How To: Illuminate your keyboard! | Hack

There is a lot of keyboards out there that has the back light thing going on. Sometimes these keyboards can be quite expensive if you want the cooler ones. There’s even keyboards out there that has LED’s for each button which you can change the pictures on each and every button. I am of course thinking about the highly desired “Optimus Maximus” keyboard designed and conceptualized by Art Lebedev. The keyboard is off the hook but the going price for it is just under $1,600 so it might not be the first thing you purchase if you just want to see the keys when typing and working in a dark room.

So, what can you do? Well, I found this really cool hack that will enable you to create a couple of LED lights lighting up your keyboard. As a matter of fact ANY keyboard. It’s quite simple and only require some minor skills and a few cords and LED’s. Then it’s just to get to work and put it all together.

When done you will be able to use the “Scroll Lock” key or whatever key you desire to use to toggle the LED’s on and off depending on when you want them lit. The solution may not be the most visually stunning but it sure looks cool and could really be used in a lot of other ways. How about hooking up a keyboard full of light switches. Then you could just sit at your keyboard and turn lights off and on around the house. Well, this might take a huge amount of work and probably not possible using the small power run through the keyboard but the thought is tickling.

Now, toggle that brain on and get to work. Your days typing on darkness is forever over. The time of no sleep is here and you have no more excuses why you can’t work during the night. The darknes is now your friend while working. Enjoy!