Using electroluminescent panel for Gameboy Color backlight?

SNESguy · Post by **SNESguy** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 5:01 pm

I have some experience with EL panels and wires, and their current draw is extremely low.

In the ones I've worked with (9 foot EL wire) it only consumed about 50 mA.

EL panels and wires do not have a short lifetime, as i have EL nightlights throughout my house, which have been continuously on for about 8 years. Their brightness has not faded much at all.

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 7:44 pm

bad news: backlights don't work with GBC lcds. i tested it with mine by holding a light up to the back of the LCD while it was on and you can't see the colors if the light comes from the back, it only works with front lights

usbcd36 · Post by **usbcd36** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 7:47 pm

Oh well, I'll have to do an LED mod to frontlight my GBA then (since it seems to be the same way).

Concept · Post by **Concept** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 8:45 pm

Double Bad News:
I got the EL panel and tested it behind the GBC LCD screen and it just isnt bright enough. I may have to pass on that idea.

Somewhat Good News:
I found an old Sony-Ericson cell phone that I had laying around and I'm thinking about gutting and using the lighting components and rechargeable 3.6V battery from it.

I'll keep you guys posted on what I find after I take it apart and see what I can fit into the GBC.

goodie · Post by **goodie** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 8:49 pm

Concept wrote:I got the EL panel and tested it behind the GBC LCD screen and it just isnt bright enough. I may have to pass on that idea.

Did you just say behind? As in, it is possible to shine a light through the back of the GBC's screen, thus making a true backlight? If this is possible, I'm gettin' me a GBC sometime.

Concept · Post by **Concept** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 8:54 pm

Yes, you can shine the light behind it but it tends to wash the colors out too much. daguuy is right...the LCD only looks good with the screen being lit from the front. very dissapointing

A.J. Franzman · Post by **A.J. Franzman** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:00 pm

SNESguy wrote:EL panels and wires do not have a short lifetime, as i have EL nightlights throughout my house, which have been continuously on for about 8 years. Their brightness has not faded much at all.

That depends on what you consider to be short. I've seen specs where "end of life" is considered as a 50% reduction of brightness, and average life was ~5000 hours. For a nightlight, you may not have a problem with light levels far less than 50% of the original. Also, as the EL gets dimmer, the rate at which it dims steadily decreases - it may take only 6 months of 24/7 operation to reach 50% of original brightness, but then after another 5 years it may have only decreased to 40%.

Have you compared your 8-year-old nightlight's brightness side-by-side with a brand new one of the exact same brand and model? I think you might be surprised just how much dimmer it is.

goodie · Post by **goodie** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:17 pm

Concept wrote:Yes, you can shine the light behind it but it tends to wash the colors out too much. daguuy is right...the LCD only looks good with the screen being lit from the front. very dissapointing

I guess I have to think of a different plan for playing GB and GBC games on a backlit screen.

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:19 pm

I found an old Sony-Ericson cell phone that I had laying around and I'm thinking about gutting and using the lighting components and rechargeable 3.6V battery from it.

are you crazy sony ericsons are kickass phones and not to mention expensive

Concept · Post by **Concept** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:28 pm

Turbo Tax 1.0 wrote: are you crazy sony ericsons are kickass phones and not to mention expensive

Yes, they are but I have two of the same model. One of them use daily and the other just sits in my closet without activation...might as well put it to some kind of use, right?

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:32 pm

could sell it dont they go for 200$ with arebate or something

might be able to sell it on ebay and make 30 at least

Concept · Post by **Concept** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:46 pm

Turbo Tax 1.0 wrote:could sell it dont they go for 200$ with arebate or something

might be able to sell it on ebay and make 30 at least

True, but the whole reason I have that phone now is because I bought the phone really cheap (like $15 or something) from a friend who used it with AT&T and then I wanted to activate it with T-Mobile. Turned out it would cost almost as much to get a new "crystal" installed on the phone for it to be used with T-Mobile. I said forget it and just bought it new from T-Mobile (ended up costing something like $99 including the activation)...and plus it was a new phone instead of a used one.

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:48 pm

i gottcha well commense the dissasembly of the ericson