M6800 backlit keyboard upgrade

Hello everyone

I got my hands on a refurb M6800 without the backlit keyboard, just to find out that there is one!

My question is simple: As i was searching thru some Dell forum, one of the tekkies wrote "it is a bios option" (which i dont have right now). Will it be visible when i plug the KB (=BIOS will recognize on its own), or do i need to do some "voodoo" around it?

Thanks in advance,
M.

(i tried to use the search function, but ended in "nowhere useful", so if there is a thread, please guide me)

 

If you install a backlit keyboard, the option in the BIOS will show up. It is a simple drop-in replacement. At the office we have done this upgrade on a number of systems.

 

I've done this on a few of my M6X00s as well, and that's my recollection, that the option shows up once the computer detects the backlit keyboard.

There was one time that I bought a backlit keyboard, installed it, and the computer didn't detect it. I installed another backlit keyboard and the computer did detect it. I returned the keyboard that the computer didn't detect. I assumed something must've been defective with it.

It's a relatively easy upgrade although I despise the ribbon cables - they seem rather fragile.

 

yes it is possbile to install a backlit keyboard on a dell m6800 just did it, use the old ribbon cable from old keyboard and shut down the laptop, remove power and battery the reboot and enter bios, with new keyboard, look for keyboard illumination. Dell says it can't be done, something about different motherboard, but it can.

 

It is plug and play, it is not advised as mentioned above but it works..and the flex-cable is identical so no mods are required.
The only thing you need to do is to remove the flex-cable from the old keyboard and attach it to the new keyboard, unless you bought a new one when you ordered the backlit keyboard because they don't ship with one when you buy a keyboard, its a separate part number.

The only difference I've noticed is that the computer is stuck on the bios logo a few seconds longer than without a backlit keyboard even if bios is set to boot fast and not do all the diagnostics.
If I put the old keyboard back it would go pass the bios logo immediately.

And yes a new option in bios will appear when you plug it in, that is that you can set the brightness level on AC power and on battery for the backlit light

 

Agree on the rather fragile and crappy ribbon cables. The gold fingers pop out easily.

 

I just had that accident on the palmrest..the whole computer locked up and threw bsod's and if I tilted the computer it locked up...
Scared the crap out of me when listening to music and all the sudden the audio goes BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!
Until I figured out what the fff was going on I did never even think of inspecting the flex cables, its the first time one of these has failed on me.

Under a microscope plus glasses I moved each gold pin out of the way I put a dab of superglue under each contact point, moved it back into position holding it and let it dry a little, then I went on to the next one until I had done all four.
Last step was to carefully sand the surface down to get a bare contact point without any glue left, without destroying the repair.
I carefully inserted the cable with tweezers having it a little elevated above the mating surface so it would slide in ...and it worked.
Good god. To prevent any future issues I flipped the flex cable over and inserted the other end into the touchpad and the good end into the motherboard.
One issue, the play/pause button don't work on the keyboard anymore, its not registered as a key..so I have ordered a new palmrest because it is impossible to find only this flex cable for sale.
Unless you work at a facility that manufactures or distributes flex cables, which I had access to before...you have no other choice but to buy the whole part assembly.
Note the word "assembly", the palmrest is sold both bare as one plastic part and as an assembly with all the components attached ie speakers, the two springs for hdd bay, touchpad, volume keys, power key, fingerprint sensor and nfc reader if chosen.

This is the reason I think new laptop sucks, the M4800 and M6800 was the last generation with a single flex cable for the keyboard.
All newer models has one for the keyboard, one for the trackstick, one for backlight, and one for the mouse keys for the trackstick..so in short words, many more parts that can fail.

My little tech tip is to not use the blue tabs on the flex cable to insert them because you cannot see where the hole is and it will rub against the bottom half of the connector until you lift it up so it will go in properly into the whole creating stress on the pins.
Instead use a tweezer and gently and closely look at the flex cable and try to insert it dead on into the hole and you will feel no resistance until the marks lines on the flex cable and motherboard telling you how far it should be inserted, and now lock it into place.
Gotta be really careful of these cables.