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I sometimes wonder if having keyboards that don't have as many problems would be a better way to achieve higher customer satisfaction and would alleviate frustration?

Of course, if the Unshaky software works wonders, then that means it's not actually a hardware design problem. It's a software problem. Debouncing is just a calculation for what the system should ignore after a keystroke.
 
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If you have the keyboard problem, this will almost certainly help:

Unshaky

It's a app/service that debounces keyboard presses.

Google it.

It has made my two MBPs usable again.


Sorry for the big text, but Unshaky had been a game-changer, trying to spread the word.
It's comical that something like this needs to exist, but it does indeed solve the problem of double-key press that many people experience. It can't help with keys that fail to register when pressed though.
 
That is not a percentage of keyboards failing, it is a percentage of repair events related to keyboards. They were clocking 118 keyboard failures in 2014 and 112 failures in 2017. There was a rise in 2016 that was addressed and I don’t see any indication of a multigenerational problem here.
I do appreciate the actual numbers, and I expect there's the common pattern at work here, of, if there's a place to congregate and complain then you will be exposed to a skewed higher percentage of complaints than if you sampled users in general. But I do think there is a substantial problem, and it's particularly galling, because for years Apple's laptop keyboards were the gold standard. The flip side from the numbers (which are necessarily estimates), is I've heard numerous second/third-hand reports of people having minor problems with the new keyboards and simply living with it, rather than taking it in for service (if your keyboard dies, you have to take it in, but if it merely doesn't register some keypresses sometimes, many might just suffer in silence) - so those don't show up in the repair numbers, yet are still causing people grief. Yes, that's anecdotal. But the "actual numbers" are estimates - it's not the kind of data Apple is going to release.
 
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This is why I love Apple.
They are always working to put customers first.
You won't get this level of customer care from a Samsung, Dell or HP.

If as you said would care so much about customers, they would NOT have designed one of the worse products in Apple history. They sacrificed functionality to make the laptop 0.005 Thinner. Pathetic.
 
Yes, that's anecdotal. But the "actual numbers" are estimates - it's not the kind of data Apple is going to release.

Apple would reveal that data in a lawsuit. They were sued by people in 2018 who claimed the keyboard design is defective. None of those lawsuits appear to have much traction currently, which could potentially mean that there isn't much evidence to prove their case.
 
Discovery is underway in the keyboard class actions. Apple shifts to defensive mode. No one knows, quite honestly, what's been written, filed, stored, etc. until the light of discovery shines. The few docs revealed by Qualcom's lawyer in the few days of public trial painted Tim & Co. in a horrendous light. Immediate capitulation. Waiting to see what the battery CALS reveals, and this CALS as well. If you trust Tim, go read what Apple did to try to force Q's hand. Man scary what people think "fiduciary responsibility" means.
 
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This is why I love Apple.
They are always working to put customers first.
You won't get this level of customer care from a Samsung, Dell or HP.
You love Apple because they make a knowingly defective keyboard and still sell it to you as a customer? And after that they put you through the hassle of having take time out of your day to go to the Apple store or be without a computer while you ship it off for repaires and have them replace something they already know is defective? if that is your defenition of PUTTING THE CUSTOMERS FIRST...
 
Wow, what garbage.

So many on here defended Apple, this is one of the main reasons I haven’t upgraded.

The problem here is that this isn’t a sustainable solution. How many keys are going to be failing? You fix it, and 3 months later another one fails?

I feel sorry for those who bought these computers, good luck! Class action anyone?
 
Wow, what garbage.

So many on here defended Apple, this is one of the main reasons I haven’t upgraded.

The problem here is that this isn’t a sustainable solution. How many keys are going to be failing? You fix it, and 3 months later another one fails?

I feel sorry for those who bought these computers, good luck! Class action anyone?

I just had my second key start failing. First failed around a month after I purchased. I was an early purchaser of the 2016 model. This thing is a turd.
 
How does that account for the number of people posting on this forum and on social media (such as Twitter) with keyboard issues? I wish I could feel confident in buying a new Mac. If it wasn’t for the keyboard issues I’d be buying a new Air.
It would actually account for the overall buzz pretty well, since Apple has sold at least 25 million of those machines by now. If 11% is true (and it is probably higher because some will live with it if it’s not too bad) that means there are upwards of a few million users who are affected.
 
Discovery is underway in the keyboard class actions.

It's pretty straightforward: if Apple can demonstrate that the percentage of keyboard repairs that are related to manufacturing defects are within accepted industry standards, then there's no case. Every other manufacturer in the industry has to do keyboard repairs for laptops too. There's nothing unique about repairing keyboards. Do a Google search and every complaint people make about the butterfly mechanism is duplicated by other brands that don't use it.
 
I thought the "official" reason was to have a more quiet key strike than to fix the issue. Did I imagine that?

I found the answer:

According to Apple, the focus with the third-generation keyboard was dampening key sounds, and the company has not confirmed if specific changes were made to address keyboard failure issues present in 2016 and 2017 MacBook Pro models.

Some 2016 and 2017 MacBook Pro owners have experienced issues with sticky, unresponsive, or repeating keys, leading Apple to launch a repair program for those machines. Apple is offering free repairs for affected MacBook Pro models, but it continues to be unclear if design changes have been implemented to prevent the issue, both in earlier machines and the new 2018 machines.
 
