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Flexiglow Illuminated Keyboard

Posted by timothy on from the you-thought-fake-barf-was-novel dept.

BigMan writes "You probably have seen a few of these keyboards (illuminated) before but this one is from Flexiglow who are known for making very nice modd products. We will look closer into this and see how bright it really is and if it's nice to type on and use."

4 of 219 comments (clear)

  1. This is not new. by eagle8635 · · Score: 5, Informative

    I think this product is new, but the concept of a lighted keyboard is not new, they have been selling one on Think Geek for years.

  2. only one color by SuperBanana · · Score: 4, Informative
    I remember hearing about the Apple TiBook 17" having a keyboard which glowed different colours for various alerts.

    I'm typing on one right now, and the only color it does is white. It's one(or two, I can't remember) LEDs connected to the keyboard via fiber optics. The LEDs are on the right side, either under or next to the keyboard.

    Brightness is controlled by software that polls two ambient light sensors under the speaker grilles; it doesn't even come on unless it gets fairly dark. You "train" the display and keyboard backlights over time; it learns what ambient light level equals what adjustment. The backlight actually can make the letters/numbers the same "brightness" as light reflected off the keyboard, making them essentially disappear, which is a little odd.

    The keyboard backlighting is great for planes, dark meeting rooms, etc...but beyond that it's a novelty. The automatic screen backlight adjustment is actually much more useful. If you get tired of it you can even set it back to manual...

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    Please help metamoderate.
  3. Re:How often do you look at you keyboard? by toasted_calamari · · Score: 4, Informative

    Apple ships their 15" and 17" laptops with illuminated keyboards. I've used them, and they work really well. Only the print on the keys light up, rather than the entire key like the flexiglow. It doesn't appear to kill the batteries to badly, and the light and screen intensity are controlled automatically by light sensors.

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    Let's make a difference
  4. Re:How often do you look at you keyboard? by Martin+Kallisti · · Score: 4, Informative

    IBM's X31 laptops, and probably most others in the same series, come with a little light installed at the top of the screen, which can be switched on to illuminate the keyboard if in darkness. It is not nearly as pretty as Apple's Powerbook solution, but it works well enough.