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Growing Petition Requests Apple Recall MacBook Pro with ‘Defective Keyboard’

By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
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By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
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May 4, 2018, 10:33 AM ET

Apple might have some explaining to do if a recent petition against its MacBook Pro continues to gain steam.

A petition surfaced this week on Change.org that calls on Apple to recall MacBook Pro units released since late 2016 over what the petition author Matthew Taylor calls a “defective keyboard.” The petition seeks 5,000 signatures and as of this writing, it’s closing in on 4,600. Judging by the sheer number of signatures coming in each minute, it shouldn’t take long for it to hit the 5,000-signature milestone.

“Apple, it’s time: recall every MacBook Pro released since late 2016, and replace the keyboards on all of them with new, redesigned keyboards that just work,” the petition reads. It goes on to say that “every one of Apple’s current-gen MacBook Pro models, 13-inch and 15-inch, is sold with a keyboard that can become defective at any moment due to a design failure.”

The problem dates back to 2016 when Apple unveiled a keyboard design it called the “butterfly” in its MacBook Pro. Apple pitched the feature as a better technology that used a different function under each key to more accurately handle key presses. However, the butterfly keyboard has been roundly criticized by owners who say they’ve experienced keys that stick and mistaken double-taps on keys.

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Most of those reports have been made in Apple Support forums or on Reddit. But Apple watchers and those who have reviewed the MacBook Pro models have also suggested that the keyboard design is a problem. Last month, in fact, longtime Apple watcher John Gruber called the keyboard “one of the biggest design screwups in Apple history.”

Of course, the Apple petition doesn’t necessarily mean that Apple will respond or issue the recall, as requested. It does, however, suggest that Apple has somewhat of a problem on its hands with the keyboard. And at the very least, several thousand customers aren’t pleased by it.

Apple did not immediately respond to a Fortune request for comment on the petition.

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