put about a #10 or so screw through to attach the base firmly. The previous owner of my truck had attached one of those slide-out mounts for a CB to the roof. I finally found a use for it: I screwed the mount to it, and it holds the Z in a position where it\'s out of the sun, out of my normal line of sight, and easy to see when I want to.
To attach the Z to the cellphone holder, I took the holder apart and removed the \"gripper\" mechanism (which doesn\'t spread quite wide enough to hold the Z. Dammit), and tie-wrapped the \"Strongarm\" bracket out of a Case Logic case to it. I drove around for a while to make sure the idea was going to work, and it did. So I\'ll drill a couple of holes and screw the bracket to it.
I don\'t know how the stiffness of the gooseneck compares to the new models, because I\'m too cheap to spring the $25 RS wants for them. But it\'s a lot better than the microphone gooseneck RS sells, which flexes too easily for vehicle use. I put a 90-degree bend in it to hold the Z vertical with the base mounted parallel to the roof, and it doesn\'t seem to flex visibly at all. Even in my \"camper special\" pickup, which rides like a buckboard if it doesn\'t have a ton or so of load on the bed.
So, for about $25 ($10 for the mount, and $15 for the case at places like Fry\'s and Circuit City) and very little work, you can make a really solid mount that fits the Z very well, and is probably even solid enough for off-roading.
fwiw: I dunno whether it was just the particular units I got, but the model for fliphones (with a clear phone holder) was easier to remove from the gooseneck part for tinkering. I was afraid I going to break the plastic when I whacked the larger one to disconnect it. That may be \"better\" or \"worse\", depending on whether your goal is to have a system that\'s \"extra safe\" or \"easy to mess with\" ;-)
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I bought the mount shown in the following link (the first picture - \"top seller\"):
http://www.arkon.com/palm2.html (http://www.arkon.com/palm2.html)
At $30, this is perfect IMO.
This mount
a) requires no mods - works great out of the package and looks fine. I have it in my Jeep Wrangler, and the bouncing is no prob!
fits the 5500 perfectly and is adjustable, so it would fit the 5600 and *should* fit the C series in portrait mode
c) is VERY sturdy - It is suctioned to my windshield, and hangs to the left of my steering wheel above my turn signal. It is sturdy enough that I can use the stylus or press buttons on it without it moving
d) obviously, i don\'t recommend reading articles or browsing the web while driving. I do on occassion, but really shouldn\'t! I got it for gps, for the record...
I could potentially post a picture of it mounted in my Jeep if anyone\'s interested. Not sure how many of you would be interested in doing this...?!?
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The suction cup thing still gives me the willies, but the other mounting options they offer do make that a better choice for most folks. Especially since they\'ve cut their prices: I think they used to charge even more than the $45 price they now show crossed-out on the webpage.
The one plus for the Radio Shack is that it\'s easy to change the \"mounting plate\" if, e.g., you want to switch between the Z and a GPS or other gadget.
Ran
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Yeah, I\'m sure that they both have their pros and cons. As far as the suction cup, it\'s VERY sturdy. I was very weary as well, and I had bad experience with it at first as I could not get it to stick. But, once I rubbed my windshield down with alcohol (included and explained in the instructions), then locked the suction level, that thing was ON!
You want to reattach the suction periodically - it recommends every week or so I think, but I\'ve had it on for a month and I just give it a strong tug-test to see if it\'s weakening before putting my 5500 in it. For me, the suction was good b/c I really don\'t want to mod or even sticky anything to my Jeep, but for those that are cool with that, I\'m sure it works well.