Poll: MacBook keyboard problems, anyone?

We've heard scattered reports of MacBook and MacBook Pro keyboard problems dating back for centuries, and while it sounds on the surface to be a fairly inconsequential problem in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't seem to be going away. So to figure out if this is just a few squeaky wheels, or indeed worthy of a torches and pitchfork party over in Curpentino, we'd like to imploy our super-scientific polling process and put it to a vote. For the uninitiated, the problem manifests itself in many ways, and was present before Leopard but showed up in more machines after the Leopard upgrade. Symptoms can include randomly skipped letters (specifically the first letter), fully frozen keyboards, funky capslock or numlock, and mild indegestion.

MacBook keyboard problems, anyone?

Nothing to report here, I'm just living life to the fullestMaybe something funky happened once or twice, nothing regularYes, I have a MacBook and my keyboard hates meYes, I have a MacBook Pro and my keyboard hates me and my moneyNo, I have a PC, and it brings me nothing but joyThis poll was a waste of time, but I'm always up for a good riotVote

[Thanks to all the squeaky wheels who sent this in]

[Jim Gibson @ Feb 29th 2008 10:44AM]

I sent my first MBP back because I thought it had a duff keyboard (hardware).
The replacement was not much better (if at all), so I decided that the problems were probably soft and would be fixed.
The recent keyboard firmware update seems to have fixed the 'first character missing' problem, but my MBP often still misses the second strike of a double letter and odd random single characters. Somebody at Apple must know what this is all about - Please fix it!

[mushrooshi @ Dec 15th 2007 9:26PM]

Well, I am a big DDR fan, and after downloading Stepmania I noticed I have had errors playing, as the Right button missed. It turned out the "sponge" under the keyboard was defective. They fixed my Macbook up for free as it was after warranty. I noticed the problem approximatly 1 week after I got it.

[turgemanster @ Dec 16th 2007 10:54PM]

SKIPPED OR MISSING LETTERS WHEN TYPING? ANYONE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE...

27,000 VIEWS + 650 REPLIES ON THIS THREAD ON THE APPLE DISCUSSIONS!
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1036890&start=0&tstart=0

the posts with the info you need to send apple feedback are 'bumped' on almost every other page of the discussion.
this is a long standing issue avoided by apple, give your feedback and support!

[some more info @ the bottom of page 3 of the comments here]

[Marc @ Dec 15th 2007 9:27PM]

For the record I called AppleCare today about it. They had me repair permissions and Reset the PRAM (hold openapple, control, p, r directly after reboot) Haven't had it happen again today, but that doesn't mean it won't happen again...

[Andrew @ Dec 15th 2007 11:05PM]

What keyboard problem did you have?

When my MacBook wakes from deep sleep the keyboard refuses to respond and requires a restart. Really annoying.

[West Hubbard @ Dec 16th 2007 2:32AM]

I guess its just one of those added features you get when you buy an Apple.

To bad I'm missing out on all the fun you're having because im stuck with my PC (with its working keyboard).

[Mr. Picklesworth @ Dec 16th 2007 2:40AM]

Holy crap, that has to be the single most designed painful key combination I have seen!
What sick-minded maniac designed that?!
:P

Well, I guess it does stop people from doing that by accident...

[Andrew @ Dec 16th 2007 3:58AM]

@ West Hubbard
I have a feeling you have your share of frustrations on the PC side - to each his own but I much rather stick with OSX

Now how about that update Apple!

[Mark Pith @ Dec 16th 2007 6:38AM]

I've got the same freeze problems with my MPB (August 2007) sometimes after waking up from sleep.
Another problem I have is my mouse cursor freezing temporarily, especially when my Airport card is searching for or connecting to networks...

@ Apple: please fix it, I spent a small fortune on your product!

[LukeA @ Dec 16th 2007 1:07PM]

I used to have problems with USB crashing. The keyboard is USB, that's why mine was freezing. It stopped after maybe 10.4.6 or 7.