Would I be able to buy the MacBook 12” at the store and have them replace the keyboard upfront? Or do I have to wait until the keyboard gives me problems?
 
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Would I be able to buy the MacBook 12” at the store and have them replace the keyboard upfront? Or do I have to wait until the keyboard gives me problems?

I don't think it would matter.

IIRC, they just replace faulty keyboards with other keyboards that have the same flaw.
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If Apple continues to use the butterfly mechanism, it should be limited only to one model (currently the MacBook) where thinness is the priority that overrides everything else. For the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, Apple should simply return to the scissor mechanism that everyone loved.
I think these two are mixed up....

IMO, they should just go back to stuff that works, and abandon designs that are problematic.
 
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It'd be nice if MacBook Pros were finally.... Pro again, Pros need pro features like upgradable RAM, Storage (maybe have dual M.2 for RAID to make that storage even more bulletproof), a battery that isn't glued in, heck more ports. A certified docking station rather than Apple's somewhat cavalier approach to their hardware partners. Professionals and IT departments need serviceable machines, especially in the high price pro category. Take a leaf out of the Thinkpad or Precision lineup.


I couldn't agree more! Its frustrating how locked down they are now. I finally upgraded my MacBook Pro 15' 2012 (non retina) to a 2014 retina 15" its a great machine. I have worked on a lot of the "new" MacBook Pro and still really like the retina form factor. I don't know why it hurt them so much to keep those updated. Was a great design and had all the ports use. Thin is nice but I would rather power and in the retina form factor.
 
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Mine's the mid-2012 MBP tank, so the kb is perfect except I managed to snake some falling objects onto it while flipping the power adapter cable out of my way one day... don't ask, I dunno how I did that, takes a special talent,,,, anyway busted the L key's underpinnings irreparably, plus some adjacent keys that died of cardiac arrest, I guess, at the same time.

I have the 15" mid-2012 MacBookPro 9,1 Hi-Res. Is yours the mid-2012 Retina?

Anyway, needed a keyboard, was using the bluetooth on top of the keyboard for a couple years, finally went to Apple store to get it fixed, got a $900 quote. Genius said the entire top case needed to be replaced (I found out from Independent Apple repair that it doesn't--keyboard on my model is separate.)

Independent shop fixed it for $120, including keyboard bought on Amazon. He had a lull in business, gave me a deal.

The mid-2012 Retina might indeed need the entire top case so it depends on what you have.

Please consider this as a plug for a separate and easily replaceable keyboard...
 
For the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, Apple should simply return to the scissor mechanism that everyone loved.

What if Apple knows the butterfly mechanism doesn't fail more often than the scissor mechanism? There's always that possibility. Nobody ever has any numbers on this issue that are convincing at all. For example, where are the numbers on how often non-Apple laptops require keyboard repairs? They don't seem to exist, but the internet is full of complaints from people who are having the exact same issues with their non-butterfly keyboards.
 
This is why I love Apple.
They are always working to put customers first.
You won't get this level of customer care from a Samsung, Dell or HP.
When the home button on my S7 edge started getting stuck, I went to a Samsung store. Within an hour I picked up the fixed phone. The clerk remarked "oh, we also replaced the battery and the back glass". I asked why, she said – "oh, just because". Once I unpacked the phone I saw that the screen was also replaced.

I no longer own a Macbook Pro, having exchanged the 3rd gen 2018 model four times (the longest time before the keyboard failed was 15 days), but Apple's customer relations called me twice, promised to get to the bottom of things, asked me for the serial numbers, then stopped responding or calling. So I guess that's good customer service? I mean, Samsung never called me (so rude!) – they just fixed the thing and it works to this day.

I'd say that if you're making a comparison between the butterfly keyboards by Apple and pretty much anything by Samsung, a better analogy would be Samsung actually releasing Galaxy Fold, telling people that "a very small number of customers experienced breaking screens", then pushing the new versions in 2020 and 2021 where the screens would still break, but with a nicer sounding *crack* than the previous generations.
 
It's pretty straightforward: if Apple can demonstrate that the percentage of keyboard repairs that are related to manufacturing defects are within accepted industry standards, then there's no case. Every other manufacturer in the industry has to do keyboard repairs for laptops too. There's nothing unique about repairing keyboards. Do a Google search and every complaint people make about the butterfly mechanism is duplicated by other brands that don't use it.

Nope, we're not talking about manufacturing defects. We're talking about a design defect. These garbage keyboards are being manufactured perfectly. It's the design that is causing ALL of the problems. These keyboards are defective by design, and Apple needs to suffer deep financial and public relations costs, or they will not learn.

Beancounter Tim is a disgrace to the once great brand.
 
This is a welcome change. Back in november I was told I had to ship it off with a 12-14 day turn around. This being a work machine, it was a non-starter. The apple store even refused to order the parts so that I could bring it for an on site repair and only lose one day. Insisting it had to be shipped. So dumb.
 
And people praise Tim Cook...for one of the worse design in Apple history...

There is no more blind person that the one that does not want to see.
 
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