How to Install a Game Boy Pocket Backlight!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 มิ.ย. 2024
- The Game Boy Pocket fixed a lot of the complaints about the original Game Boy, except for its non-illuminated screen. Let's fix that by installing a backlight kit!
You can buy the backlight kit I used in this video from Hand Held Legend:
handheldlegend.com/collections...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please consider supporting my work on Patreon: / thisdoesnotcompute
Follow me on Twitter and Instagram! @thisdoesnotcomp
TDNC t-shirts and apparel can be found at www.redbubble.com/people/this...
This Does Not Compute
PO Box 131141
St. Paul, MN 55113
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Music by Anenon (freemusicarchive.org/music/Ane...) and BoxCat Games (www.box-cat.com). - เกม
I'm told that newer versions of the Hand Held Legend backlight kit have been revised so that the resistor is built into the backlight itself. If you pick up one of these kits, it won't include a separate resistor, so the step in the video that shows installing one can be skipped.
This Does Not Compute can I add the backlight itself without the new polarizer? Or it’s has to be the whole kit?
Hey Colin. I've been watching a lot of your Gb,Gbc,Gba lighting mod videos. The Gba one helped me out a lot particularly. One random question though... What kind of soldering gun do you use? I really need a better one and the blue and yellow one you have looks like it works really well.
Juan Diaz you will need to use the new one the old one will basically be ruined doing this and you need a polarizer on the bottom the get any kind of display
this video is extremely helpful! I love all of Hand Held Legends products they are awesome quality for the price!
Also the instructions for installation have been updated:
wiring it up as shown in the video makes the backlight flicker, which is barely notable in some games (like F1 Race), but can be extremely uncomfortable to look at in other games (e.g. Hugo). Plus, I had the backlight start to go dim after just 40 minutes using fully charged-up rechargeables.
The updated way to connect the backlight module -as shown on the product page- is to solder the POSITIVE lead to pin 6 (above pin 4 which you soldered the negative to) and the NEGATIVE lead to pin3 (below pin 1 which you soldered the positive to). Note that if you still have the old version of the backlight module, according to commenter "Moon", you MUST use the resistor, as it provides constant 5V, as opposed to varying 2.5-2.7V from pin 1.
This removed the flickering and the rechargeables lasted me easily three times as long, but when they do get weaker, now the contrast gets increasingly lighter until you can't see the pixels at all (but that's just before the gameboy turns off), while the backlight brightness stays constantly bright. So, you win some & lose some using this wiring, but overall it's much better, imo.
It would be cool, if you could put an annotation in the video or update your comment with this information. Other than that I want to thank a lot for this guide! It's been very helpful to me doing this mod and showing me that it even exists in the first place, and gaming on my old Gameboy Pocket is SOOO much more fun now than it's ever been! (And I've had this thing since I was like six years old).
You're like the Bill Nye of console mods.
Love it.
Just completed this mod with the help of your fantastic video. Keep up the great work!
To those of you who want to try this mod, BE WARNED: the step Colin mentions where he places electrical tape on the opposite side of the backlight mod contacts is more important than is conveyed here. Depending on how the GBP is reassembled, the contacts mentioned may touch the cartridge slot contacts on the bottom of the PCB. If this is happening, the system will act as though your cartridge/cartridge slot is dirty and display a glitched Nintendo logo and not load any games. I spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to figure out why my Pocket wouldn't load properly and only worked normally again after covering them like Colin demonstrated.
Don't be like me. Cover those contacts before you bundle up your Game Boy Pocket!
Just did this mod, and the polarizer film, when you hold it up to an LED screen should be oriented the clear way. I.E. turn it until you can see through, and that is the right side up. The way he describes that part is a little confusing. But sweet video! My mod went successfully!
Your tutorial was so helpful! I tackled this myself with barely any experience with soldering. I got it done and I'm so happy with mine! Thank you again!
5:10 this is incorrect. Soldering to this point will make the backlight flicker with the sound. The correct pin to solder the positive lead to is right next to where the ground was soldered, at pin *6*. Pause at 4:45 for reference. Use the resistor when using this pin though, as it's 5v and will kill the backlight without it.