[Hans Luijten @ Feb 5th 2008 9:10PM]

The Apple+Ctrl+P+R trick did it for me :)
Wooohoo!
(or just coincindence?)

[Lori @ Feb 7th 2008 12:40AM]

I'm having keyboard problems with my new Macbook (which is not as lovable as I had expected it to be). Sometimes keys are omitted, keys are added, but most often: As I'm typing a passage, suddenly it is highlighted, removed, and/or letters will be inserted in some other part of document. Any ideas?

Thanks!

[Stuart Jones @ Dec 15th 2007 10:08PM]

My Macbook Pro keyboard decides to fully stop taking input for about 5 minutes randomly. Even the Caps Lock key doesn't light up. Usually this isn't much of an issue, as it happens only about twice a month. A restart also resolves the issue if I need controls back ASAP. The only time it got me in big trouble was when I was taking notes on a lecture and it decided to stop functioning.

[Stefan Klimaj @ Dec 16th 2007 3:24PM]

My MacBook Pro does that too!
I owned a iBook for about 4 years before this brand new MacBook Pro, I never had any issues EVER with my iBook, but have already had a few with this new top of the line MacBook Pro...
Sometimes the keyboard decides that what I have to say should be disregarded as useless, so it wont function for about 5 minutes (as you said yours did), and then after that it will sometimes just allow me to use 2-3 keystrokes... as if to punish me for my impudence! How dare I irritate it with you meaningless notes and school work.
But aside from that, I had to return the first MacBook Pro I bought because the DVD drive didnt work... at all... ever. THEN I got another MacBook Pro, with a huge gash in the screen.
Returned it.
This one has seemly worked since I got it, but my faith in Apple has really been shattered.
And my iBook that I gave to my sister, its still going strong. That little beastly trooper.
Welcome to the new Apple everyone! Because when stuff didnt break, life was boring, right?

[Ipaq3115 @ Dec 15th 2007 9:32PM]

Never had a mac...

But if I did I wouldn't be complaining about the keyboard, thats for sure...

[nerdtalker @ Dec 15th 2007 9:41PM]

Sure, there are other things to get frustrated with...

But, I mean, shouldn't the keyboard be one of those things that "Just Works?" ::shrug:: Vote me down for saying it, but, seriously.

I just find the keyboard to be frustrating, occasionally. The arrow keys especially just hate me because they're half height. The backlighting is still second to none.

[Guzzie @ Dec 15th 2007 10:16PM]

A second mouse button would be nice.

[Ipaq3115 @ Dec 15th 2007 10:23PM]

@Guzzie

No kidding...

I was really missing it in the 60 seconds that I played with it at best buy...

[bondsbw @ Dec 15th 2007 10:52PM]

@Guzzle

The mighty mouse can do both left and right clicks.

Though there's really only one button, it figures out where on the mouse you click to determine if it's left or right. (Oh, and Macs don't have this feature enabled by default... don't know why... but you can enable it easily in system preferences)

[Will @ Dec 15th 2007 11:49PM]

He was talking about the mouse on the MacBooks
There is no right click.

[stens @ Dec 16th 2007 6:04PM]

The right click can be accomplished with the two-finger tap.....I almost never use the mouse button, reserving it for click-drag maneuvers. However, for those used to using the buttons instead, this would be a tough transition.

[Mobius_1 @ Dec 16th 2007 12:17AM]

@ nerdtalker
I agree, such a large established company should at least make sure small details work, especially when they say that Macs "just work"

[Brad @ Dec 16th 2007 12:39AM]

@Will, two fingers on the pad with a click is a right click.. almost easier than having to actually reach for the 2nd key

[Riley @ Dec 16th 2007 3:06AM]

how is that at all easier?

[Akhan Almagambetov @ Dec 16th 2007 3:16AM]

I'll have to agree with Brad.. so much easier to do the two-fingers-on-the-touchpad-tap instead of trying to reach for the second button. I think I get carpal tunnel syndrome every time I try to use a PC laptop nowadays.

But my MacBook Pro still hates me. The feeling's mutual.

aa.

[Kax02 @ Dec 16th 2007 3:20AM]

"I'll have to agree with Brad.. so much easier to do the two-fingers-on-the-touchpad-tap instead of trying to reach for the second button. I think I get carpal tunnel syndrome every time I try to use a PC laptop nowadays."

Right...

Somehow a standard keyboard layout that matches itself on the mac and pc market causes carpal tunnel on you. That's amazing, does the macbook lift and fold into some strange ergonomic form with proper wrist support? If not, then it's the same thing.

Even more amusing would be you attempting to slam a touchpad, lets just put it this way, if spreading your finger to the side to make right click is causing you terminal trauma to your wrists, you have much larger problems.

So it kinda ends up like this. You're full of it, or your wrist is so shot that you shouldn't be using a computer at all. I'll go with option 1. Next time you can try to be less of a suck-up.

[Thecompkid @ Dec 16th 2007 9:36AM]

You guys have to start learning about the concept of personal preference. That, and the idea that two things can just be different without being better or worse.

[AndrewN @ Dec 16th 2007 12:43PM]

Firstly, the two-fingered right click is disable by default, so most first time users won't know that it's possible to do, especially if their only experience is messing around with a MacBook at a store. The same is true for the Mighty Mouse. Secondly, it is not impossible to "right click", or otherwise open the right click's context sensitive menu without actually right clicking. Since the days of the one button mouse, Ctrl + Click has achieved the same affect. Thirdly, clicking and holding on a dock icon will summon the docklet without pressing control or using two fingers.

While it's highly unlikely that using a PC laptop keyboard in favor of a MacBook will give you carpel tunnel, there are some reasons why the MacBook might feel more comfortable. While the key pitch is not the same on the MacBook as it is on a full keyboard, the spacing around the keys puts them roughly in the location they should be. Contrast that with a PC laptop keyboard where the keys are flush with one another and are a smaller pitch, resulting in the keys not being where your fingers expect them to be. Not life changing, but it can be uncomfortable.

[caio @ Jan 9th 2008 11:28AM]

well, I have a mac book for less then a year and it has a monitor flickering problem and my keyboard {for the second time this month} stopped working just the letters and the numbers. Wouldn't yo complain about that?

[Jonj @ Dec 15th 2007 9:33PM]

I called Applecare about it since mine is intermittently doing it (latest rev macbook) and they said that engineering is looking into it, its not a hardware issue and that a software fix should be available very very soon. If I put my machine to sleep and wake it up while this is happening it goes back to normal. I get this error in dmesg, [IOAppleHIDDriver][waitForData][Timeout waiting for data, its not a big deal and if in a couple weeks they don't have a fix in software updates ill call applecare again.

I wouldn't panic...

[turgemanster @ Dec 16th 2007 6:30PM]

ANYONE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE...

27,000 VIEWS + 650 REPLIES ON THIS THREAD ON THE APPLE DISCUSSIONS!
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1036890&start=0&tstart=0

this is a long standing issue, please give your feedback and support!

[Nigel Holderby @ Dec 15th 2007 9:33PM]

I didn't see a radio button for "I have a PC, and I'm horribly depressed that I don't have a Mac".

Yeah, that's the one I'd check, keyboard issues or not.

[Ed @ Dec 15th 2007 10:10PM]

That was me, one month ago.

Now i'm enjoying my new MacBook, and having no keyboard problems at all. This was the first i'd heard of it.

[shamrock593 @ Dec 15th 2007 11:13PM]

I was looking for that button too. Hehe..

[Alex @ Dec 15th 2007 9:36PM]

Never had a keyboard problem...Now if they'd only fix the damn mighty shitty mouse scroll wheel. That ball is useless!

[AnyKey @ Dec 16th 2007 1:08AM]

No kidding...mine hasn't worked in almost a year now!
You can clean it, but after a week it gets all gunked up again and stops working so I don't bother anymore. At least horizontal scrolling still works! I absolutely love it.

[a ham sandwich @ Dec 15th 2007 9:41PM]

i actually find this poll rather funny. my mbp keyboard almost always misses the first letter. i thought it only happened to me. im pretty sure its some sort of incarnation of that "ignoring" feature mentioned here on engadget i think way back when. you guys remember that?

[a ham sandwich @ Dec 15th 2007 9:43PM]

found the link. ironically, as i was typing the word "found", it skipped the f. sigh.

http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/05/apples-new-metallic-keyboard-biased-against-caps-lock/

[Stephen Sehr @ Dec 15th 2007 9:41PM]

my MBP (2.16 GHz Core2Duo pre-Santa Rosa running 10.4.11) occasionally skips the first letter. it does it the most when i click on an input field on a website.

[Richy @ Dec 16th 2007 3:30AM]

Yup, I get that too. I thought it was just me, and that the keyboard required a slightly firmer prod than my old Vaio. All seems very odd...

Still, very glad I went with a Mac. No way would I go back to a PC now. I haven't even bothered to install XP via Boot Camp or Parallels (despite having bought the latter!).

[peter gilbert @ Dec 16th 2007 12:58PM]

My macbook pro 2.33 coredue . often to not registrar the first letter of a key stroke running leopard even did it in tiger B***** infuriating

[turgemanster @ Dec 16th 2007 6:30PM]

ANYONE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE...

27,000 VIEWS + 650 REPLIES ON THIS THREAD ON THE APPLE DISCUSSIONS!
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1036890&start=0&tstart=0

this is a long standing issue, please give your feedback and support!

[Geoff @ Dec 15th 2007 9:41PM]

When I switch between applications and begin typing immediately, more often than not the first character is either missing or it appears after the second character. This results in things like "ko" in Messenger when I type "ok," or "oogle" when trying to type "google" in the address bar.

I type REALLY fast, and this brings me to a grinding stop at least a dozen times a day when I have to stop and correct the system's error.

[Sam @ Dec 15th 2007 9:44PM]

I have indigestion. I have a PC. No, I did not eat my Dell.

[Dean @ Dec 16th 2007 1:22AM]

no, but you bought a dell...

[Sam @ Dec 16th 2007 12:31PM]

That should have been "Dude! You got a Dell!"

[rboyce @ Dec 15th 2007 9:44PM]

Sometimes when waking from "safe sleep" (hibernation), my current-gen MBP fails to register any input from the trackpad and/or the keyboard. The failure is most visible on the keyboard, since the caps lock light won't go on or off when the keyboard isn't working.

[Jason Tomczak @ Dec 15th 2007 9:50PM]

Good lawdy - I've had this keyboard problem for months now. No PRAM reset or anything else has helped. MBP keyboard (2.4GHz model, 4GB RAM, Leopard) randomly skips keystrokes all the time. It's infuriating and slows my work flow. I do hope Apple gets this fixed.

[turgemanster @ Dec 16th 2007 6:30PM]

ANYONE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE...

27,000 VIEWS + 650 REPLIES ON THIS THREAD ON THE APPLE DISCUSSIONS!
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1036890&start=0&tstart=0

this is a long standing issue, please give your feedback and support!

[Luigi193 @ Dec 15th 2007 9:56PM]

Mine were the WORST!!! HOLY CRAP!!!! I couldn't type one word without it either freezing, or deleting everything and skipping the curser into different text boxes... IT WAS HORRIBLE!!!! Luckily apple replaced it for me, even though I was out of warrenty.....

I have been an apple fanboi since I was 8 monhts old, but they have been defieantly been slipping on the quality... But I did get my own Customer Relations Rep, that was nice.