A backlit keyboard uses a system of LED lights to illuminate the keys from within to that you can more easily see the letters, numbers and symbols of your keyboard in low light or darkness. This is extremely useful for those who often use their computers on a dimly-lit plane, for example, or in a room where someone else is sleeping. Most laptops that include a backlit keyboard have controls for turning the backlight up and down, or disabling it altogether. Some models also include ambient light sensors that automatically turn the backlight up and down depending on the lighting conditions in the room.

Most backlit keyboards have several small LED lights located under the keyboard. These LED lights are often just above a reflective layer that spreads the light more evenly around the area under the keyboard. Directly below the keys is a layer of clear material with several dots for each key. These dots reflect the light up into the individual keys to help illuminate them. The keys themselves have a semi-transparent layer in the area of the letter, number, or symbol on the key. This allows the light to come through the intended portion of the key, while the rest of the key is opaque, blocking the light.

While it may be possible to add a backlit keyboard to a laptop that was not originally designed for one, there are a few problems involved. First, laptops are designed to minimize wasted space, and a backlit keyboard often takes up more space than one that is not backlit. This would make it difficult to fit into the available space. Second, the keyboard would require power connections to the motherboard that were not intended by the manufacturer and could cause damage to the system. The low cost of most laptops makes it much more practical to simply upgrade to a model with a backlit keyboard than to risk damaging a laptop over a minor modification.

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