GBA backlight mod

[Bakkio]

Hello there,

I was wondering since the afterburner kits are hard to get these day, is there a backlight mod for the GBA?

Maybe if someone knows how what components can be used like some leds, resistors. I just want to get some backlight on my GBA, no extras though.

Many thanks

-Bakkio-

[kendrick]

As I understand it, the LCD in the original Gameboy Advance cannot be backlit. You can only light it from the front or the side, either with an intergrated unit like the Afterburner or an externally attached bulb dongle. If you've been searching on 'backlight' you might want to omit that term next time you try.

Just to head off the conversation... The SP is nice, and the Micro is lovely, but many gamers prefer the original GBA unit for its dimensions and its ergonomics. You are, of course, free to use whatever gaming hardware you prefer yourself.

-KKC

[blackevilweredragon]

i thought the LCD in the SP was the same as the GBA, minus the backlight, but the type of LCD was the same..

[kendrick]

Before this gets out of hand, I refer everybody to the following threads:

http://nfggames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=1899
http://nfggames.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=164

In short, the SP also has a front light. Don't make me whip out the external links!

-KKC, who spent exactly 45 seconds getting those search results out of the GamesX interface

[FM-77]

The later SP models (released at the same time as the first DS models) are backlit. But nobody has those.

[NFG]

The later SP models (released at the same time as the first DS models) are backlit.

Why would they change the design at the end of the console's life, and then go back to frontlighting for the DS?

I'd heard they were BETTER, sure, but BACKlit?  I'm skeptical.  

Where's your PROOF!?  (I can't be bothered to google it, in flagrant disregard for my own rules!  ha!)

[ido8bit]

So has anyone tried to front or side light an original GBA without using the afterburner kit?  Would the front light from a busted GBAsp fit?

A quick search on eBay looking for a cheap broken GBAsp revealed several with "now with a brighter BACKLIT screen" printed on the box.  I haven't seen one though, so I don't know if it is actually backlit and not just a brighter/improved front light.  

[kendrick]

You can think what you want about eBay, but it's worth mentioning that many sellers do not properly represent the item they are selling. This is frequently the case when you see a stock image, or an image that's recognizable from a professional retailer or catalog scan.

About swapping the screens? There's no technical reason why it couldn't be done, but I haven't done it myself. I get the impression that the flip-top screen on the SP has more depth than the space for the screen on the original GBA, which means you might have to custom-fabricate a lens on top to accomodate it sticking out. The Afterburner mod is simple enough to replicate if you have the parts, and doesn't change the layout of any components.

-KKC

[FM-77]

Why would they change the design at the end of the console's life, and then go back to frontlighting for the DS?

I'd heard they were BETTER, sure, but BACKlit?  I'm skeptical. 

Where's your PROOF!?  (I can't be bothered to google it, in flagrant disregard for my own rules!  ha!)

A conspiracy. Make a poorly frontlit model and release new model the year after. With better lighting. People buy the same stuff twice. They did it with the GBA, why not the DS as well?

Around the same time as the release of the Game Boy Micro, Nintendo released a new backlit version of the SP in North America (commonly referred to as the GBA SP+). The switch that controls the light now toggles between "normal" (which itself is already brighter than the original Game Boy Advance SP's screen), and "bright," an intense brightness level similar to LCD television set.

[Endymion]

Additionally, from wikipedia:

In North America in September 2005, around the time of the Game Boy Micro's release, Nintendo released an improved version of the Game Boy Advance SP featuring a backlight instead of the previous version's frontlight. The brightness can be set to low or high. The box says, "Now with a BRIGHTER backlit screen!" to distinguish the new model from the older, frontlit models.

[Shadow_Zero]

Alternatively you can install a HALO Light in the GBA: http://www.goldenshop.com.hk/AI-trad/gba/halolight.htm

I've installed these on my two GBA's. It's a bit bitching to get it 100% right installed (mainly because of the dust and air bubbles you get under the screen), but I'm content with the fact I can get light on my GBA now  

[Guest]

About how difficult would it be to put a game boy micro's fancy backlit screen into a plain old gba?

[Guest]

How about the back lit gbsp screen? The ags-101 one...

[nyder]

In the book, Game Console Hacking, they show how to hack a light & a dimmer into the original GBA.

Syngress published it, authors:
Joe Grand
Frank Thornton
Albert Yarusso

If you need me to, I can probably scan the article(s) for you, I'd just have to find a scanner to use.

Just for the record, my GBA SP, has the light at the bottom of the screen, from how it looks from all angles.  Sure, you can see the light at the top and sides, but it's much brighter at the bottom.  Plus it's light control switch is only on and off, no dimming.
It's model AGS-001   made in 2002.

I doubt they are still selling the book new, I picked mine up at a used book store.  It has some other "hacks" for the xbox, ps2, gp32, nes, atari 2600, 5200, 7800.
Most of them are stupid, but some of them are okay.

[StephenMunn]

Hello.

I'm also curious about a backlight mod. I have a launch model GBA with an Afterburner installed, and two GBA SPs with the original front lighting built in. I can confirm first-hand that the GBA SPs that Nintendo sells right now, in Pearl Pink, Pearl Blue, and Graphite are backlit, and the screen is at least as bright as the backlit screen in the Micro and the DS Lite, and by most accounts, brighter than the PSP. For the record, the original ("phat") Nintendo DS was also backlit, but it wasn't nearly as bright as the newer SP or DS Lite are.

What I want to do is reopen my GBA, pull out the Afterburner mod and the LCD, and replace that with a backlit LCD. Using the LCD from a Micro won't work because the screen size on the Micro is much smaller. I suppose I could use a replacement LCD that's intended for the newer SP, but would that work? I mean, how different is the technology? Could I even use one of the new SP's LCDs in an old SP? I imagine it all comes down to what's on the LCD and what's on the board. I don't know enough about electronics to even know if that makes any sense.