12 Volt LCD TVs

[four winds]

Another vote for the Visio LED lcd TVs. I have the m190mv purchased at Target in the US. The 19" was as big as I could use, and it doubles as a backup chart display when swung into the companionway opening on its hinge mount. There are 22" and 26" models, too. (m220mv, m260mv)

The 19" is 12v from the AC brick, not sure about the larger ones. I haven't purchased a DC-DC converter yet but intend to do so even though it's 12v.

It has HDMI and USB inputs.

Not sure if this even applies to sailors in Australia such as the OP since I don't no if the format of the signal is the same as US TV. I include this post for future search results purposes.


On use as a chart display:

Chart display in daylight is better than I expected. With the display picture settings set to "vivid", the matte panel, and the color pallet of Polar View software it is actually usable in direct sun, though not bright. Display of traditional charts in raster format is not as good. The colors have less contrast. Vector charts from NOAA and the Polar View color pallet is usable in direct sun and fine in indirect daylight.

If I sit in front of the helm, halfway between there and the companionway I can see it even with sun directly on the panel. In all other lighting conditions, which is most of the time, it can be utilized from the helm position.

I plan to replace my monochrome plotter at the helm sometime, but I have considered using a netbook with the Visio as the primary setup. As a coastal cruiser it seems it would be fine.