While it is not a complete eradication of the problem, the news that Apple will be prioritising repairs to MacBook butterfly keyboards by repairing them at Genius Bars, rather than have them shipped to a central repair centre will be welcomed. It drops the repair time from around five working days to a potential twenty-four turnaround.
It’s just a shame that Apple has not publicly acknowledged this and offered beleaguered users a small amount of comfort around the time they are deprived of their laptop.
A quick recap. Apple introduced the butterfly keyboard design around three years ago. This has made for thinner and lighter keyboards (with the knock-on effect of allowing thinner and lighter macOS-powered laptops). But the design of the keyboard means that small particles of dust can interfere with individual keys, creating ghost presses or unresponsive keys. Many long-term Apple analysts have acknowledged the seriousness of the issue, with Daring Fireball’s Jon Gruber harsh calling out of the issue one of many:
This keyboard has to be one of the biggest design screwups in Apple history. Everyone who buys a MacBook depends upon the keyboard and this keyboard is undependable.
Apple has downplayed the issue, but finally acknowledged it in a statement to The Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern:
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.
So the news that repair time for the keyboards would be accelerated is clearly welcome. It’s just that the Apple faithful had to hear about it through the reporting of a leaked service memo, rather than an official statement from the company.
For a company that pushes a message of putting users first, the communication around one of the most important issues to a laptop user falls woefully short.
Apple has been approached for comment.
Now read how Apple’s approach to this fault contrasts with Samsung’s Galaxy Fold problems…
