A lot of companies used a small HD inside to store system info and nav data (even in the after market units) and used the data from the DVD to update the firmware and maps on the hard drive.

Of course there were also those that ran off of the DVD and RAM memory (one such unit is my way old by this point Pioneer AVIC-N3 that's still chugging away). Others like some of the Eclipse and higher end Pioneer units back in the mid 2000's stored the info on a hard drive for faster access and no need to mess with discs. I think even Alpine had a HD based add-on nav unit around the same point, but don't quote me on that I forget. But seeing that both Eclipse (Fujitsu 10) and Pioneer are large OEM supplies.. as well as Alpine but like I said I can't remember if they did offer one or not after market... if there were an increasing amount of hard drive based setups as OEM in the mid 2000's

Metra and others make custom fit kits (yeah they cost more than your standard $20 normal style kit). They're out there and do a real good job of keeping the factory fit and finish

Ha! I obviously wasn't thinking when I wrote that.. We use dell's at work and you are absolutely correct (be it desktop or laptop).. Ran into that enough times myself

Why do you have to read the service tag? It can usually be found in the bios or even via their website if you open it in IE

Not so. You're more likely to notice someone holding out a smartphone taking pictures and stuff, where as with glass it was discovered there's code and an apk with facial control features such as winking to take a picture etc. Since someone could much more easily just turn their head and wink to snap a picture vs holding a phone out.. Pretty sure you could do so much more covertly with glass than any phone (restrooms, up skirt, etc)

But the release of the code provided the means to find out there is code in there for controlling glass via facial gestures such as winking. Combine this with the earlier concern of people taking pictures or videos say in a restroom or up skirt up steps where the people who claimed oh you have to push a button or say a command to do so... Well just wink and its on.

And it's funny this is all being developed by a guy who doesn't want people owning drones that could film others.. Such as the parrot ar.drone.

On a side note, with all the reviews and ads it seems the main focus and feature being demoed is its ability to take phots and video......

Weird... because I dont have large hands and the note II fits fine

The installers dont use them... the mechanics, well I guess its happened before

"100watts is a lot of power."

Only in context. Take 120 volts.. that's less than 1 Amp. That's less than the LED replacement bulbs for Halogens use. 220 Volts (for the Euro guys). That's less than half an amp. Current USB Voltage (5 volts)... that's 20 Amps. Now that is a bit much for DC like that.. you'll need around 16-18 gauge wire ideally. But this spec is (after I was informed of this) using 20 volts, so that's 5 amps. That's not that much. You have some fairly small wires in your car fused at 10 to 15 amps now powering the radio etc, and that's only at 12 to 14.4 volts

I guess I missed that part.. I figured they HAD to be used higher voltages but I just based off of a worst case 5v deal

because fibre is much easier to break/snap than copper. Same reason the company my friend works for who installs media distribution systems into Lufthansa aircraft don't spec it out with fiber lines.. they use CAT 7 with the TERA style ends, because an over-zealous mechanic is more likely to snap a fibre optic line with his zip tie than a copper line

I know.. which depending on the run, using DC.. you're talking around 16 gauge to 18 gauge wire I'd have to guess. They aren't going to be your thin USB cables anymore.. going back more to the size of the original USB cables before they thinned down

The Penn State police are real officers as well, not rent a cop deals and they look like every other police officer around here

I should add I'm not suggesting pirating stuff, but it IS a solution like Netflix, although you always have to update your library.

I use to at home. I rip the DVD's to a linux box running Plex so the kids can watch a movie if they want on any TV in the house (only dvd players are the DVD drive on my laptop and the Dell PowerEdge in the basement, and the PlayStation 3). This way they don't have to handle the discs (less mess of just discs all over, no scratched discs etc) and they can easily operate it themselves

Plex Media Server + your peicemeal priated stuff.

Instant Netflix on your computer, iPad, Android Device, etc