Apple keyboard issue prompts lawsuit

guest · May 12, 2018

Apple keyboard issue prompts lawsuit
Unresponsive keys? If compressed air doesn't work, try an attorney (that seems to be the plaintiffs' approach).
May 12, 2018
https://www.cnet.com/news/apple-keyboard-issue-prompts-lawsuit/

If you're having problems with your MacBook keyboard, you're not alone. And now the issue may be heading to court.

A class-action complaint filed Friday says people who bought a MacBook or MacBook Pro equipped with Apple's "butterfly" keyboard "face a constant threat of nonresponsive keys and accompanying keyboard failure" and accuses Apple of failing to alert consumers about the issue.

Critics say Apple has been less-than-responsive about the problem. In June, the company's customer-support team posted a webpage outlining how to clean the keyboard using a can of compressed air (some folks say that doesn't always work, or that the problem recurs). In March, reports surfaced about Apple filing a patent for a crumb-resistant MacBook keyboard.

Girard Gibbs Ltd., the legal firm representing the plaintiffs, has a webpage about the "butterfly" keyboard issue. The firm didn't return a call seeking additional comment.
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mirimir · May 12, 2018

I have the same issue with a Logitech keyboard. So far, compressed air and vacuum have worked well enough. They keys seem quite resistant to being sucked off

guest · May 24, 2018

Apple is facing a second class-action lawsuit over its faulty butterfly keyboards
Apple faulty product flowchart: Deny --> Get sued --> Admit --> Initiate repair program
May 23, 2018
https://www.techspot.com/news/74772-apple-facing-second-class-action-lawsuit-over-faulty.html

Now a second lawsuit was filed on Tuesday with the same court and with almost identical claims. The filing alleges that Apple is guilty of breaching express warranty, and is in violation of Magnuson-Moss, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, and California business and civil codes.

The three primary plaintiffs represented in the case all have similar experiences with the keyboards in their Macs repeatedly failing over time. Like the other lawsuit, the problem has been deemed to be caused by Apple’s butterfly mechanism that it introduced in all MacBooks produced after 2015 and all MacBook Pros built after 2016.
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guest · Jun 2, 2018

Will Apple discuss its MacBook keyboard problems at WWDC?
Things are coming to a head
June 1, 2018
https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/1/1...ot-working-faulty-butterfly-lawsuit-wwdc-2018

The question is, what is Apple going to do about it?

Throughout all this time, Apple has remained mostly silent on the issue, merely pointing users toward a how-to page on its site that recommends cleaning the keyboard out with compressed air.

On the one hand, it’s extremely unlike Apple to ever admit that its products are flawed in any way. So even if the company does address the keyboard issue, it likely would be in the form of some sort of allusion that they’ve “updated the keyboards to be even sturdier and more reliable than ever before” or something similar, instead of outright acknowledging that there’s a problem with the old model

WWDC is still traditionally a software-focused event, and there haven’t been any excessive rumors about a MacBook Pro refresh coming ahead of the keynote. But sooner or later, Apple will probably have to address the problem. The question is: how?
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ronjor · Jun 22, 2018

Apple will repair busted keyboards on recent MacBooks and MacBook Pros for free

Greg Kumparak@grg
Two years and a lawsuit later, Apple is officially acknowledging the issue with a free keyboard repair program.
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guest · Jun 28, 2018

Apple Engineers Its Own Downfall With the Macbook Pro Keyboard
June 27, 2018
https://ifixit.org/blog/10229/macbook-pro-keyboard/

No Margin for Error
The basic flaw is that these ultra-thin keys are easily paralyzed by particulate matter. Dust can block the keycap from pressing the switch, or disable the return mechanism [...]
We put a keycap under a microscope and injected a grain of sand so you can see how this happens. The grain is in the bottom right corner, and it’s completely blocking the key press action. It’s very challenging to remove it with compressed air.

