Acer TimelineX 3820TG Backlit keyboard mod

Damn that was I brought only one. I wasn't sure about the size etc. Lucky. I guess I'm back to searching for a good simple 1-2 / on off slide switch and very small.

 

We need a switch 1/4"L x 1/8"w x 1/8"d ... 2 or 3 prong (2 pref) ... [email protected]. I wonder if they have a customer service person who can help. I live near edmund scientific, I'll call them to see what they have.

Bronsky

 

New PSP 1000 WiFi Switch Socket Repair Part on eBay (end time 14-Aug-10 03:00:55 BST)

A mini wifi switch for the PSP like this is good. But I doubt it will handle the mAH in the long run.

 

i got in contact with someone from digi key

super helpful woman

she gave me 45 switches to choose from. trying to find one that will fit now.

 

Pick a few. I don't mind spending a few $ to have a choice when I' trying to install it. A black face and switch would be nice.

Bronsky

 

Sounds good, whats those dims in mm ? (metric)

 

My ruler is only in inches. I'll have to measure when I get home. The pins can't be side pins, they have to come from the bottom and stick down far enough to solder on.

 

lol u still lookin?

 

yea lol

let's try to look for a switch

DigiKey Corp. | Electronic Components Distributor | United States Home Page
search for 'switch'
scroll down and click on pushbutton type
filter by SPST, OFF-ON, ON-OFF, Standard
click on in stock

or

click on slide type
same filters

 

ON that screen before and I keep getting no results when i narrow down the criteria.

 

One of these won't fit would they?

100pcs SELF-LOCK MINI Push Switch 5.8x5.8mm - eBay (item 380231250345 end time Aug-04-10 15:53:48 PDT)

 

5.8mm is about .25" I had the original measurements backwards. It is .25"L (1/4") and .125"w (1/8").

This switch would fit in length but the opening would have to be modified to fit the width. I think there might be enough room. This might be a decent backup plan.

 

I'm making progress with the switch catalogue. There are at least 2 good tyco candidates so far. One push button (on/off) and one slide. Shame all the rockers are too big.

Bronsky

@hendrickson & wasabi - the switch that fits perfectly into the kensington hole is 6mm x 3.5mm x 3.5mm. That is the ideal switch size. I have not found it in a slide power switch. The closest I have gotten is 8.5mm x 3.5. That would only require a small bit of filing to make a decent fit.

 

Is there a mini PCI-E slot on the baord? If so, SMbus should be connected to the slot. Digikey has a 8 pin part that connects to SMbus and can source 300mA. You would have to measure the current drawn by the keyboard - put a multimeter in series with your 5V supply on the USB to see how much it draws.

You could prototype it by getting a cheap bluetooth or wireless card and debug on it. There should be some freeware SMbus control software out there, you just need to send an on/off signal to the part and probably could bind it to a key.

Digikey part is Digi-Key - LTC1710CS8-ND (Manufacturer - LTC1710CS8).

 

Acer does not install the extra PCI-E slot unless the model has the UMTS unit in it. Interesting idea though. I think I'm narrowing down the thousands of switches to a few that I will order soon. I want to finish up my laptop in the next week or so.

 

Do you have a photo or link of it?

 

I've just been paging through the catalogues and marking as a fav. every page that looked like it had an interesting unit. The searching feature has worked well for me on the site. I've also looked at other mfgs. Tyco is near my house and I am going to email them and see if they have something near our specs. When I get through everything I've marked, I'm going to list the best candidates. I'll update you when I do. I think this is a solvable problem, but requiring a bit more work that I had hoped. In any event, filing 2mm or even a bit more will not be that hard. I have the feeling that this is going to look great when it is done.

I ordered wire glue and it should be here today. I'm going to take a shot at repairing my speakers for a temp fix until I can get a new one.

Bronsky

 

You could solder directly to the pads, or you can get a connector from Mouser to solder. 67910-0002 Molex PCI Express / PCI Connectors.

I believe the RAM also has SMBus going to each module, you could try debugging on a spare module.