Edited to change the pin number from 5 to 6. Pin 6 gives constant 5v; the pin used in the video will give anywhere from 2.5-2.7v.
ah that point puts out 5v too? thats handy. I was use a capacitor at the top left of the board to get 5v.
Yeah there are a few spots to get good constant voltage, but the audio driver ain't it lol. I hope Colin updates this video, because it's a good tutorial. Just needs a little annotation to point to the right pin and explain that the resistor is needed after all.
moo. I have the one with a built-in resistor. I soldered the positive to the 5 point and the backlight didn't turn on at all. Where should I solder it?
Wow, I feel dumb, lol. Sorry, I was pretty tired when I wrote that comment. You should actually solder the positive lead to pin 6, not 5. 6 gives 5v; I'm not sure what pin 5 does.
I'll edit the top post as well.
Thank you, made all the difference
Just followed this video and successfully modded my first Gameboy. Far from easy and i have no soldering experience at all. Thanks for the help and great video.
Just finished this mod as well! Need to clean up the glass a bit more but other than that it came out perfect! Thank you!
10/10 recommend, just followed step-by-step and worked perfectly! Clear narration and directions. *big ups this does not compute*
thank you! just ordered one!
i love ya man! finished mine yesterday and it looks awesome! went with a blue screen, pastel purple buttons and i custom painted a shell that goes from pink to blue :D
Thanks for posting this I followed along with this and got my gameboy pocket working with a backlight!
awesome video brother. I was able to complete my very first mod successfully and am extremely happy with the results
Managed to do it first try, thank you so much!
Thanks Colin! Did mine today. Took a bit of trial and error, but it's working great now!
Just followed your instructions and successfully backlit my first Game Boy. Thanks!
Another great video! Im trying this mod out as well and your video is much more clear than anyone else's :)
So informative and helpful!!! Thanks, will refer to this later.
Great tutorial! Worked like a charm on the first try. Finally I can play Tetris in the dark :D
Colin, great vid! I usually slap things back in and do a test run before screwing everything in place. Just eliminates the hassle of tearing it all down again after you found you put the damn polarizer film in wrong way.
You make this look very easy. keep up the good work.
Definitely going to do this soon. I thought it was much harder to do it than this!
I'm doin this tomorrow and can't wait
all backlight from handled legend have luminate dot visible :-( is there no way to create it with a super long led ? this is not visible on front light kit
I would like to add the backlight on my gameboy pocket but I hesitate for a reason: the battery autonomy.
This device uses 2 AAA... So, the game boy pocket has only an autonomy of 10 hours approximately. What is the autonomy with the backlight mod?
Great tutorial! Being that it's summer and I'm in AZ, I found that leaving the original screen in my car for a couple of hours makes removing the reflector/polarizer a snap! This tip will only work for people in the same geographic situation as me, however. ;-)
I need to install my kit into my game boy pocket. This is very useful and concise. Thank you for the video. I will need to play with the contrast screen. The theory of it seems strange.
Just finished doing this mod, a couple tips; use a piece of scotch tape around the bottom of the ribbon cable to hold it together, if you've got a lot of adhesive residue on the screen try using a magic eraser cut into small pieces.
Awesome video, best teaching ever, thank you very much!
Hi, Wanted to know if the contrast regulator works after installing the backlight
Ey guys I need some help here. I bought a V3 backlight with a built in resistor. Issue is should I even use an additional resistor? And if not, which point shall I solder the positive wire to?
Hi there,
I installed the kit as directed by the video (except with perhaps slightly inferior soldering because of my lack of skill) and the Gameboy Pocket was working pretty much perfectly for awhile. A bit later, I noticed that the backlight started flickering, which was annoying but not that big of an issue. Later, I had an entire horizontal line of dead pixels, this was approximately a month after I installed the mod.
It's my hope that shoddy soldering might be causing this issues so that it can be fixed, but I'm afraid that it might be just that the age is showing since I figure if I damaged the ribbon cable, it would have been immediately noticeable. Has anyone else had issues like mine? Any related input is appreciated.
Hello one question!! In aliexpres said me that this screen dont need resistor...
Is this correct?? I have put other screen whit 2 separared cable red and blue.
