The IT Nerd

Yesterday, I wrote about the possibility that Apple with it’s new quieter keyboard in their brand new MacBook Pro have addressed the issues around #KeyboardGate without admitting to anything. I also was waiting until iFixit tore one down for confirmation (or not) of that. Well, iFixit did just that and here’s what they found:

Apple has cocooned their butterfly switches in a thin, silicone barrier.

This flexible enclosure is quite obviously an ingress-proofing measure to cover up the mechanism from the daily onslaught of microscopic dust. Not—to our eyes—a silencing measure. In fact, Apple has a patent for this exact tech designed to “prevent and/or alleviate contaminant ingress.”

I’m sure that is going to interest the lawyers that are behind the three #KeyboardGate lawsuits that have been filed so far. I say that because it’s pretty clear what Apple has done here. Which is deal with #KeyboardGate without saying I’m sorry or admitting any wrongdoing. Because that’s so typically them. I also wonder if people who are getting replacement keyboards as part of Apple’s service campaign are getting these new ones.

Though there is a part two to this story from iFixit:

Tune in next week as we put this membrane through its dust-proofing paces, tear down the rest of the device, and speculate whether this really is a feature—or a secret bug fix impacting millions of consumers.

That should prove interesting. I’ll be tuning in. So should you.

This entry was posted on July 14, 2018 at 7:44 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Apple. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.