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.
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