Tutorial: How to install LED backlit keyboard to Asus U36

Want an awesome mod for your Asus U36? This tutorial will guide you through installing an LED backlit keyboard to your U36 laptop, also known as the backlit keyboard mod. I applied this mod to my U36JC, but this can be applied to both U36JC and U36SD models, as they share the same keyboard.

This tutorial was inspired by LucifurFox's original thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus/623020-potential-u36-mods.html

DISCLAIMER: I will not take any responsibility for any actions you take here and within. By following this guide and attempting this mod, you take full responsibility and liability for anything that may happen to you, your laptop, etc.

With that said, let's begin shall we?

LEVEL OF DIFFULTY: 6/10

TIME TO FINISH: Approx. 2-3hrs, depending on experience. It took me 7hrs total to figure everything out!

YOU WILL NEED THE FOLLOWING (BUT NOT LIMITED TO):

• Asus U80 LED backlit keyboard* (I got it for $36.99 from eBay)
• Mini screwdriver kit
• Multimeter
• Thin gauge wires (from a phone line or Cat5/6 ethernet cords)
• Solder kit
• Electric tape
• X-acto knife w/ drill bits
• A lot of patience (very important!!!)

Photo of tools can be found here.

*I have to say the keyboard looks and feels way better than the original. Instead of the rough/sandy keys, the backlit keys feel like the aluminum magnesium alloy chassis--smooth, rigid, and not cheap! It feels like it is meant to be on this laptop. The only difference between this backlit keyboard and the original keyboard are the A, F3, and F4 keys. The backlit keyboard have extra function (FN) labels on those keys.

PROCEDURE

1. First, open up your laptop by following this YouTube video guide: U36SD - How to open it up! - YouTube
   
   
   
2. Take off the keyboard chassis and you will see this:
   
   
   The keyboard chassis, from under:
   
   
   
   
3. Slowly peel the silver heat shield sheet from the keyboard. You don't have to peel all of it, like so:
   
   
   
   
4. Take out 12 (I had 13) super super tiny screws (marked with the X's--yours may be different) and separate the keyboard from the keyboard chassis.
   
   
   The original keyboard. Note, the holes between the keys:
   
   
   What's left of the keyboard chassis frame. Note, the red dots indicate the many holes for the 12 screws to go in. These holes should match exactly to the ones on the original keyboard.
   
   
   
   
5. Now, take the backlit keyboard out of the package. I will split this keyboard into five layers (from bottom to top):
   
   1. Metal plate
   2. Black sheet (it's white on the other side; this is the one with LEDs)
   3. Clear plastic sheet (this is what the LEDs shine through and project upwards onto the keyboard)
   4. Keyboard
   5. Black bezel (on top of keyboard)
   
   The front of the keyboard:
   
   
   
   
6. Remove the black bezel that is lying on top of the keyboard--if not removed, this bezel will not let your keyboard sit flush with the keyboard chassis. It is attached to the keyboard really well by many plastic welds. You will need to pry and then snap it out with your hands very carefully:
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Turn the keyboard to its backside. Note the extra golden strip--this is the one to power your LED backlit. There are 8 screws holding the metal plate to the back of the keyboard. Take these out and then remove the plate from the keyboard:
   
   
   
   
   The black sheet is revealed:
   
   
   
   
8. With care, begin peeling off the black sheet from the back of the keyboard. Be careful, there are LEDs attached to the white side of the black sheet. Then peel the clear plastic sheet along with it. It is best to peel both at the same time and leave them back to back with one another. In essence, you want to peel the clear plastic sheet, and the black sheet will go with it. DO NOT separate the two! Use a blow dryer to make things easier and start at a corner.
   
   Once removed, the backlit keyboard should be bare, like the original keyboard:
   
   
   
   
9. This is the longest part, milling out the holes on the backlit keyboard to the keyboard chassis. Lay the backlit keyboard against the keyboard chassis. We have to make sure to match the holes with the ones on the chassis. Not all holes line up, so you may need to create new holes too. Use the X-acto knife with a drill bit and mill out the necessary holes. Be patient with this step. Take a look at the following image (or higher resolution image HERE). The backlit keyboard is the one on top. Note the green dots indicate matching holes to both the original keyboard and the keyboard chassis:
   
   
   I milled out the necessary holes, indicated by the X's:
   
   
   
   
10. Screw the backlit keyboard to the keyboard chassis with the 12 tiny screws you have. Then put the black sheet and clear sheet back to its original place:
    
    
    
    
11. Put the silver heat shield back to its original place:
    
    
    
    
12. Now it's time to wire up the power source to the backlit keyboard. There are many places you can wire it up to including the CPU fan wires, SATA power, USB, etc. I like to wire mine to the CPU fan wires because it is easy to do, and it also shuts down with sleep, hibernate, and power off. Solder a wire to the +5v and another wire to the ground on the ribbon:
    
    
    CPU fan wires. Click HERE for USB alternative power source:
    
    
    
    
13. Wire the +5v wire to the red wire on the CPU fan wires. Use black tape to cover all connections to avoid shorts:
    
    
    
    
14. Wire the ground wire (green) to one of the chasis screw:
    
    
    
    
15. Reverse steps to put back your laptop.

​

RESULT

And here is the final product!





