To console angry customers complaining about the faulty butterfly mechanism in their MacBook keyboards, the Apple keyboard replacement program has been extended by the company. The list of makes and models eligible for free keyboard repairs has also been extended. 

Apple announced on Monday that will replace all ‘butterfly keyboards’ for free and that it has extended its keyboard replacement program. This has come as a result of many customers complaining about the sticky keyboards with letters either duplicating or not typing at all.Apple also announced a new keyboard mechanism that will be available in all the new MacBook Pro systems. The new systems too will be eligible for free repairs under the extended Apple keyboard replacement program. Apple claims to have solved the problem of double-typing by changing the material used in butterfly switch keyboards.

Apple keyboard replacement program extended

Apple has been attracting disgruntled customers ever since it launched the new keyboard mechanism in 2015. Almost three proposed class action lawsuits have been filed against Apple for the annoying butterfly keyboard. Even after incessant customer complains, Apple maintained its defensive stance by claiming that the defect affected only a handful of customers. Only recently it has started accepting, apologizing and now, offering free repairs.

In 2018, Apple had released a different kind of replacement program which included only certain MacBook and MacBook Pro models whose letters or characters didn’t appear or whose keys didn’t respond properly. Under this new Apple keyboard replacement program, all MacBook models sold after 2015 with the butterfly keyboard will be covered. Some customers had also lodged complaints about the lengthy repair time which sometimes takes more than a week.  To pacify customers, Apple has also said that it has sped up repair time. The type of service will be determined after the keyboard is examined and may involve the replacement of one or more keys or the whole keyboard. The service turn-around time may vary depending upon the type of service and availability of replacement parts.

Along with the updated keyboard system, the 2019 MacBook Pro models will also come with a few other updates.  The 15 and 13-inch computers will come with Intel’s eighth and ninth-generation core processors. The 15-inch MacBook will deliver a speed up to 5.0 GHz and the 13-inch MacBook Pro with touch bar features will house a speed up to 4.7 GHz.