Apple apologises for Butterfly Key Failures on MacBooks, Again
Apple apologises for Butterfly Key Failures on MacBooks, Again
While Apple advertised these new keys as being quieter than their predecessors, the reality of the situation was that these membranes acted as a form of dust protection, working to prevent dust and other matter from damaging their fragile butterfly keys. Now, the company has admitted that the problem still exists, as reported by Joanna Stern at the Wall Street Journal.
We are aware that a small number of users are having issues with their third-generation butterfly keyboard and for that we are sorry. The vast majority of Mac notebook customers are having a positive experience with the new keyboard.
While it sounds like Apple’s key-switch cover-up has lowered keyboard-related RMAs, it looks like the company has failed to fix the problem in its entirety, as keyboards are still failing and the fragility of Apple’s key switch design has not been addressed with their latest keyboard revision.
In their newest MacBooks, Apple has covered their butterfly key switches with a thin silicon membrane (as shown below), hoping to prevent dust and other contaminants from entering their unique key switches. This design tweak should prevent these switches from breaking as quickly as their predecessors, though now we know that Apple’s fix hasn’t adequately addressed the issue.
Less than a year has passed since the release of MacBook devices with 3rd Generation Butterfly key switches, making an apology-worthy number of RMAs enough to call into question the longevity of any modern MacBook device, especially given how difficult keyboards are to replace on Apple’s mobile products.
(Image from iFixit)
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