MORE MODS

• I noticed some parts of the motherboard gives out +9V. This made me wonder, what if I wire it to the keyboard? Will this give it a brighter light? Will it blow the LEDs?
  
  
• Changing the color of the LEDs. There is a line of LEDs attached to the black sheet underneath the keyboard. I am thinking about covering it with a transparent PVC film like these:
  
  

 

Awesome Guide. Makes me wish I had a decent camera, then I would have been able to do it. Heres one of the few photo's I took of my mod;
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg123/Lucifur/IMG_0168.jpg

 

Nice guide, added to the Asus info booth and + rep.

 

perfect just in time. My keyboard arrived today, but i think i already messed up mine. I started to poke holes through the black part to line up the holes for the screws(fail). Hopfully mine will be ok as well. Also great idea to hook it up to the cpu fan. This means no soldering to the board

 

ok guys i officially had my 1st f*** up. i took off my original keyboard and then started to put the u80 keyboard on by poking holes through the led lights on that keyboard (fail once again). Obviously this got me no where and i decided to put my original keyboard in again and to post here about my experience. Everything was going well until my screws or the keyboard did not seem to go back in (they just spinned) i guess the threads are really weak? Anyways using my genius brain i tried to put the screw in an unorignal hole. This worked except now i cant get the screw out! I tried pulling on my original keyboard (another stupid idea) and now the original keyboard is slightly bent(but still works thank god) Anyways am i out of luck? I really want to install the other keyboard even without the backlight. Can anyone suggest any ideas to get the scew out?

 

King_Khan, I think precision pliers might be your best bet to get that out. Other than that, just have to destroy it. Instead of using a precision philips screwdriver to screw those tiny screws in, I used the flat screwdriver so that I won't mess up the tiny screws. Those screws are very fragile, and I don't think you can find them anywhere.

From your previous post in LucifurFox's thread, I remember you bought the Arabic version of the keyboard, and it was $15 cheaper. Have you thought about buying another one? If I were you, I'd start over with another one. A working LED keyboard just looks much cooler.

 

thanks for the suggestions. Im not exactly sure that i have messed the lights up as i havent powered them on. im gonna try to get the screw out one last time, but i still need a working laptop. I dont want to risk absolutely destroying my orginal keyboard and chasis to get that one screw out. Btw does anyone know where i can actully get a replacement chassis if that does happen? I have already done some damage to the original keyboard like i have said in my previous post. My ctrl, fn, windows, and alt keys are on a slope now

 

ok i tried to get the scew out again, but no luck. I guess ill just have to stick with my warped original keyboard. The screw is so tiny i dont have any bits that will fit it properly. I went to the dollar store today looking for an eyeglasses repair kit but no luck. I just wish i saw this guide before i started. Either that or i order a whole new upper case which i cant even find online.

 

Yes, I noticed it is very hard to find the keyboard chassis, unless you buy a parts only or a brand new U36. Try to save your keyboard chassis as much as you can--you might not be able to find another one. But a keyboard, you can.

One thing left to do for the stuck screw, drill it out. Either with a precision drill or a combination of an X-acto knife and drill bit. Good luck!

 

If you have to get a replacement you can order the upper case from here:

Asusparts

I ordered the U36 slim battery from them and got it in less than 2weeks.

 

The holes aren't lining up at all for me. I made the same holes as in the picture but all my holes are a little higher than the threads

 

Well i got some good and bad news. the good news is i got the screw out I had to basically destroy it. The bad news is, the u80 keyboard doesnt seem to work. The LED's i guess dont work either. I soldered the two wires to the ribbon cable and then hooked it up to a cell phone battery. They did not light up. I guess the holes i poked into the sheet killed it. Im surprised about the keyboard though. I'm not sure how i killed it. Anyways i was able to bend my original keyboard back into shape and put the laptop back together. I'm happy with that atleast. Wish i coulda got this working.

 

The holes did not line up for me too when I had mine--only about 5-6 of them did perfectly. The rest were a few mm off. I had to redrill the rest with the X-acto knife + drill bit. It was worth the patience though.

That's sad your U80 keyboard did not light up. Check the LEDs on the bottom of the black sheet--you may have drilled through those LEDs. If you drill anywhere else, I don't think it would break it. Are you sure you are giving the keyboard 5V? What about typing, does that work too? Time for another shot at another U80 keyboard?

 

yea i think im just better off ordering a new one. I tested the leds be hooking them up to a 3.7V battery. I'm pretty sure that should be enough to atleast get the leds to light up. I'm just a little confused about how you made the holes with the X-acto knife and drill bit. I'm just not sure how to do it.

 

Combine the X-acto knife and drill bit looking something like this: http://www.hondachopper.com/garage/carb_info/accelpump_valve_repair/pic1.jpg

Then apply your hand and twist the hole slowly at the spot. Sometimes you have to apply pressure to make it go deeper. Patience is the key.

 

Hi, I wanted to ask whether you know where to get a german-layout U80 keyboard? I can't find one. Also did you get to work the F3/F4 toggle for the backlight? Is it possible to use the button on the top left, which changes your energy profile to toggle the light?