Great tutorial! Thank you!
looks like this backlight mod also works with the good old' DMG, which is great news for us audio snobs 😀...
Of course if I was a real audio snob, I'd have already Pro-Sound modded my DMG...maybe you could do a video on that?
I wrecked two screens trying this mod. I got horizontal and vertical lines when I took off the reflective strip. Any other tips or tricks to get this to come off easier and not have these lines?
The lines are a result of damaging either the screen or the ribbon cable. All you can do is be more careful next time.
Hey so i'm confused on the polarized part, like the turning it 90 degrees thing. when you turn it to see it turn white is that the way you put it in?
Thanks!
i see many screen color options, which one has the best contrast? also will those 4 bottom lights in the pics show up in real life?
So if the green part of the ribbon cable and the orange part disconnect is the screen broken? I just did that to mine
i installed everything just like in the video (i got the blue one) and the screen is extremely dim is it supposed to be like that?
hey great video, since the GBA backlight kits are so hard to find these days. Do you think this could be done on a GBA?
what resistor shoul i use to decrease the flickering? Thanks!
I wanted to know one thing about this backlight mod, is the screen as clear in bright sunlight after the mod or is it barely visible. Just curious
How thorough do you need to be about getting the residual adhesive off? I have been working at this a while with 91% isopropyl and not getting very far.
Hey I have a question. I got my backlight working but a portion of the screen doesn’t work it’s about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch horizontal section of screen with no picture. Not sure if I can fix it or if I need a new screen.
My pocket does not have a battery power LED, do you know where I could solder one to? couldn't find any info online thought I'd ask the best, thanks!
The polarized section. If I’m facing the gameboy from the front (like playing), should it be dark in front of an LCD or light? Wasn’t clear on that
Is it normal for the screen to have some residue texture after removing the reflective polarizer? I tried cleaning it with the alcohol and q-tip but still couldn't get it looking 100% clean. Thanks.
I tried doing this about a year back and I kept getting a black dot near the center of the screen and bubbles appeared on the screen from the polarization filter. I was pretty irritated. It might have to do with it being the first model backlights which were really thick, I'll need to get the newer thinner models and see if that'll fix it.
This is amazing
Can't get mine to power back on . Any ideas to what I might have done wrong? I bought high end batteries. Not sure what I did.
dre morgan same here
I've got a question for you, Colin. I put in the backlight in the gameboy pocket, and your video was extremely easy to follow and understand. I have a newer version of it, but it's still essentially the same thing. When I tested it out, the backlight came on no problem, but there were two errors. One, there was a bubble in the screen (which I can live with). Secondly and more importantly, the lettering on the screen is distorted. It won't play games, just shows the distorted Nintendo logo. Any thoughts to what the problem is?
Colton Trappe I'm having exactly the same problem!! Did you solved it already?
Yeah, dude. Check all your solder points and make sure there's electical tape. Mide had fallen down and it started to short out somewhere on the game slot I think.
Colton Trappe I will give it a try later this night. thanks mate
Is there any other way to get the adhesive off the back of the screen? Cotton swabs and alcohol don't really work. Like I don't know how you got all the adhesive to come off when pulling off the sticker because all of mine is still on and it won't come off
Hi. Congratulations for your tutorials. They seem fantastic and very simple to understand. I have put some of them into practice with very good results. I had difficulty in this when separating the metal part of the LCD glass. Is there any trick, advice or simple way to do it without breaking it? I have already broken two screens 😰 and they are not easy to get. thank you very much!
So I just did this. The ribbon cable thing is no joke. I slice the long grey cable straight in half from one side down. I attempted to repair it using a soldering iron, heating it up, and just barely running along the edges that were cut apart. Worked. My screen has a bunch of horizontal black lines near the bottom portion of the screen, but I've learned for next time I do this mod. Someone below this comment said to wire the positive end of the backlight power to number 6, right next to 4, instead of where he does on the video. Do this.
YOUR THE MAN COLIN! (Collyn?) Love your work.
Please do a GBA front light install video, PLEASE!
Keep up the awesome work!
+zmullaney It's Colin, and yes, I'm working on it...it's going to take a while because I'd rather show a proper mod than a rough hack. Thanks for watching!
