Before we wrap up version 3 of the Portable External Monitor project, we’ll add a purely aesthetic finishing flair: some gratuitous LEDs! This is the first opportunity to apply what I’ve learned from the LED edge lighting experiments conducted a few weeks ago.

When I first received and examined the LCD panel driver board (*) from the Amazon vendor, I noticed that a few connectors were unused. One of them caught my attention: it appears to be a way to share the 12 volt power source without the need to perform any soldering work on the circuit board.

A little Google search determined the connectors on the other side of the circuit board to be 4-pin JST PH-type connectors. So back to Amazon I go to obtain the connectors (*) for this LED project.

The slots for the LEDs were cut into the spine for the PEMv3 core. It was easy to place the LEDs in those slots and wired them up to the JST PH connector in series with appropriate current limiting resistors.

When turned on and running, PEMv3 was already pretty brightly lit: the fluorescent back light for the panel emits light in many other directions. It is visible from multiple locations on the side, and also visible across most of the back side. Adding these LEDs (green, to match the 6mm acrylic used in the enclosure) is fairly redundant but succeeded in making everything even brighter.

Maybe I’ll find the brightness annoying in due time. But for now, version 3 of the Portable External Monitor shines bright. May it shine for a long and happy time.

Or until I decide to build version 4. Whichever comes first.

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(*) Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.