 

There is only the Arabic version that I know of, but not German. I couldn't get the F3/F4 button to work with the toggle--it is beyond my knowledge and maybe a hardware limitation. I haven't thought about using the top left button. If anyone have a solution, please share.

 

Just got my keyboard today. There's a plastic cover over the power connector, should I take this off. Also, how do you determine which is power and ground on the power wire? Thx.

 

can this be done with a Asus A52f x3, Can i use my friends G73sw keyboard?

 

since the backlit led's are always on does it consume a lot of battery life?

 

ok just ordered my 2nd keyboard. Hopefully it will go a lot better this time around

 

I have an asus u46 that I would love to do this to...the keyboard looks the same...can anyone verify if it works?

 

i have a quick question. Would i be able to straight up drill the holes out with a drill if im careful enough?

 

So i just recently purchased my U46E and the backlit keyboard on ebay. I tried following the steps, but the U46E model was slightly different when it comes to taking apart the keyboard chassis off the laptop. When it came time to peel off the heat shield, the one on the U46E was completely different so i had to improvise. On the U46E there are no 12-13 screws that hold down the actual keyboard! It is held on my plastic that is connected to the chassis. I did the mistake by taking those off.. I kept following instructions and when it came time to mill out the holes.. it didn't stick to the keyboard so the keyboard wasn't flushed at all. everytime i pushed down on a key, the keys would dip even lower cause there were no screws holding it in place. Spent 4-5 hours and eventually gave up after trying many different things. I reversed the process to put my old keyboard back in and when it was complete.. my old keyboard wasn't flushed at all and the keyboard+ mousepad didn't work.

Luckily i went back to the store and exchanged it for the U46e with the i7.

Not gonna try that anymore!

 

Those plastic rivets are not designed to be re used

 

Yeah i knew that, but my friend kept insisting that I do so .___.

 

Sorry for the late replies, I've been out of this forum for a while.

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m171/japicon/u36 mod/021.jpg.

According the image, when the ribbon is exposed, the 5V wire is on the left while the ground is on the right. Yours may be different! I would test it with a 5V power source and see if it lights up first. Then you will find which one is 5V.

I am not sure. If anyone is willing to check their keyboards and compare, that'd be great!

I am still getting roughly 6hrs of battery life on normal internet browsing. YouTube and excessive video processing may be around 3hrs.

I wouldn't try it with a drill. Your hands are more accurate than a drill because the drill may slip and create a hole too deep on the chassis keyboard.

Wow. I am sorry you had some trouble with the U46E. I am thankful that you shared the experience with us so others do not repeat the same mistakes. Since the keyboard does not have those super tiny screws, you could maybe have opt-in using special adhesive glue that will make it stick. But that's probably not worth the trouble.

 

got my 2nd backlit keyboard for attempt # 2

lets hope it goes much smoother this time around. Also does the keyboard LED turn off when you put the laptop to sleep if you solder to a usb port?

 

I think the LED will turn off if you connect it to the USB. I have tested this with a USB flash drive that have lights on it. I simply plug it in the laptop and put the laptop to sleep/hibernate. The light turns off, indicating that no power is sent to the USB port. This is just pure observation, but I hope this helps.

Good luck with your keyboard. Tell me how it goes! :]

 

Hello everyone,
I've had a u36sd since last November and have been playing around with the idea of modding it, I want to put as SSD and try the backlit keyboard. It would also be great if I could put a higher resolution screen in it. Did anyone figure out if the CLAA133UA01 would work in it? I would want to do all of the mods at the same time so any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

hi hanime
after changing the keyboard, does it offer a better key travel distance? i currently find the keyboard "too thin" and cannot seem to type properly on it especially the space bar.

Does the U80 keyboard you use offer a better "feel"?

 

In the ul30 thread people seem to like the backlit keyboard better.

 

Not a good idea, though the last chance is drill it out. You may use super-glue with care. try to glue the screw to a used, unwanted Philips screwdriver. let it dry, then carefully unscrew it. Note that the super glue should not spill over the screw, or you will make the situation even complicated.

 

How can i join new keyboard ribbon to motherboard when it is not the same as original one , please replay

 

If the ribbon is not of the same, don't buy it. If you know for sure it is the same ribbon, then it most likely will work. Make sure to buy the one I stated in this thread, not any other.

 

On mine, I thought the backlit one was better than the original keyboard. The factory one felt really cheap.

 

Hello, what keyboard model did you use? I can't find replacement model, and U80 keyboard doesn't match (have differenct ENTER key form).

 

Dear hanime,

First of all thank you so much for all you effort with this project ... what a wonderful idea

Could you please let me know if the same U80 keyboard would fit into an U43SD laptop?? On the pictures it looks exactly the same, but I can't find anything about fits/dimension.

Else:
I also wanted to find a replacement for the normal screen to a FullHD IPS panel at AU Optronics ... as far as I know with a bottom left connector ... no success yet.

Do you have any ideas about these two things above? Would really appriciate any answers on this. (However I know I saw that this post was made in 2011.

Looking forward to your kind reply.