Apple has not apologized for any fault or wrongdoing, but to the thousands of MacBook and MacBook Pro owners who are dealing with non-responsive or even stuck keys, this feels like an admission.
The company is now providing four years from date of purchase of out-of-warranty keyboard repair service for the following devices:
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2016)
- MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, 2017)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2017, 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)
Those who have paid for a keyboard-related repair prior to the announcement of this program can apply for a refund. Full information is available from the source link below this story.
All of them feature Apple’s proprietary Butterfly switch design, one that is thinner than a traditional hinge design, but has been prone to particle obstruction.
While there has been sporadic reportage about the high failure rate of this keyboard design, it has been Casey Johnston, editor of The Outline, that has gotten the most attention with her column, “The New MacBook Keyboard is Ruining My Life,” garnering thousands of responses from similarly frustrated users.
Johnston’s reporting includes the fact that repairs involve the whole unit being dissembled at a repair center which leads to a minimum turnaround of five days and Apple’s quietly submitted support webpage telling users how to care for and clean their keyboards — which one may expect would block out dust more effectively with its extremely low profile.