I'm getting IPS LCD screens for my Gameboy Color consoles. Can I use the old Color LCD's in my Gameboy Pocket?
Im not clear on something.... which direction should the polarizer be? put it vertical as dark? or vertical as light?
Also, I would like to bivert my pocket as well. Would this be a worthwhile mod for the pocket? I know you had done an install vid for the original GB, any chance you could do one for the pocket??
Your videos are awesome and help a lot!
Thanks!
+justin sims I was wondering the same thing about the polarizer
Is there a way to have the blacks stay black and not be gray without using a bivert module i want bark blacks not grays without the contrast maxed out on my mgb and to be able to keep my system on for hours without my tablet charger plugged into the dc connector so i can do walkthroughs on youtube with my phone camera.
If you use regular batteries instead of of the rechargable ones , will the screen still be too dim?
Since Gameboy pocket uses AAA batteries, it would be great to have the ability to turn the light on or off. I would put a micro push button right the bottom of the power switch. This way, you could slide to turn the gameboy on or off and press the power switch (with the GB turned on) to turn on the light. Using a microcontroller you can even add brightness levels.
this would be great, except for the fact that you removed the reflective layer, so the screen would be almost impossible to see without the backlight, however a dimmer like for the contrast and volume would be great.
I'm working on this mod, I'm finding difficulty to control the brightness using PWM due interference on the screen. I'll try some linear controller. Once I finish I'll let you know. Thanks mate
You're welcome
success! took longer than expected since most of the reflector adhesive stuck to the glass, and IPA, Meths, Ethanol, Gasoline etc didn't touch it. An aerospace degreaser finally did the trick! Buy hey, it works. Bivert chip to follow. Cheers :)
Awesome, glad to hear it all worked out!
Hi Colin, I pulled off the reflective layer on it's own (not on purpose). Can i leave the original polarization layer on or do I HAVE to replace it with the new one? Thanks
I'd remove the existing polarizer, as it probably still has its adhesive layer on it. Swapping it with the replacement also gives you options for if you decide to install a bivert chip later on.
Hello I had a Friend backlight my Gameboy Pocket but the issue we have run into Is that the case won't fully close up and when you try to fully close it a bit of black shows up on the screen any advice on what to do to prevent this?
Hello i have make dmg mod good. But have problem whit gb pocket. When put ligth screen dont ligth higth. Where solde?
Great video!
I have a kit left over from a few DMG mods and looking to mod a Gameboy pocket.
Question. Would it be if compatible or even necessary to add the Bivert chip to a Gameboy pocket?
Thanks!
Great Video as usual :)
Is there a difference between the "Handheld Legend" and the "Kitsch-bent" Frontlight kits for the GBC and which is better?
+Abdul Aali Kamal Din There is a difference, but it's really only in how they're installed. If you install an HHL frontlight using instructions for the KB model, you need to add a 100 ohm resistor between the power wire and the solder point on the circuit board. Otherwise, the installation is the same. I haven't installed an HHL unit, but I would imagine they're about on par when it comes to quality -- either is a good choice, though I would recommend also doing the LOCA mod for the best results. Thanks for watching!
Anyway to repair the ribbon cable? I sliced a portion of it and now that part of the screen doesn’t show anything.
That amber backlight looks beautiful god damn
Hey I did the mod and everything and I think I screwed up. When I peeled off the the reflective and polarizer layers I took the blue part off as well Im not sure if you were supposed to do that. Anyways I decided to just go with it and the mod seems to be working but Im still having one big problem and thats that my screen is a little crooked and if I move to fast my screen gets a little blurry. can anyone help me with the crooked part I tried straightening the polarizer but that doesn't seem to work.
just love it. great jobe
Hey! is it OK to ask questions here? I just have two! :) My first question is, could you please do a video just on where you can buy buttons and dpad replacements for GB Color and how to install them? I know that sounds simple, but it would be complicated for me. :)
The other question would be I was given a GBA SP *after* the backlight was taken out of it to be placed into another GBA SP shell, but otherwise it works and runs fine. I don't really think getting a backlight kit would work for me, but my question is; is it possible to add or use the front light kit or method to get the screen illuminated again? Thank you for your time.
