How To Install Backlit Keyboard In Laptop

You love your laptop and find that it is ideally functional for you. However, you wish you had a backlit keyboard. There are a few things you can do to achieve a backlit keyboard. You could buy one of the best laptops with a backlit keyboard already, or you can make your own.

If you choose to make your own backlit keyboard, then you are going to need some help. Though not always easy, it is definitely achievable and very much worth it.

Why would you need a backlit keyboard?

Here are some of the benefits of having a backlit keyboard versus one that isn’t lit. Though not pertinent to the functionality of the laptop, it is definitely a nice feature to have, and here is why.

1. Traveling

If you have ever traveled at night, you know how useful a backlit keyboard would be on your laptop. When you can’t sleep, and you want to get some work done, having a backlit keyboard will help you. You can work all you want without waking up the people around you because you will be able to see your keyboard without turning on overhead lights.

2. Dark Rooms

Working in a room that isn’t well lit can be difficult if you can’t see your keyboard correctly, and you don’t have it memorized. In a room with low light, a backlit keyboard makes it easier for you to get work done.  

3. You are a Gamer

As a gamer, you want to have what is called a zoned backlit keyboard. What that does for you allows you to zone the lighting to the keys you need most for gaming. Zoned backlighting simplifies your keyboard interface through visual segmentation.

How to Make Your Keyboard Backlit

If you don’t want to buy a whole new laptop so that you can get one that has a backlit keyboard, there are ways you can backlight your keyboard without having to do complicated tech work. Have a look at ways you can backlight your keyboard on your own.

1. Use a USB lamp for Laptops

Small and flexible USB lamps for laptops won’t exactly backlight your keyboard, but it will light your keyboard for you and not much else. These lamps are small and flexible; they plug right into your laptop’s USB port. Most of them are bendable to position exactly where you want them to be, and there you go, a backlit keyboard for very little money and effort.

2. Light up Mouse pad

There are mouse pads you can get that are relatively large, used primarily for gaming, but they are lit with LED lights. Some are single lit, and others are multi-colored. These mouse pads are great for adding light around your keyboard without lighting up much else. You can rest your laptop on it, and the area around it will light up in LED lights.

Some of these mouse pads come with controllers to allow you to change the lighting, and others are very simple. Some will even do music lights. It’s up to you how much you want to invest in this mouse pad that works very well to light up the area around your keyboard.

3. Glow in the Dark Keyboard Cover

When trying to protect your keyboard from wear and tear, there are many types of keyboard covers you can get. If you want one that resembles a slightly backlit keyboard, you can choose one that will glow in the dark. These keyboard covers are great for protecting the integrity of your keys, and they are comfortable to type one.

One thing you need to be aware of is that these are glow in the dark. Therefore, they won’t work well in a poorly lit room or if there is another lighting nearby. These keyboards are best used if you are working in a purely dark room.

4. Replace Keyboard

The most complicated and time-consuming way to get a backlit keyboard is to replace your keyboard entirely. You can take apart your entire laptop, and change out your ordinary keyboard for a backlit one. Though this option is still cheaper than getting a new laptop, it does require a level of technical skills.

What you need to do is turn off the laptop completely, open it up, and remove the old keyboard. Then you replace it with one that is backlit. How it gets plugged in and ready to go depends on the keyboard and the laptop. You also need to find out if that is even an option for your laptop.

How to Adjust an RGB Backlit Keyboard

If you have an RGB keyboard, you want to go to your keyboard driver to adjust it. The driver will be found as a setting in on your computer itself. Other RGB keyboards allow you to use the Fn button with the numbers at the top to adjust the lights and the brightness. It really depends on which keyboard you have and how it is set up.

If you have a Logitech or a Razer keyboard, you will want to use the drivers instead of the Fn button and the numbers. The way you adjust the RGB settings is dependent solely on which keyboard you have and what you are trying to accomplish.

Summary

Looking to make your laptop keyboard a backlit one can be as simple as just replicating the lighting you would get with a backlit keyboard or by changing out the whole thing. There are many options you can go with when it comes to achieving the lighting you want.

Along with using a lamp or a glow in the dark keyboard cover, you could skip trying to backlight your keyboard altogether. Purchase a USB keyboard that is already backlit and attach it to your laptop. In doing so, you will be bypassing your laptop’s keyboard altogether.

Whichever method you choose will be dependent on what you are willing to invest and how badly you want a backlit keyboard. It is all up to you.