If anybody is interested in trying soft panels on the cheap with their JMRI setup, Menard's (Midwestern DIY chain) is blowing out "10.1-inch" Android tablets:
https://www.menards.com/main/electrical/home-electronics/small-electronics/packard-bell-10-1-android-trade-tablet/pb101tbk/p-1555482549590-c-6299.htm
By blowout, I mean an end price of $41 each, this week only, provided you can purchase in-person. In addition to the rebate shown in that link, they are running a "bag sale", anything that will fit in their grocery-sized paper bag is 15% off, calculated on the price before rebate. So $79.99 at the "everyday price", marked down to $59.99, 15% off is 50.99, minus $10 back makes it $40.99. Such a deal! The bag fits 8, maybe 9 (don't ask how I know 
). While you can only apply for the rebate once, you can buy as many as you want and get that rebate for each. Most stores appear to have up to 50 in stock, although our local store only had six, all but one with the package cut open and then taped, hence the blowout. First one I (re)opened was otherwise unmolested, the tablet itself still in the factory-sealed baggie.
I say "10.1 inch" in quotes because these are 16:9 screens, not the normal 4:3 you'd find on an iPad or Surface. Sort of sucky for web browsing, but the wide format is perfect for controlling an interlocking or small yard.
These pads run Android 9 "Pie". My main beef is - no different than any other consumer Android device - it takes about an hour of stepping through settings to reel-in the constant Google redirection, and of course the snooping. No matter for me, at least, since I run the pads on an intranet with no physical connection to the outside world, but nonetheless on the odd chance I put one or all on an exposed network it's best to be safe.
Dang, no Menards in Virginia to hit, but that sounds like a steal of a deal for what you are doing.
I have a fish finder sonar unit on my fishing kayak now, but the dang screen is only 5 inches diagonal. Talk about expensive by size, these things are pretty much $100 per inch up to 7 or 9 inches, and then the prices really ramp up if you get a 10 or 14 inch screen. But with new side imaging and other technologies, seeing the detail the sonar can produce is dang near impossible on a small screen, so I've been thinking about using a cheap tablet as a better screen - after all, the sonar unit has it's own wifi signal so you can share images with a buddy in another boat if he has the app on his phone. Sheesh.
