Butterfly Switch | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Thu, 21 Jul 2022 07:54:17 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png Butterfly Switch | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 Apple will pay $50M to settle MacBook ‘butterfly switch’ keyboard lawsuit https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/apple-will-pay-50m-to-settle-macbook-butterfly-switch-keyboard-lawsuit/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/apple-will-pay-50m-to-settle-macbook-butterfly-switch-keyboard-lawsuit/#respond Wed, 20 Jul 2022 08:45:53 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=568589 Several years ago, Apple debuted a new keyboard design for its MacBook laptops, using ‘butterfly' key switches. This turned out to be a disastrous move, with many customers facing issues with their keyboards easily breaking. At the time, Apple set up a free repair program, but there was still a class action lawsuit over the …

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Several years ago, Apple debuted a new keyboard design for its MacBook laptops, using ‘butterfly' key switches. This turned out to be a disastrous move, with many customers facing issues with their keyboards easily breaking. At the time, Apple set up a free repair program, but there was still a class action lawsuit over the situation. Now several years later, Apple has agreed to settle. 

As reported by Reuters, Apple has agreed to a $50 million settlement in the butterfly switch keyboard class action lawsuit. The agreement will see a portion of the settlement given out to eligible customers. In order to be eligible for a piece of the payout, you'll need to have purchased a MacBook with the butterfly switch keyboard and have had it repaired at some point.

The Butterfly switch was a new design aimed at making Apple's laptops even slimmer. The first butterfly switch keyboards arrived in 2015, and it quickly became apparent that the smallest amount of dust could cause the switch to become unresponsive. Between 2015 and 2019, Apple tried to get its butterfly switches working properly across multiple generations of MacBooks. Eventually, Apple gave up and pivoted to a different design for MacBooks from 2020 and beyond.

Estimated payouts from the settlement will vary considerably. If your MacBook only needed minimal repairs, such as a keycap replacement, then you'll be on the lower end of the scale, whereas customers who had to have the entire top half of the laptop replaced will get more. Payouts should range from $50 to just under $400.

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KitGuru Says: The butterfly switch keyboard design was perhaps Apple's biggest failure of the last decade. Sure it led to thinner MacBooks, but the keys were mushy and easily breakable. What's more surprising is that Apple persisted with this design for four years despite the constant complaints and clear issues. 

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Apple reportedly moving away from butterfly switches following consistent MacBook issues https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/apple-reportedly-moving-away-from-butterfly-switches-following-consistent-macbook-issues/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/apple-reportedly-moving-away-from-butterfly-switches-following-consistent-macbook-issues/#respond Thu, 04 Jul 2019 11:00:47 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=417228 Over the last few years, Apple has been giving itself plenty of headaches thanks to its choice of keyboard switches on MacBook models. Since moving from traditional low-profile laptop keyboards, there have been numerous reports of keyboard failures and sticky keys on newer MacBook models, which has led to repair programs and design changes. Now, …

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Over the last few years, Apple has been giving itself plenty of headaches thanks to its choice of keyboard switches on MacBook models. Since moving from traditional low-profile laptop keyboards, there have been numerous reports of keyboard failures and sticky keys on newer MacBook models, which has led to repair programs and design changes. Now, Apple might finally be moving on with another new keyboard design aiming to avoid these issues.

According to Apple analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is going to roll out a new keyboard design this year. It will be based on a new scissor switch design, with longer key travel and reinforced using glass fibre to ensure better longevity and stability. This will be a notable departure from the butterfly switch, which has caused plenty of issues for MacBook owners despite Apple's efforts to try and mitigate the problems.

This wouldn't be the first time Apple has needed to pivot its way out of a flawed design. The 2013 Mac Pro was seen as an impressive feat of engineering when it was first announced but over the years, it became clear that the design was not suitable for future upgrades, leading to the Mac Pro overhaul we saw this year.

As 9to5Mac reports, the first laptop to use Apple's new keyboards will be a refreshed MacBook Air later this year. Then, the new scissor switch design will roll out to MacBook Pros in 2020.

KitGuru Says: I've been a long-time MacBook Pro owner and I must admit, aside from poor thermal performance, the butterfly switches on the newer MacBook Pros have been keeping me away from upgrading. These switches have been the source of many issues, so it is good to hear that Apple might finally pivot away and use a less flawed design. None of this is officially confirmed just yet though, so we'll need to keep an eye out when newer MacBook models arrive later this year. 

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MacBook Pro teardown confirms that Apple has taken steps to fix keyboard issues https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/macbook-pro-teardown-confirms-that-apple-has-taken-steps-to-fix-keyboard-issues/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/apple/matthew-wilson/macbook-pro-teardown-confirms-that-apple-has-taken-steps-to-fix-keyboard-issues/#respond Mon, 16 Jul 2018 09:37:31 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=379825 Last week, Apple quietly rolled out a new range of MacBook Pro laptops, complete with Intel 8th Gen processors. While the highlight of the announcement was the jump to quad-core and six-core CPUs, many were interested in changes to the keyboard. Earlier this year, Apple began catching heat from MacBook Pro owners suffering from failing …

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Last week, Apple quietly rolled out a new range of MacBook Pro laptops, complete with Intel 8th Gen processors. While the highlight of the announcement was the jump to quad-core and six-core CPUs, many were interested in changes to the keyboard. Earlier this year, Apple began catching heat from MacBook Pro owners suffering from failing switches, Apple claimed it did not take measures to fix its keyboards, but teardowns prove otherwise.

When Apple claimed that it did not take measures to prevent dust from affecting its butterfly keyboard switches, we were sceptical. It seemed far more likely that Apple simply didn't want to publicly admit that there was a problem in the first place due to legal concerns. Now, the folks at IFixit have had a chance to teardown the latest MacBook Pro, confirming that dust covers were placed below each butterfly switch.

In 2017, Apple began rolling out its second generation butterfly switches on the MacBook Pro. Things seemed fine for a while, but due to the shallow travel of the keys, a tiny bit of dust can cause keys to fail. Now, there is a rubberised cover over each butterfly switch, which will reduce noise but most importantly, will also improve keyboard reliability.

In Apple's statement last week, the company did admit to taking measures to reduce typing noise on 2018 MacBook Pros. It just so happens that this solution also seems to protect the switches from dust, solving the issues previous generation owners have been up in arms about.

KitGuru Says: Apple doesn't want to get sued over its 2017 keyboard issues, so it is unlikely that the company will admit that there was a fault to begin with. It is a sneaky legal tactic, but it does seem like the issue has been addressed in the latest lineup of MacBook Pros. For those with a 2017 MacBook Pro, then it is worth noting that Apple did begin offering free repairs a few weeks ago. 

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