Stylus for use with MFT screen

[rek]

When using the touch screen for multi-step input, something more than to just change the radio station, I prefer to use a stylus. I have mounted a stylus above the screen below the opening for the disk. Easy and quick to grab,use, then replace. Doesn't fall off and doesn't rattle. I salvaged two super strength magnets from an old used brush from my Sonicare electric toothbrush and glued them with silicone rubber glue, but one fell off, so I switched to Duco glue. The stylus body is ferrous metal so it sticks to the magnets. Most stylus bodies are made of aluminum and don't stick, so be careful about choosing a stylus. This stylus is the BoxWave EverTouch Capacitive Stylus available from Amazon at

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BUI76S/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i03?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

These magnets from Amazon would probably work just fine, or just search Amazon for "super magnet"

 

http://www.amazon.com/Magnetics%C2%AE-Block-Package-Neodymium-Magnets/dp/B000UMK666/ref=sr_1_43?ie=UTF8&qid=1373635390&sr=8-43&keywords=super+magnets

 

 

[wab]

Looks good.

 

We keep ours in the pin holder in the glove box.

 

Co-pilot is learning to navigate....slowly...very slowly.

She used to get lost on the way home from work.

 

I started asking our granddaughter to point at her house when she was 3.

We were in Florida a couple of weeks ago... she pointed towards her house, :wub2:  she's 8.

 

wab

[ScubaDadMiami]

Is there any risk to the computer, etc. from the magnets?  I love this idea!  :)

[rek]

I used to keep the stylus in the pen holder on the glove box lid, but I got tired of having to lean over and open the lid to retrieve the stylus, and to put it back in the clips when I was done with it. Having the stylus right above the screen is quick and easy to reach, makes you use it more often. Using a stylus helps keep fingerprints off the screen.

 

I have had the magnets glued to the dash for over a month without any problems. I assume there is a hard drive somewhere in the dashboard, I don't know if or where. I would be willing to bet that a hard drive would be well shielded from electrical and magnetic interferrence since these are hybrid/plug-in hybrid cars with strong electrical currents and motors and chargers and controllers throughout them. My compass is working fine, so the sensor for the compass must be far enough away to not be affected - or does the compass work off the GPS system? I can't think of any other systems or components that might be affected by a couple of small, although strong magnets.

Edited July 12, 2013 by rek

[PWBarrett]

I don't think this system uses a hard drive - just flash memory.

[salsaguy]

i would be very cautious of using super strong magnets (neodymium rare earth) as they for sure will cause issues and will also slowly erase your CDs that are inserted in slot in the dash above them.

[rek]

CDs and DVDs are entirely optical, the information on them is stored in a non-magnetic way using microscopic bumps which are read by laser light. Magnets would not cause any ill effects on a CD or DVD. Likewise, flash memory is impervious to magnetic fields.

 

http://www.techhive.com/article/116572/article.html

 

Neodymium Magnet Safety Links, FAQ's and Popular Uses

http://www.kjmagnetics.com/safety.asp

 

http://www.kjmagnetics.com/FAQ.asp#shield

 

http://www.kjmagnetics.com/uses.asp

 

http://www.supermagnete.de/eng/faq/What-is-the-safe-distance-that-I-need-to-keep-to-my-devices

 

I wouldn't put cards with magnetic strips, like credit cards, ATM cards or parking or ID passes next to magnets, nor would I put a magnet close to a heart pacemaker, hearing aid or mechanical watch. Otherwise there seems to be little risk in using these magnets to hold a stylus to the dashboard.

Edited July 15, 2013 by rek

[mnrobitaille]

When using the touch screen for multi-step input, something more than to just change the radio station, I prefer to use a stylus. I have mounted a stylus above the screen below the opening for the disk. Easy and quick to grab,use, then replace. Doesn't fall off and doesn't rattle. I salvaged two super strength magnets from an old used brush from my Sonicare electric toothbrush and glued them with silicone rubber glue, but one fell off, so I switched to Duco glue. The stylus body is ferrous metal so it sticks to the magnets. Most stylus bodies are made of aluminum and don't stick, so be careful about choosing a stylus. This stylus is the BoxWave EverTouch Capacitive Stylus available from Amazon at

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BUI76S/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i03?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

These magnets from Amazon would probably work just fine, or just search Amazon for "super magnet"

 

http://www.amazon.com/Magnetics®-Block-Package-Neodymium-Magnets/dp/B000UMK666/ref=sr_1_43?ie=UTF8&qid=1373635390&sr=8-43&keywords=super+magnets

 

Any good solutions for those who have a pacemaker, for the mounting of a stylus?

[rek]

The first thing that I tried was to wrap a piece of "fuzzy" self-adhesive velcro around the stylus, and stick a piece of self-adhesive "hook" velcro on the dash. The velcro did not stick very well to either the stylus or the dash and kept peeling off. This is why I went with the magnets. You may be able to get the velcro to stick better than I was able to, Gorilla Glue maybe?

 

I tried storing the stylus by sticking it in the air vent just to the left of the touch screen, but the stylus almost fell entirelly into the air vent a couple times, so I abandoned that way of storing the stylus. Plus it limited how you could point or tilt the air vent.

 

You could always consult with your cardiologist, mnrobitaille, to see if using magnets in this way would be a danger to your pacemaker.

 

It seems a simple thing that Ford could have done to provide a little tube in the dashboard beside the touch screen, like a tiny cigar tube or test tube, to drop a stylus into for storage.

Edited July 15, 2013 by rek

[Jaydrama]

I use a sticky pad I found on Amazon. It's called a Dashgrip, and I trimmed it down to about a three inch square and placed it on the shelf in front of the CD slot. It holds the stylus firmly and if I have to start driving again, I can just plop it there with some confidence.

[ScubaDadMiami]

I use a sticky pad I found on Amazon. It's called a Dashgrip, and I trimmed it down to about a three inch square and placed it on the shelf in front of the CD slot. It holds the stylus firmly and if I have to start driving again, I can just plop it there with some confidence.

Pics?  Do you keep getting your fingers in the material, and does that get on your fingers?

[Jaydrama]

I haven't figured out how to post pics. It is tacky to the touch, no residue. It bills itself suitable to hold cell phones or loose change in place.

[C-Maxgo]

Here's another option for those who don't want to use a magnet.  I found a rubber pen holder at Office Max.  It will hold the typical stylus that's the size of a pen.  The back of it is sticky so it can stick to the dash.  It's called a Pen - Pal.  It comes in a variety of colors.  It was up front near the registers in one of those bins with a bunch of stuff in it.  We bought it for my husband's new car.  In the picture below it is not attached to my table so it looks a little unstable but if it were attached it would attach right below where Pen - Pal is embossed.  

 

[mnrobitaille]

Here's another option for those who don't want to use a magnet.  I found a rubber pen holder at Office Max.  It will hold the typical stylus that's the size of a pen.  The back of it is sticky so it can stick to the dash.  It's called a Pen - Pal.  It comes in a variety of colors.  It was up front near the registers in one of those bins with a bunch of stuff in it.  We bought it for my husband's new car.  In the picture below it is not attached to my table so it looks a little unstable but if it were attached it would attach right below where Pen - Pal is embossed.  

 

 

You can get the PenPals in a three pack from Walmart for $2.88 (over in Office/School Supplies) & a stylus for about $9.88 (over in Home Entertainment/Electronics), so if you don't have either it'll cost about $13 before sales tax (if applicable

 

Here's what we did for a stylus mount: