Apple admits its MacBook 'butterfly' keyboards are unreliable

Apple launches keyboard service program and might even refund users forced to pay hundreds of pounds to get their MacBooks repaired out of warranty

Apple has finally admitted that the ‘butterly' keyboards it uses in a number of its MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops are unreliable and prone to fail.

The design was first introduced in 2015 with the 12-inch MacBook, intended to help make Apple's laptops that little bit thinner. However, it has taken a class-action lawsuit and research indicating that the Apple keyboards are twice as likely to fail compared to more traditional keyboards for the company to finally act.

In a belated response, the company has launched a new keyboard-service program covering nine MacBook models.

"Today we launched a keyboard service program for our customers that covers a small percentage of keyboards in certain MacBook and MacBook Pro models which may exhibit one or more of the following behaviors: letters or characters that repeat unexpectedly or don't appear when pressed or keys that feel 'sticky' or aren't responding in a consistent manner," Apple said in a statement.

In addition, MacBook users forced to pay hundreds of pounds for an out-of-warranty repair to try and fix the problem may be entitled to a refund from Apple. The company states that the repair "may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard".

Models eligible for replacement include:

However, Apple could recoup the cost of the program in other ways by demanding that other, chargable repairs are conducted first. That, at least, is the claim made during the company's iPhone battery replacement program by BBC Watchdog.

The investigation found that the company had been demanding that unrelated repairs be carried out before it would honour the cut-price battery replacement.

One user reported that Apple forced him to pay £250 to fix a supposedly faulty microphone and speaker, while another complained that he was required to pay £200 to fix a dent on the outside of his iPhone before Apple would replace the battery.

The MacBook keyboard problems, which have gone unacknowledged by Apple for at least a year, combined with the high prices for ageing, under-powered hardware, has served to erode many loyal users' once-uncritical support for Apple computing.