 

You could solder directly to the pads, or you can get a connector from Mouser to solder. 67910-0002 Molex PCI Express / PCI Connectors.

I believe the RAM also has SMBus going to each module, you could try debugging on a spare module.

For the switch, how much space is inside the case by the Kensington lock? You could put the switch inside, and then glue a plastic shaft to the switch to stick out of the case.

 

You're right about that. I'm going to open up the computer this weekend to see if i can repair the speaker. I'll have a look at the Kensington lock and measure the space. I've looked at a lot of power switches that might fit in that space.

My goal is to do as little modding as possible. The inside switch might be the answer.

Bronsky

 

The EG1271 in this group is only 2mm longer than the kensington lock. http://www.e-switch.com/Portals/0/images/configurator_pdf_drawings/EG-Model-No.jpg It is as close as I have gotten so far. Tyco switches is close by. I'm going to email them to see if they have a better solution.

Bronksy

 

After EXTENSIVE research, I ordered 4 switches last night. I'm confident that out of the four, i'll find one that fits either the kensington lock (from the inside) or ethernet jack.

Bronsky, if you get a chance to open up your notebook tonight, can you do me a favor and take pictures of the kensington lock and/or take measurments of the clearance?

 

Goin' to a family cookout today. Probably take a shot at fixing my speaker tomorrow morning. I'll take some photos of the K-lock space and measure it then. It will be interesting to see a few different solutions. Sure wish I could find a rocker 6mm x 3.5mm.

Bronsky

 

Great, when you find one that fits please let me know and I will order one to fit to my new keyboard mod. (My keyboard should be in a week)

 

If you can get the internal dims Bronsky, I will try and find something local too

 

The Kensington Lock housing measures 8mm x 5mm x 5mm. I think it will have to be modified to put a switch in their or at least a hole will have to be drilled in one side to pass the wires through. I have a couple of pictures of the housing I can post later.

I fixed my speaker by attaching the wires permenantly. When I was done, I used two strips of double sided tape. One across the middle in the center 4-5" and one across the same area at the top, just under the clips. The Keyboard feels great. There is a tiny bit of flex left, which I think is unavoidable in the backlit keyboard, but all of the spongyness is out of the board. It feels much better to type on.

Bronsky

 

Glad you fixed your speaker, thanks for the info. I went into a R/C shop here at the shopping mall and picked up a switch. I think that could fit. I was planning to file down to side in order to fit. But it looks like its not going to happen. I will now look at buying a PSP wifi on / off switch. The only issue is its not rated to take 500mAH.

I don't like the sound of drilling or modding the plastic. If you were into going that far, you could cut a gap just about the 2 USB ports and mount a switch side on against the PCB to come out above the top USB port just fine. Plenty of space there. Just don't want to cut into the plastic....

 

If you don't mind me asking, is there any possibility to change the keyboard to a more regular one?
Not at big fan of all those gaps (a bit scared of crumbs and such getting in there).

And of course the backlit keyboard is awesome! Good work !

 

On the Kensington lock, it's not the outside plastic that needs to be cut. The Kensington lock creates a completely enclosed space that has no room for a wire to be run without modifying the internal metal box. I'll put a few pictures up later, when I get the chance.

The keyboard is so much better with only two strips of double sided poster tape. The slight rise that it had in the middle is completely gone and the KB is perfectly flat. Typing is incredibly fast and effortless.

Bronsky

@elgpostei - no one has put an aftermarket or other brand of KB on the Acer as far as I have seen. You are stuck with the island KB. I like it for typing. The spacing is much better than the 11.6" units I have used. If you're afraid of crumbs, don't eat over the KB. I must admit, I have my biscotti and coffee at the KB most mornings.

 

Thanks for answering Bronsky!
I guess I'll be careful. If it turns out that my KB gets filled with all kinds of junk I'll just buy an external keyboard.

And if I may ask one more question, is there a way to reduce any flex in the keyboard? I noticet on the 4820 TG model that the KB was a bit bouncy. Maybe it's better when the laptop is smaller.
Can't find any retailers where I can try it.

