Acer TimelineX 3820TG Backlit keyboard mod

[Bronsky]

Ok here's a tip on the keyboard to have pretty much zero keyboard flex. Mine has none

No flex and I forgot how much better the backlit keyboard really is. Much firmer keystrokes and better feedback. The experience is great A quality keyboard.

Yea, the middle bend worked for me but through use, loosened up a bit over time. I guess you could just rebend it, but that's why I put a strip of double sided in there. No flex at all - either. You're right about the KB, it feels much better than the original. My favorite thing, however, is the shinny flecks of color in the key's plastic. When the sun hits the KB, it reflects a bunch of colors and looks cool.

Bronsky

[Hendrickson]

YouTube - Acer Aspire TimelineX 3820TG keyboard backlit mod

Video of my backlit keyboard with switch as reqested....

[Bronsky]

YouTube - Acer Aspire TimelineX 3820TG keyboard backlit mod

Video of my backlit keyboard with switch as reqested....

Nice. I like the switch in white.

Bronsky

[Hendrickson]

It was black, but the paint was coming off. So i clean it all off with alcohol

[Bronsky]

I might be ordering the motherboard from MK in Germany if Shark doesn't get back to me soon. That means I will have to order the swiches soon too. I want to have everything ready for when I take the motherboard out, because I'm doing this once and I'm not taking this thing apart again. If I order the mother board soon, I'm ordering an OEM I5-540M.

Were the smaller switches too small to solder? Do you have a link to the alps switch that you installed?

Thanks

Bronsky

[Hendrickson]

Of the seven switches I ordered 4 were too big, 1 way to small. And 2 a good size. Which I used one:

The switch I used was ALPS Slide Switches, 5mm Std SPDT Horiz
P/N SSSS916400.

SSSS916400 ALPS Slide Switches

I found the smaller switchs to small and doubt they would last long. The super small one was just too tiny to solder and it would have broken in a few goes i think. Also the issue of filling in the space around it. My switch once the lock metal and upper plastic was removed fitted very snug. A bit of glue and it was perfect. Tight fitting and I know it will last.


Edit: OEM I5-540M, I hope you can overclock it. If you does overclock nicely maybe i will open up my unit once more forever...

[Bronsky]

Here are the switches I ordered from the Alps distributer.



Maybe we can find a black one that works in this bunch.

@hendrickson - this may be a stupid question, but are the terminals of the switches marked in some way for +/- or on/off?

Bronsky

[Hendrickson]

@hendrickson - this may be a stupid question, but are the terminals of the switches marked in some way for +/- or on/off?

Nope, but there are only 3 for my switch. So its either the top 2 or bottom 2 depending on up or down for on / off.

[Just_a_Nick]

Here are the switches I ordered from the Alps distributer.



Maybe we can find a black one that works in this bunch.

@hendrickson - this may be a stupid question, but are the terminals of the switches marked in some way for +/- or on/off?

Bronsky

Use an low voltage (1-5V) and test it. You should not to be able to destroy the switch.

[Skin Blues]

Sorry to butt in here, but Im looking to replace the bilingual keyboard on my new 3820TG (in Canada, 99.9% of retail laptops sold come with bilingual keyboards - smaller keys and lots of symbols and letters crammed on them). So my main goal is to get a proper US keyboard, but upon finding this thread, I see that it might not be too hard to get it backlit as well, which is a nice perk.

I guess my main concern is getting the parts required - keyboard itself seems easy, not so sure about which switch to buy. Im also worried that I might wreck something. Would you say this is an easy enough task for a person without experience with kind of thing, or should I stick with a regular unlit US keyboard? The cost is about the same, which makes it sooo tempting...