The particle wedges underneath the butterfly lever, preventing it from depressing. With the space bar, there’s virtually no way to remove the key cap without destroying the key. And since the keyboard is part of the monolithic upper case, a single mote can render the computer useless. [...] Fortunately, Apple seems to be listening with their new warranty program.

Which brings us back to the point. Why did it take so long, and so many complaints, for the repair program to be put in place? Why do you need to send your MacBook Pro away for upwards of a week for a repair? That’s easy: because Apple made their product hard for them to repair, too. Apple’s new warranty program is going to cost them a lot of money.
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mirimir · Jun 28, 2018

Yeah, that is a total foot cannon. I mean, gluing the keyboard to the battery? Sure it makes for a thin device. But basically the keyboard isn't repairable. Making for any expensive repair.

guest · Jul 16, 2018

Apple won’t repair 2016-2017 MacBook Pros with ‘quieter’ 2018 keyboard
July 16, 2018
https://venturebeat.com/2018/07/16/...2017-macbook-pros-with-quieter-2018-keyboard/

Apple may have fixed the MacBook Pro’s lawsuit-inspiring keyboard in its just-released 2018 model, but it will keep repairing defective 2016 and 2017 laptops using problematic older components. MacRumors reports that Apple is describing the third-generation butterfly keyboard as “exclusive to the 2018 MacBook Pro,” which is unfortunate, as a new design appears to address the prior models’ biggest problem.

Although Apple described the new MacBook Pro’s keyboard solely as “quieter” than its predecessors, a teardown by iFixit revealed that each key now has a silicone membrane hidden inside. The membranes make the keys quieter, but can also prevent dust and other particles from damaging key mechanisms, an issue that has recently led to class action lawsuits in earlier MacBooks.

MacBook Pro users experiencing problems with their prior-generation keyboards can take advantage of Apple’s extended four-year repair program, announced last month. In some cases, Apple is swapping out 2016 keyboards for slightly tweaked 2017 versions, as a Reddit thread discusses.
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ronjor · Mar 27, 2019

Apple Apologizes Over 'Small Number' of Users Who Continue to Have Issues With Third-Generation MacBook Keyboards

Wednesday March 27, 2019 8:48 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Last year, Apple introduced new MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models with a redesigned third-generation butterfly keyboard that was meant to address issues with sticking and non-responsive keys. However, as noted by The Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern, some customers are continuing to experience these issues.
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ronjor · Apr 2, 2019

Nearly half of the third-gen Apple butterfly keyboards at Basecamp have failed

By James Sanders April 2, 2019
Apple continues to downplay the extent of issues of the widely criticized butterfly keyboard, though some "anecdata" finds a more widespread problem.
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ronjor · Apr 23, 2019

Apple Now Prioritizing MacBook Keyboard Repairs With Quoted Next-Day Turnaround Time

Tuesday April 23, 2019 by Joe Rossignol
Apple has indicated that most MacBook and MacBook Pro keyboard repairs will be required to be completed at Apple Stores until further notice, rather than being shipped to an off-site Apple repair center, according to an internal memo shared with Apple Store employees last week and obtained by MacRumors.
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ronjor · May 21, 2019

Apple offers free keyboard replacement program for MacBook, MacBook Pro, refreshes MacBook Pro lineup

By Larry Dignan for Between the Lines | May 21, 2019
Apple's move to offer free keyboard replacements on MacBooks and prioritization on repairs amounts to some insurance for customers' collective piece of mind.
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guest · Jul 4, 2019

Apple is reportedly giving up on its controversial MacBook keyboard
July 4, 2019
https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/4/2...ssor-switch-2019-macbook-air-2020-macbook-pro

Apple is planning to ditch the controversial butterfly keyboard used in its MacBooks since 2015, according to a new report from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. 9to5Mac notes that Apple will reportedly move to a new scissor-switch design, which will use glass fiber to reinforce its keys.

The company apologized for the keyboard’s reliability issues earlier this year, when it admitted that a “small number” of users were experiencing issues with the keyboard, then in its third generation, and the company has also launched an extended repairs program for earlier versions of the keyboard.