just ordered the parts for my GBC. I got the front light wit loca 7 and I had no ideal that my GBP had a backlight mod I'm so happy that these mods are cheap cuz im going to mod my GBP and I'm thinking about biverting it as well I ordered it but I don't really have a good soldering gun I just got an old cheap on that I can't control the heat with I think I mite wait till I can get a better iron before tackling that mod idk yet I really don't wanna mess it up it's the first GBP I got I won it from the under the cap game from surge a long time ago
Do you recommend doing this if u have NO soldering experience at all? I really want a modded gameboy but I dont trust myself at all to do it :(
+Mr. Warmo My suggestion to you would be to practice soldering first. Go find a junk circuit board and practice desoldering components, then soldering them back in place. Once you're confident doing that, then move on to modding your Game Boy. Good luck!
Thanks for another entertaining and informative video!
I do have a question: My DS Lite has a problem in the shoulder buttons that causes them to steadily become more unresponsive, until they barely work at all. It seems to be a pretty common issue, and the current popular workaround is to blow air into the shoulder button--which only works for a few minutes, anyway. I was wondering if you ever found something that could be a little more permanent of a solution?
+Inflorescence The best solution is to simply replace those buttons. They're known as "tactile switches" or "tact switches" and come in many sizes and styles. I've never had to replace mine so I don't have a part number handy, but if you take your Lite apart and get the dimensions of the switches, places like Digi-Key and Mouser will have replacements that you can solder in. Good luck!
Hi!
Would you recommend using a hair dryer or heat gun for peeling off layers glued to screen?
Will it damage ribbon cables?
Thanks!
OMG I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!! Thank the gods for this video! Thank you for your hard work. I just calmed down. :D
Good afternoon friend. Is the backlight kit for GB DMG suitable for GB Pocket or would it need a Pocket Specific? Thank you!
I'm still kinda confused. I mean I remove the silver thing but why not the next polarizer film? I mean the kit that I bought has also a polarizer film? Why using 2 of them then?
THat rotation thing about polarizer is so confusing!!! Can someone clarify which way it is to be rotated?
PersianImm0rtal ikr
Does the contrast wheel make any difference once you install this mod, or does this disable it? Awesome video as usual! Really digging the crazy high production quality.
+Andrew Paulakis Yes, the contrast dial still works as it usually does, so you can adjust the screen to your liking. Thanks for the kind words!
Nice one! So do you recommend the resistor or not? I want to do this mod with the original gameboy but am not sure about the resistor. Whats the difference, Mr. Colin?
+Benny Palma Really, the difference for me ended up being the brightness of the screen. It's dimmer with the resistor and brighter without. If you plan to play mostly in the evening, the resistor may be a good idea. If you're not sure, try it with the resistor first as it's pretty easy to remove if you want the screen to be brighter. (If you want the best of both worlds, it's possible to install a small potentiometer that would let you vary the brightness.) Good luck!
Hi it seems to be that the original link is broken. Could you please update it? Or suggest a new backlight kit?
This was clearly too hard for me, or I was really unlucky. My first two attemts doing this mod, I ended up with vertical lines on the screen. Most likely i put too much pressure on the ribbon cable while removing the polarizing film. I also heard this can't be fixed like it can on the original DMG. I got it on my third try though. At least they were all cheap pretty beat up gameboy pockets from japan...
Yeah, same thing happened to me. My third attempt I wrapped where the ribbon cable meets together with kapton tape before I removed the back polarizer. I only ended up with one line in the screen, so I just taped the end of that ribbon cable down to the inside of the case, and the pressure made it go away. These mods aren't "hard" in and of themselves, but the screens on these gameboys are REALLY fragile, so research and do everything you can to not damage the ribbon cable...
@@blakeromo yeah, if you got vertical lines on the screen, it means that the ribbon cable has a bad connection on some of the leads. just tape the ribbon cable to the back of the screen and see, if anything has changed. If it still shows lines re-allign the cable in a different way and try again until the lines are gone. When I did this mod, at first I had a perfectly working screen, but it didn't light up (because the rechargeables didn't provide enough voltage) and I thought the backlight cables had a bad connection. I disassembled and resettled stuff until at some point the lines appeared and I found out that the screen lit up using fresh batteries or the wall adaptor. It took some trial and error then, resettling the ribbon cable in different ways again and again until at some point the lines were gone, but I was successful in the end.
