Apple has its fair share of product malfunctions, but the reported problems with the keyboard for the MacBook Pro have landed the tech company in court.
The Lawsuit Against Apple
On May 11, a class-action lawsuit was filed in Northern California's U.S. District Court against Apple. The lawsuit asserts that recent models of the MacBook and MacBook Pro contain a defective keyboard with non-responsive keys.
According to the lawsuit document, there are have been "thousands" of users who have been inconvenienced by this ongoing problem. The lawsuit also claims that Apple knew about the defect before the product launched, and it failed to inform consumers about the problem.
"[Apple should] provide adequate disclosure of the defective nature of the MacBooks," the plaintiffs wrote in the lawsuit. "[Apple should] return to Plaintiffs and Class members all costs attributable to remedying or replacing defective MacBook laptops, including but not limited to economic losses from the purchase of replacement laptops."
In addition, the lawsuit alleges that small debris or dust can cause the keyboard to malfunction at any time. This would prevent the laptop from being functional.
The lawsuit is seeking damages from Apple to cover the legal fees, to pay for the cost of replacing the parts, and to reimburse consumers for expenses already incurred.
As of May 12, Apple did not respond to the lawsuit.
Getting The Laptop Defects Repaired
In 2015, Apple switched the keyboard for the MacBook and the MacBook Pro to the "butterfly" model. The company said that this change would improve the device, but many users have complained about defects with it.
When a user reports a faulty keyboard, they can bring it to an Apple Store for repair. However, the repair could take a week or more, which would leave the user without a laptop for that time. If the MacBook or MacBook Pro is under warranty, then the cost of the repair is free. However, if the device is no longer under warranty, then the repair could cost $700.
An AppleInsider investigation from April 2018 revealed that the keyboard on the 2016 MacBook Pro failed twice as often as models from 2015 and 2014. The data was based on repairs in Genius Bar locations.
Users Launch A Petition Against Apple
After numerous complaints from consumers, Apple finally responded to the defects with an online guide for cleaning the keyboard with compressed air. Many users say that this does not solve the problem.
Consumers then launched an online petition demanding that Apple recall all of the MacBook Pro laptops since late 2016 and replace the keyboards.
"Every one of Apple's current-gen MacBook Pro models, 13" and 15", is sold with a keyboard that can become defective at any moment due to a design failure," the consumers wrote on the petition.
As of May 12, over 19,000 people signed the petition.