 

So to take the laptop apart I follow these steps?

1) Remove screws underneath
2) Remove keyboard
3) Remove screws under keyboard

Is that about it?

What's the best method to pry the laptop housing apart?

 

After you remove the screws under the KB, you will need to disconnect a few things: both speakers, microphone, power ribbon, trackpad ribbon, ethernet ribbon. All of these connectors will be in the openings under the KB. You can leave both fans plugged in.

To pry apart the housing I like to use my thumbnail. It should come apart that easily. Don't force anything. If you get stuck, look for another angle to release the clip. Start from the hinge area. I use a credit card only to release clips that my nail can't get.

Bronsky

 

Bronksy so did you fit a switch now? Any chance of some photos of it. I've yet to find a switch for the job

 

Not yet. I think I'm going to order a couple of the 8.5mm x 3.5mm slides. I can make them fit witout a lot of effort. I'm getting tired of taking my computer apart.

Hey, I think that the US Acer has a flat rate for MOBO replacement: $190. Not that I want to do it anytime soon, but a new MOBO would have a different clockgen ... right? I wonder if there would be a way to get one, knowing that it did not have the type of chip that is locked. That would be worth the effort.

Bronsky

 

Just want to confirm something. In order to fit the switch in, you have to cut out something from the inside of the kensington lock?

 

Check out this post.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/6551899-post238.html
He used a switch from an MP3 player. It fits in the lock.

Bronsky

 

I found a switch from a phone ringer, it looks like it could do the job. I hope it will fit. It has an on / off / on position. Maybe a resister could be fitted to one of the other ons to have, full bright, off and lower brightness?

 

Too much hassle, better to do a "Hendrickson" I think there is still a high chance that the 3G models at computeruniverse would be with the overclockable chipset PLL

 

You're forgetting that they don't ship to the US anymore.

 

Yea ... I would consider the German option again if CU was still shipping to the US. But, I am in love with the display that I got in my unit and would like to keep this one. If Acer does the MB swap, all that is needed then is to reconnect the BL KB. I would like to try wire glue next time. I think it will work just as well as solder without the danger of destroying the USB.

If I could be sure that I would get an OC'able PLL, I would swap it in a heartbeat if I am right about Acer's $190 flat rate repair. I can't even remember where I read about it. I'll wait to see how many of the new units are OC'able. There is a whole new batch being bought in the US from Taiwan, who is willing to ship to the US. My unit is fine for now, but I suspect I will be looking for an OC'able unit with a better CPU.

Bronsky

 

Oh sorry right.. I was thinking from my point of view being in Europe....

 

Can you link the site where I can get a 3820tg from taiwan?

 

Here is the thread where importing is discussed. http://forum.notebookreview.com/acer/501992-acer-3820tg-north-america-purchase-options-21.html

 

Any progress Bronksy? Have you fitted that switch yet? I'm still waiting for my backlit keyboard. Sohuld be here soon.

 

Nah! Been busy at work. All computer stuff is on-hold for awhile. It might be a couple of weeks before I can get back to it.

 

Unacceptable.

 

i don't suppose there is a suitable backlit keyboard for the 5820TG?

 

Was just wondering, is there any progress?

 

I've gotten extremely busy at work, using my Acer constantly. No time to take it apart and fiddle with switches ATM. I'll probably be awhile. I would assume that Hendrickson will have his KB soon.

 

Hey all,

First of all thanks everyone for their input and info on this laptop! I just pulled the trigger on the one from Staples in Canada for $699 with the i5 and slower gfx card, but I think it'll be enough for me.

Anyway, I had 2 questions:

1. Mine comes with the bilingual keyboard so is it possible to do Hendricksons backlit keyboard mod? If so, which keyboard should I buy from eBay?

2. Is anyone else having trouble clicking buttons with their mouse? Sometimes when I'm ie. Installing a program and I click the Next button, it doesn't register my first and sometimes 2nd click, but eventually it works!
Any ideas why?

Thanks so much!