Hey everyone, it's Colin. How's it goin'?
Fans of the Game Boy Color have been limited to frontlights when it comes to illuminating the screen.
That is, until now.
But is this new backlight kit the option everyone's been hoping for?
[♪ Music - Intro ♪]
This Game Boy Color backlight kit is offered by Kitsch-Bent,
and includes a special piece of polarizer film and a frontlight panel.
But that panel gets used in a bit of a different way.
Let's get it installed.
You probably know the drill at this point.
I remove the six tri-wing screws from the back shell,
then the three Philips screws holding in the circuit board.
I used a fingernail to unlock the screen ribbon connector on both sides,
then pulled the cable out.
After lifting away the circuit board, I removed the screen.
If yours is stuck down firmly, a trick is to gently twist the front shell a little,
and it'll pop loose.
Next, I needed to modify the screen in order to install the backlight.
I set it face down on a piece of paper towel to keep it from getting scratched.
Then, I started carefully peeling up the foam off the back.
It's most effective if you can get the adhesive layer to come up with it.
You need to be really careful around the ribbon cable
as it runs up the back of the screen and it's easily damaged.
Also, don't put too much pressure on the screen,
Otherwise, you might damage some of the liquid crystals,
which will leave stuck pixels like these.
Okay, once the foam was removed, I then gently peeled the ribbon cable from the back.
After that, I needed to pry up the metal bracket.
I bent up one corner to gain access,
then used a plastic spudger to work the adhesive loose.
A guitar pick would be a good option too.
I worked my way around the bracket until it was free from the display.
It left some adhesive behind, but I found it easiest to just roll it up into a ball from one end to the other.
I then cut a couple of notches in the front shell for the light panel's wire to pass through.
I put the screen back in,
then peeled the protective film off both sides of the polarizer.
It then went on the back of the screen, under the ribbon cable.
On the light panel, I pressed the wires flush up against the bottom, as it was gonna be a tight fit.
I tested it with a three volt battery, just to make sure it still worked.
The film on both sides of the light panel came off next,
and I put it on the back of the screen with the textured side facing up.
Then I routed the wires through the notches in the front bezel.
An optional step is to make a reflector for the light panel.
I used one of the protective films as a template
on a piece of plain paper, then cut it out.
The reflector went on top of the panel, then I dropped the circuit board back in.
I reinstalled one of the screws just to hold the board in place, then fired up my soldering iron.
I soldered the red positive wire to this point on the right,
and the black negative wire to the point on the left.
All that was left was to button up the console.
I reconnected the ribbon cable
and made sure to put the power switch slider back in place.
The rest of the screws and rear shell went back on,
then, it was all done.
And the results are...
honestly, rather disappointing.
In the dark, when you'd want a backlight, the screen looks really washed-out.
It's plenty bright, but there's just not much contrast.
Kitsch-Bent suggests that you can rotate the polarizer 90 degrees to help with this,
but then the screen colors get inverted.
The screen on my frontlight Game Boy Color is certainly dimmer, but offers better color saturation.
The difference is even more obvious compared to a frontlit Game Boy Advance.
While the GBA's frontlight is brighter because it has more LEDs,
the overall picture quality is just better.
So why is this?
A while back I did a video specifically about how the Game Boy Color's screen works,
and why backlighting isn't that practical of an option.
Be sure to check that one out for all the details.
In short, it comes down to the reflector on the back of the screen that can't be removed.
But there's a little catch.
That reflector is somewhat translucent, and it's this feature that the backlight tries to exploit.
But only so much can be done given the design of the screen.
A brighter backlight would likely just make things even more washed out.
An upside to this kit though, is that the screen still looks normal in ambient light.
And while frontlights tend to make the screen look a little blurry,
the backlight doesn't add anything in front of the display, so it stays nice and sharp.
I paid about $12 US for the polarizer and light panel from Kitsch-Bent plus shipping.
At that price, it's certainly an affordable mod.
But even still, sad to say, I'd have a tough time recommending it.
The results just aren't worth it.
But for those who want the best possible image from their Game Boy Color games,
well...
you might just wanna opt for a clone console or a Game Boy Advance SP instead.
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You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram at thisdoesnotcomp, and as always, thanks for watching.