ThinkLight was a

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

light present on many older

ThinkPad ThinkPad is a line of business-oriented laptop computers and tablets designed, developed and marketed by Lenovo, and formerly by IBM until 2005, when IBM's PC business was acquired by Lenovo. ThinkPads have a distinct black, boxy design la ...

families of

notebook computers A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...

. The series was originally designed by IBM, and then developed and produced by Lenovo since 2005. The ThinkLight has been replaced by a backlight keyboard on later generations of ThinkPads, and Lenovo has discontinued the ThinkLight in 2013.

Description

A white or amber LED (depending on model) is located on the top edge of the display, illuminating the keyboard to allow use in low-light conditions. It is activated with the key combination ''Fn-PgUp'' (the bottom left and top right keys of the keyboard). Later ThinkPads use the combination ''Fn-Space'' instead. Lenovo later started to include backlit keyboards, and some models included both the ThinkLight and a backlit keyboard. For those models, the ''Fn-Space'' shortcut is also used in conjunction to control a backlit keyboard (if the laptop has it). The on-screen display of ThinkPad computers will display a light on and a light off indicator. The ThinkLight can be activated when the monitor is on or off but not while the computer is off. Some ThinkPads, like the Z and R series (though not all - some R61 and R32 models still have the white light) feature an amber LED due to the lower cost, while other models, like the T series, use a white LED (which is generally preferred). The G series and SL series omit the ThinkLight. A few ThinkPads (17" W700 and W701) have featured the ThinkLight with dual white LEDs.

Alternatives

The

HP EliteBook HP EliteBook is a line of business-oriented high-end notebooks and mobile workstations made by Hewlett-Packard ( HP Inc.). The EliteBook series, which fits above the lower-end ProBook series, was introduced in August 2008 as a replacement of th ...

series notebooks contain a similar keyboard light called HP Night Light. Unlike the ThinkLight, it is activated by a physical button next to the Night Light, rather than a keyboard shortcut. Third-parties offered external LED-based illumination solutions for the HP 200LX series of

DOS DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...

palmtop A handheld personal computer (PC) is a miniature computer typically built around a clamshell form factor and is significantly smaller than any standard laptop computer, but based on the same principles. It is sometimes referred to as a ''palmto ...

computers in the late 1990s. The Dell Latitude ATG series laptops have also contained a pair of red LEDs which are controlled in a very similar way to the IBM ThinkLight and also serve to illuminate the keyboard. Some computer manufacturers have opted for backlit keyboards instead of illuminating the keyboard from above; but some ThinkPads included both the ThinkLight and a backlit keyboard (for example, T530, T430 and X230 models).

References

External links

IBM UK ThinkPad DesignsThinkLight
on ThinkWiki — section listing ThinkPad models that feature the ThinkLight {{DEFAULTSORT:Ibm Thinkpad Thinklight Thinklight

Description

Alternatives

See also

References

External links