Repair specialists iFixit took apart one of the keyboards of the new £1,749-plus laptops to see what had been changed for what Apple calls its new third-generation butterfly mechanism under the keys that is reportedly quieter in operation.
What iFixit discovered was a new silicone membrane that surrounds the mechanism under each key. This muffles some of the click sound when the key is depressed, but may also prevent dust and debris from getting underneath the keys and blocking the key mechanism.
The company recently applied for a patent for a system for “ingress prevention for keyboards” designed to block dust and debris from getting under keys that closely resembles the silicone barrier found under the new keyboard keys.
Apple has publicly said that the third-generation MacBook Pro keyboard was not designed with dust in mind, but it has recently admitted that, at least in some circumstances, users can have issues with debris rendering keys inoperable.
Facing lawsuits and customer complaints, Apple recently rolled out an extended repair programme that will repair laptops that have stuck keys free of charge. The programme covers the new MacBook and MacBook Pros released in 2015 onwards, for a period of four years from the date of purchase.
Sam Lionheart from iFixit speculated that because Apple is facing several class-action lawsuits over the keyboard “of course they can’t just come out and say, ‘Hey, we fixed it!’ [as] that says there was a problem to begin with”.
The repair firm said that it would test the ingress protection to see if the barriers blocked dust from causing dead keys.
Apple did not reply to a request for comment ahead of publication.
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