Nov 14, 2019 Since the end of 2015, Apple has been using a butterfly design on its laptop keyboards. You can find more in-depth info about that here, but, basically, it has to do with the mechanism of the keys. The type of service will be determined after the keyboard is examined and may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard. Eligible Models To identify your computer's model and to see if it is eligible for this program, choose Apple ( ) menu About This Mac. The MacBook Pro has had the Butterfly keyboard for the longest time out of all Apple’s portables. Like the MacBook Air, it switched to the Scissor mechanism from 2019 onward, so those machines are safe to buy without any fear of keyboard issues. A butterfly keyboard was a keyboard system introduced in 2015, and removed in late 2019, that was in MacBook pros and airs. Usually, people either liked or didn't like the feeling (I'm the latter), but also, they are known for being very unreliabl. Jun 02, 2020 The first Mac with a butterfly keyboard was released in 2015, and the last Mac with a butterfly keyboard was released in 2019. A full list of of Mac models with butterfly keyboards is below,.
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Apple has determined that a small percentage of the keyboards in certain MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro models may exhibit one or more of the following behaviors:
- Letters or characters repeat unexpectedly
- Letters or characters do not appear
- Key(s) feel 'sticky' or do not respond in a consistent manner
Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider will service eligible MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro keyboards, free of charge. The type of service will be determined after the keyboard is examined and may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard.
To identify your computer's model and to see if it is eligible for this program, choose Apple () menu > About This Mac. Eligible models are listed below.
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2016)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, 2017)
- MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2018)
- MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2019)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2016)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2017)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2018, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2018)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2019)
Note: No other Mac notebook models are part of this program.
Mac Butterfly Keyboard
Please choose one of the options below for service. Your Mac notebook will be examined prior to any service to verify that it is eligible for this program.
The type of service will be determined after the keyboard is examined and may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard. The service turn-around time may vary depending upon the type of service and availability of replacement parts.
- Find an Apple Authorized Service Provider.
- Make an appointment at an Apple Retail Store.
- Mail in your device to the Apple Repair Center.
To prepare your unit for service, please backup your data.
Note: If your MacBook, MacBook Air, or MacBook Pro has any damage which impairs the service, that issue will need to be repaired first. In some cases, there may be a cost associated with the repair.
This worldwide Apple program does not extend the standard warranty coverage of your Mac notebook.
If you believe your Mac notebook was affected by this issue, and you paid to have your keyboard repaired, you can contact Apple about a refund.
The program covers eligible MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro models for 4 years after the first retail sale of the unit.
For a company defined by design and attention to detail, the Butterfly keyboard was a tremendous humiliation for Apple. Conceived in 2015, it replaced the previous scissor-switch mechanism for one with a smaller profile, allowing Cupertino to continue shrinking already-svelte laptops.
The first MacBook to carry the Butterfly Keyboard was 2015's 12-inch MacBook, which Apple subsequently discontinued last year. Introducing the device, Apple marketing veep Bill Schiller lauded the Butterfly's precision over previous scissor-based mechanisms, saying it was 'four times more stable' and promised a 'beautiful typing experience'.
The Butterfly mechanism was also 40 per cent thinner than the previous scissor-based keys. It accomplished this by reducing the amount of travel needed to register a key.
Apple Butterfly Keyboard Models Model
The problem is, you need some travel on a keyboard. Firstly, it feels good. There's a reason why typing on a touchscreen feels so unfulfilling, and it's because there's no physical response (save for the occasional haptic vibration) to let you know when you've pressed a key.
The Butterfly keyboard had as little as 0.7mm of travel. The so-called Magic Keyboard (the magic being it works) – which shipped on pre-2015 Mac laptops, and has since returned across the firm's computing line – has around 1mm of travel. A decent mechanical keyboard will offer anywhere between 2mm and 5mm of travel.
Typists complained about the 'flatness' of the Butterfly keyboard. Earlier models were also notoriously loud, registering almost 12 decibels higher than the current-generation 16-inch MacBook Pro, which uses the scissor-based Magic Keyboard.
Those problems, however, are relatively easy to live with. It's not hard to buy a better pair of noise-cancelling headphones, or adjust your muscle memory to cope with a thinner keyboard. The real trouble came when it emerged that the Butterfly keyboard was terribly fault-prone.
With just 0.7mm of travel between keys, it was far too easy for debris to lodge itself under a keycap, causing them to become stuck. Key presses would fail to register, or would register multiple times.
This problem reached a head in 2017, when former Outline journalist Casey Johnston penned a blog post describing her woes with Apple's latest in keyboard tech. The post, titled 'The New Macbook Keyboard is Ruining My Life', catalogued Johnston's repeated visits to the Genius Bar, and described an epidemic of bust laptops that, at that point, Apple had failed to properly acknowledge.
Sketch 55 1 8. Later that year, musician Jonathan Mann published a song describing his ongoing woes with the Butterfly keyboard on his MacBook Pro called: 'I am pressing the spacebar and nothing is happening.'
It also didn't help that Apple had designed the Butterfly keyboard in a way that was almost impossible for users to self-repair. The keycaps and underlying mechanisms were fragile, with some keys – particularly the spacebar – more so.
Consequently, Apple's approach to repairing bust units involves replacing the entire top case of the machine, which includes a glued-in battery, speakers, and other crucial components.
'There is no such thing as replacing an individual key or just the keyboard,' wrote Johnston. 'The path from 'a piece of dust' to '$700 repair' is terrifyingly short.'
Apple's response to the backlash was typical Cupertino, insofar as it failed to acknowledge the existence of a critical design flaw across its entire portable computer line, minimising it as something affecting a small handful of users. It wasn't as openly contemptuous as Steve Jobs' infamous 'You're holding it wrong' line, but it wasn't far off.
Over five years, it quietly reworked the concept, adding polymer membranes designed to catch debris before it could interfere with the keyswitch mechanism. For the most part, these failed to resolve the overarching problem, which was caused by an almost non-existent amount of key travel.
In 2018, it finally launched a service programme that would give affected users free replacement keyboards, even if they hadn't stumped up for the AppleCare extended warranty. That came just one month after peeved users filed a class-action lawsuit against the company. Separately, the firm also advised users to try and dislodge debris by using canned air – a tactic that frequently failed to resolve the problem.
Since 2019, and starting with the 16-inch MacBook Pro, Apple has gradually phased out the Butterfly mechanism from its laptop lineup. That process was completed this week, with the launch of the new 13-inch MacBook Pro. Where is the home button on macbook air.
The reputational damage is done. Influential Apple commentator John Gruber described the mechanism as one of 'the worst products in Apple history' – a lineup that includes the Newton, the Cube G4, and the repetitive strain-inducing 'puck' mouse.
Five years ago, you could have argued that Apple had the best industrial design of any consumer technology company. Not any more. 'MacBooks should have the best keyboards in the industry; instead they're the worst,' said Gruber. 'They're doing lasting harm to the reputation of the MacBook brand.'
As Elton John once crooned, 'Sorry seems to be the hardest word.' That's especially true when it comes to Apple, which has yet to formally disavow this catastrophic design. And it's still unclear whether the firm has learned its lesson when it comes to repairability. The keyboard on the 16-inch MacBook Pro is riveted to the upper case of the machine, making it almost impossible to service without simultaneously replacing other components, driving the cost of repairs northward as a result.
Still, at least you can now eat a cronut at your desk without worrying about subsequent trips to the Genius Bar. ®
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