14 DAY TRIAL // The Keyboard preference pane on Early 2011 iMac systems seems to indicate that Apple may be working on enhanced desktop peripherals, namely a backlit keyboard for work in low-light conditions.
While the technology has long been present in the company’s portable Macintosh computers, Apple has so far seen no reason to implement backlighting in desktop keyboards.
For the past couple of years or so, new iMacs have shipped with wireless keyboards and, in accordance with the user’s needs, the Magic Mouse or the Magic Trackpad.
All current Macs ship with Mac OS X Snow Leopard pre-installed and, depending on whether said Mac is portable or desk-bound, the OS’s system prefs look a bit different.
For example, MacBooks have different power saving options, keyboard prefs, and so on. On the desktop front, there shouldn’t be an option for illuminating the keyboard in low light conditions.
Yet, on the newest iMac models, there is, according to blogs 9to5mac and MacGeneration. The latter source also observes that there is an ambient light sensor present right next to the FaceTime camera.
The findings obviously led everyone to speculation that Apple is planning to introduce backlit keyboards for its desktop systems. While it would be a nice touch, we wouldn’t imagine this being a top priority for the company.
The wireless keyboard is powered by batteries, and backlighting would surely drain them faster.
Apple could well introduce the feature and throw in their Apple-branded charger and an extra pair of batteries to keep customers satisfied, but wouldn’t this spell just a tad too much trouble for a feature that no one really seems to be missing all that much?
And let’s not forget the most plausible explanation for why there are references to backlit keyboards on new iMac models - Apple’s software engineers may have simply left it behind by accident when borrowing kernel extensions from the new Sandy Bridge MacBook Pros.