***We recommend to always use your resistor when installing into a Game Boy pocket at the 5V source***

Written Instructions (Thanks Tom):

Introduction

This backlight allows you to illuminate your old Game Boy for retro gaming in the dark! Make sure to have all of your materials prepared and ready to go before you begin. It is always a good idea to disassemble and scrub the plastic casing before beginning.

Materials:
4-LED Backlight
Tri-Wing screw driver
Phillips jewelers screw driver
Soldering Iron and electric solder
Utility Blade
Lens Cloth
70-90% Iso-propyl alcohol

Installation

To begin, remove all 6 tri-wing screws from the back of your original Game Boy MGB (Pocket). Keep these in a safe place as you will need them later when reassembling.

*Removing the LCD*

Remove the ribbon cable connecting the front LCD to the PCB by pushing up on the white tabs that hold it in place. Tug gently.

At this point you should have the LCD and PCB separated. Proceed to remove the 3 Phillips head screws connecting the front PCB (with the screen) to the front shell. Again, keep these in a safe spot they are easy to lose. NOTE: The heads of screws are easily stripped, so be careful when removing.

Now is a good time to clean the front shell with soap and water. Let dry.

Carefully lift the screen using a flat head screwdriver or utility blade, then remove the tape connecting the ribbon cable to the LCD.

**Remember to turn on your soldering Iron**

*Removing the polarized film*

NOTE : Before you start, realize that the connections to the top and side of the LCD screen are very delicate and easily broken. Severing these will likely lead to a screen that is not repairable.

To remove the polarized film on the underside of the LCD, protect the front of the screen with tape or a Post-it® note. Turn the screen front side facing down on a smooth surface and obtain a clean, sharp utility blade.

Starting with the top right corner (screen connections should be to your left and below); insert the edge of the blade between the silver polarized adhesive film and the glass LCD. Push your blade gently and evenly with pressure about 0.5 inches between the film and LCD.

Now use your fingers or pliers to peel back the silver film. DO NOT pull without holding down the LCD screen. DO NOT pull up on the film while your fingers or pliers are underneath the screen wires. Pull away from the screen wiring as much as possible.

Once all of the film has been removed, you may notice a small amount of adhesive in the corners. Use rubbing alcohol and a cue-tip to remove and clean the glass on the back side of the LCD.

*Installing the LCD*

Now you will install the backlight and polarization film. On the backlight (white square with ribbon cable), find the side of the ribbon cable with the HHL. You should see a + and - marking on the cable.

Make sure the soldering iron is hot. BE CAREFUL to not overheat the solder pads.

Solder the red wire to the + contact, the blue wire to the - contact.

Clean behind your LCD screen with a can of compressed air. Any speck of dust will give you an annoying dot that is not easily removed.

Prepare your LED backlight by removing the protective film on the front. You are now ready to install the backlight to shine through the LCD

Remove the protective layers from each side of the polarized film provided in your kit. This is the thin grayish square. Place it on top of the backlight (same side you removed the protective film from)

Touching only the edges of the backlight and polarization film, lift them together, flip them over (so the grey film faces down) and slide them under the screen wires and above the glass LCD to fit into the existing frame. The ribbon cable should be to the right of the LCD wires (see picture)

The order of the parts from top to bottom should be LCD, polarizing film, then backlight (facing out the front). Note that the polarized film will only show the pixels if oriented properly. If your screen in inverted, rotate the film 90 degrees to switch the orientation. Make sure to orient your film to the desired setting before you close her up.


*Connecting the backlight*

Thread the wires through the case so as to avoid the button pads. They should come out at the bottom right side of the case (under the D-Pad)

Replace the PCB on top of the screen when you are satisfied with your backlight and button placement. The red and blue wires should come out on top of the PCB (see picture)

New version 2 model not show here, this is the discontinued model. You should see a flat cable extending from the bottom of the panel.

Now solder the positive and negative wires to the PCB. Find the bottom right most corner of the PCB to locate the two contacts that you will be soldering to. The positive (red) lead will be soldered to the second contact up from the bottom right corner (marked 1, see pics). Solder the blue wire to the contact labeled “4” near the power jack.

***We now recommend to always use your resistor when installing into a Game Boy pocket at the 5V source***

You are almost done!

Use the 3 Phillips head screws to attach the PCB into the case. While holding the case shut, put in two AAA batteries and power on the GameBoy. If the screen is dark, you will need to open it back up, rotate the polarization film 90 degrees, then reassemble. If it looks good, replace tri-wing screws.