[sloopercat]

I can't see the blue lights on the silver keys on this keyboard unless I turn it at a 45 degree angle in dim light. It is darn near illegible.

Does anybody make another keyboard, or a way to change the colors? There is just not enough contrast to see the letters on the keys clearly. Only one I saw was the French ZARTY keyboard.

8830 World Edition, if that makes any difference. Makes you wonder how that was not picked up in the design phase.

[djm2]

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8830/4.2.2 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Get Sprint version, or check aftermarket suppliers of housings.

[sloopercat]

I cannot find the aftermarket pieces, I searched around. Any ideas?

Verizon is the company option, so I cannot change.

[larryw]

I got my black/white KB from Cellular Accessories - LG, Motorola, NEC, Alcatel, Dopod/O2, Nokia, Sony, 3G, Apple, HTC, Panasonic, Be for about $6

Installation was super easy following the 8800 disassembly instructions on the BB FAQ. Some comments. First, the screws are T4 or T5, not T6 as described in the FAQ. Home Depot sells a small Torx jewler's-type driver kit made by Husky for about $6 that will do the job.

The plastic pry tool is a gotta-have. Don't even try this without it or you will butcher the side panels.

You do not need to take the unit apart as the keyboard will slide out the bottom once you get the side panels all the way off. (stop at step 3)

My 8830 had the tops of the side panels (screen half) glued on with some two-sided tape, so it was necessary to apply a bit of gentle persuasion to get the panels off. The tape stayed in place and was still sticky; the unit went together just fine.

Total time: 10 minutes.

And now my old eyes can see the keys!

Function beats the snot out of form every time.

[Andyn]

Until you find a Black/White QWERTY American Keyboard(good luck!) you can got to Options>Screen Keyboard>Automatic Dim Backlight and turn it ON when you are in a well lit room and the backlight on the keyboard will turn off.

[sloopercat]

[QUOTE=larryw;840904]I got my black/white KB from Cellular Accessories - LG, Motorola, NEC, Alcatel, Dopod/O2, Nokia, Sony, 3G, Apple, HTC, Panasonic, Be for about $6
QUOTE]


All I see on that site is the French ZARTY keyboard and the OEM silver.

Can I disable that keyboard light altogether? It appears that the "Options>Screen Keyboard>Automatic Dim Backlight" option controls both the screen and keyboard. The problem I have is in a darker room, in a well lit room I can see the keyboard with the blue letters lit. I can actually read the keyboard easier in a darker room sans the blue lights.

[kjjb0204]

Previous post with lots of information:

http://www.blackberryforums.com/gene...on-8830-a.html

[sloopercat]

Originally Posted by kjjb0204

Previous post with lots of information:

http://www.blackberryforums.com/gene...on-8830-a.html

CNN no longer lists those parts, I saw that thread, I am a searcher.

The best I have come up with is to set the backlight timer to 10 seconds, then when the timer kicks off, you just hit the trackball to turn on the screen and the keyboard no longer lights up. I can still read the thing better sans the blue light, in any lighting condition, at least there is some contrast.

[kjjb0204]

They didn't have any more black keyboards when I wanted one either. I just kept searching craigslist and the wts threads here and eventually found one. You could also try posting a WTB thread here and other bb forums to see if anyone has an extra one they would part with. I know the guy I bought my housing from had a few sets he was selling. I couldn't deal with the silver any longer...

[cgriffin]

When you change out the keyboard, what color are the keys then, white, blue??

[customshopkv1]

CNN has them again. I just received the black housing and keyboard.
BlackBerry 8800/8830 OEM black keyboard - English QWERTY- NEC, Mobiado, SonyEricsson, 3G, Samsung, LG, Microsoft, Motorola, Accessories St

Originally Posted by cgriffin

When you change out the keyboard, what color are the keys then, white, blue??

Also the keys are black with a white backlight.

[sloopercat]

Yes, I finally got mine from CNN, forgot I started this thread. Posted my results/install experience in the black case thread. It is such a much better device to use with a readable keyboard. To RIM, a big duh, for putting style above functionality.