So, the ribbon cables are very sensitive, but they can be fixed easily. that's good news: If you got vertical lines on the screen does by no means mean it's broken. Far from it!
Definitely worth it if you don't nail the ribbon cable. This is literally a console destroying project if messed up as replacement LCDs don't exist yet. Just nicked my ribbon trying to do this as the adhesive would not lift on any corner for me and I had a bad fight with it. Be careful and be delicate on this step, it's as fragile as it sounds.
Thank you.
The film will not sticks to the glass of the screen causing weird illuminate points?
Great vidja 👍🏼
Ordered a very similar package to this to install on my Gameboy pocket that has screen burn. Would this whole process get rid of the screen burn?
No, you would need to replace the front polarizer to do this. I've just fixed one today with this problem.
Dose this make games look exactly like playing them on a GBA SP ags 101 with the color set to black and white (left + B)
my screen is fine, it's very dim now, but the pixels are inverted and the backlight isn't coming on. i didn't install the bivert module and the pixels werent inverted the first time i turned the gameboy on after doing the mod.
You need to turn the polarizer 90 degrees. If you put it the wrong way, you get a negative image.
thanks. but it was actually the led not working. there was no light coming from it. got another one and its working now. may have just overheated the pads
Ok, glad to hear you have a working one.
Great video!!! I have seen videos that show vertical dead pixel repairs on the gameboy original; are the same repairs possible on the Game Boy pocket? Hopefully I can repair the pixels and backlight my old Game Boy pocket. Any advise would be appreciated. Thanks.
Hey Colin, is there any other way to get the adhesive off the back of the screen? I tried alcohol and it isn't removing any of it, and the whole thing is pretty much covered. If you could help that would be great! Great video though! Everything went smoothly up until this point. A friend of mine had this problem too and it took him a few hours to get it all off and he said I have more on than he did. Also for anyone that had the issue with the blinking screen you do not need another resistor, you need to solder to two points on the other side of the board. You should do a video on this Colin, it is really good if you have the blinking screen issue!
So I installed the kit, and it works fantastically. My only concern is that it (the screen) flickers as I play on through a game. Is there anyway you might know how to resolve this issue? Great video, thank you!
i just do that and get screen flickering, how other points i can use?
I've been fighting this damn glue residue on the back of my screen for like half an hour. Isopropyl alcohol doesn't work nearly as well as Colin claims. I'm trying to soak it in windex, that seems to work a little better. Will update in a moment.
Last night I tried this mod, and ended up not only breaking the ribbon cable but demolishing the ribbon cable (one of the cables just plain broke off at the solder joints). Any tips on how to get the reflector off easier? Perhaps using a solvent of some sort?
buy one , they like 50 usd or 45 euros
the thing itself, the whole console, its worth it because you dont have to pay for mutiple gameboys ( i had to buy 6 and it broke on me when i had it )
Hey ! I recently installed this kit on my gbp, but i notice that every time i click a button or let it sit it would flicker. is the flickering normal? And i notice that, it depend on what game i'm playing. Like no problem with tetris, but flickering with Pokémon. What should i do ? Thanks.
I should have read your comment same issue with me !! tried looking at the solder points and putting in new batteries no luck :(
+MrKrimstah I find a solution ! :)
Use thoses solders points instead : a.disquscdn.com/uploads/mediaembed/images/3216/7720/original.jpg
I don't have any issues now, even with low batteries.
+Cyriaque thanks for the tip i will try shortly did you use a resistor ?
+MrKrimstah Yes i recommend you using one. :)
I tried this woth 2 screens I took 2 hours to peel off the polarizer and the reflector and they came of prtty messy not clean like yours. A lot of adhesive was left on the lcd and by cleaning it They ended up breaking how do you get such a clean peel?
Maybe it was a stunt screen. Previously damaged and cleaned. That is why his removed so cleanly. Hehe. Maybe?