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laptops

Key pad on many laptops
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Why can't someone make individual laptop keys have a small light.. It would be easier to work in the dark.....
funevents, Sep 19 2000

Nyko Worm Light for Gameboy http://www.etoys.co...video_game/52340861
A "revolutionary" light for the Gameboy. [Jim, Sep 19 2000]

LED backlit keyboards http://www.tg3elect...backlit/backlit.htm
w/ dimming option, even. [jutta, Sep 19 2000]

IBM ThinkPad ThinkLight http://www.pc.ibm.c...kpad/easeofuse.html
All new ThinkPads (except for some of the I series) have a small keyboard light above the screen. [koz, Sep 19 2000, last modified Oct 17 2004]

Nite-Surfer.com http://www.nite-surfer.com
Looking through your site I think you might find what you are looking for at http://www.nite-surfer.com. They mention they are working on putting this technology into laptops and wireless keyboards --- Xtreme-Gamer [Xtreme-Gamer, Sep 19 2000, last modified Oct 17 2004]

Self-Explanatory Idea Names http://www.halfbake...tory_20idea_20names
Something this idea is NOT! [dgeiser13, Sep 19 2000, last modified Oct 17 2004]

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       Or have braille keys - the f and j keys already have bumps so why not the rest?
Or have the equivalent of the gameboy "worm light" but for laptops, just plugs in to a usb port.
Also, Mac rumour sites keep saying that the next revision of the powerbook will have this as an option. It's always the next revision, though.

Alternatively, have lights on the end of your fingers...
Jim, Sep 20 2000
  

       Maybe the individual keys could have proximity sensors on them and the computer would shout out what each key was as your finger passed over it.
PotatoStew, Sep 20 2000
  

       When sitting at night on the balcony, I want as little light as possible to keep the bugs away and the mood serene. But even a touch typist could sometimes use a little help finding the \ key.   

       Powerbook keyboards have transparent keys. Status change keys light up LEDs. With keys like that, one could backlight the whole thing with very little constructional effort; the key caps would show lettering opaque against backlit.   

       (Or.. do you know that disk with an electric "lightning" flash that orients itself towards your fingers when you touch it? If one were able to turn that into a keyboard, I'd bet there won't be another made-for-TV movie about hackers without it.)
jutta, Sep 20 2000, last modified Sep 21 2000
  

       There's always learning how to type... oh wait. Sorry - that actually means we need to exert some effort . Silly me ;)
ember, Sep 20 2000
  

       A backlit keyboard could have a dimmer switch, and/or software dimmer to control brightness, turn it on briefly to reorient, etc, and a slow fade, alá Indiglo. Glow in the dark stickers would be a simple aftermarket compromise.
Scott_D, Sep 20 2000
  

       The IBM T-20 has a small light at the top of the screen that lights up the keyboard. It's not very bright, it seems to be something like electroluminescent, it's that color and brightness...Doesn't do anything in normal room light, but if your eyes are adjusted, it's perfectly fine for typing in the dark...
StarChaser, Apr 11 2001
  

       Hmmm, backlit keyboard - why not use reflective key caps that takes advantage of the laptop's existing backlit screen to make the keyboard visible in the dark? PowerBooks have transparent keys - putting a reflective layer under the transparent surface should be enough to illuminate the keyboard in dark conditions, and the key labels are printed on top so they should be clearly visible as shadowed masks. The beauty with this idea is of course that it takes no power from the battery, so you can see your keys when typing in the dark without sacrificing battery life. Has anyone seen reflective key caps like this? Sorry if this is an old idea.
macsolve, Jun 18 2001
  

       Just a handful of tiny LEDs would work, wouldn't it? If you made the key opaque with a transparent letter/nmumber, it would work like a mobile phone keypad... How much battery power would LEDs take?   

       One second thoughts, macsolve's idea is much better than mine - ignore me!
kmlabs, Aug 01 2003
  

       Apparently laptop keyboards weren't routinely backlit in 2000
hippo, Apr 30 2019
  

       I can confirm that when I got my first Mac laptop, a 15" PowerBook G4 (not sure which exact model), its having backlit keys was considered a high-end and newfangled feature. I guess that would have been between 2001 and 2006. In 2006 I got the first white MacBook (Core Duo, not even Core 2 Duo), and it didn't have a backlit keyboard. I think it still doesn't, but I haven't looked at it in a few years.
notexactly, May 01 2019
  


 

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