Kuo cites a couple of different reasons why Apple is switching keyboard designs. As well as being more durable thanks to the glass fiber reinforcement, MacRumors quotes him as saying the new keyboard “could improve the typing experience by offering longer key travel.”
Unfortunately, the report suggests that the new keyboard won’t make it into this year’s rumored 16-inch MacBook Pro, which is expected to be announced this September
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guest · Jul 26, 2019

mood said: ↑

Apple is reportedly giving up on its controversial MacBook keyboard
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Apple to fully phase out MacBook's butterfly keyboard by 2020
New scissor-switch design offers more durability and key travel
July 26, 2019
https://www.techspot.com/news/81153-apple-fully-phase-out-macbook-butterfly-keyboard-2020.html

It's about time: Apple is finally fixing its problems with the butterfly keyboard on its laptops for good. Not with a rubber membrane — not with free repairs. No, it is finally doing away with the mechanism altogether and going back to scissor switches.

MacRumors notes that Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that starting with the 16-inch MacBook Pro to release this September, Apple will phase out the butterfly switch from all laptop keyboards. This year’s 13 and 15-inch Pro and the 13-inch MacBook Air will still have the troublesome mechanisms, but by 2020 all models will have scissor mechanisms.
Users should be happy with this news. Apple faced a lot of criticism over the problem-prone keyboards for well over a year culminating in three class-action lawsuit.
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guest · Dec 3, 2019

MacBook keyboard problems: Now Apple fails to halt class action over flawed design
Apple's MacBook keyboard replacement program is not enough
December 3, 2019
https://www.zdnet.com/article/macbo...ails-to-halt-class-action-over-flawed-design/

Apple has lost its challenge to dismiss a proposed class action lawsuit by MacBook customers over its butterfly mechanism keyboards.

The class action lawsuit was launched shortly after Apple offered to replace jammed keyboards in June 2018.
According to Reuters, US district judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California, threw out Apple's bid to have the case dismissed.
The company must now face claims that its replacement program did not provide an "effective fix" for the keyboard design defects, or fully compensate customers for their out-of-pocket expenses while seeking repairs.

But the plaintiffs argued that Apple's service program was inadequate because Apple supplied new keyboards with the same sticky key problems.
The suit accuses Apple of "selling MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air laptops with defective keyboards in violation of state consumer protection and warranty laws".
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ronjor · Jul 19, 2022

Apple reaches $50 mln settlement over defective MacBook keyboards

By Jonathan Stempel 19 July 2022
July 19 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) agreed to pay $50 million to settle a class-action lawsuit by customers who claimed it knew and concealed that the "butterfly" keyboards on its MacBook laptop computers were prone to failure.
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xxJackxx · Jul 19, 2022

ronjor said: ↑

Apple reaches $50 mln settlement over defective MacBook keyboards
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Wow, that seems like it took a long time.

guest · Jan 6, 2023

MacBook owners have two months to claim up to $395 over butterfly keyboard woes
By Jon Porter @JonPorty - January 4, 2023

If you bought an Apple MacBook with an ill-fated butterfly keyboard and ended up having to replace either individual keycaps or the whole keyboard, you may be eligible to claim part of a $50 million settlement reached after a class-action lawsuit. The law firm handling the settlement has been emailing class members since mid-December (judging by this MacRumors report) but we wanted to highlight that the deadline for making a claim is fast approaching on March 6th, 2023.
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Claims can be submitted via the keyboardsettlement.com website, which says that the settlement class includes “all persons and entities in the United States” who purchased a butterfly-equipped MacBook, MacBook Air, or MacBook Pro between 2015 and 2019.
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ronjor · May 29, 2023

US judge rejects challenges to Apple's $50 million keyboard settlement

By Mike Scarcella May 26, 2023
U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California, federal court in his ruling called the settlement "fair, adequate and reasonable."
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