Apple Class Action Says MacBook ‘Butterfly’ Keyboard is Defective

Apple faces a class action lawsuit alleging their MacBook Pro laptop’s “butterfly” keyboards are prone to failure.

Plaintiffs Zixuan Rao and Kyle Barbaro recently filed a class action against Apple Inc. alleging that the company sold MacBook laptops with defective “butterfly” keyboards.

The defect allegedly affects MacBook laptops model year 2015 or later and MacBook Pro laptops model year 2016 or later.

Apple’s “butterfly” keyboard was unveiled in 2015 as a slimmer, more sensitive alternative to previous keyboard designs. The keyboard allowed Apple to make their MacBook laptops thinner than typical laptops.

On their website, Apple reportedly claims “[n]ow, with our second-generation butterfly mechanism, the keyboard experience is refined for greater comfort and responsiveness.”

Rao says he experienced the alleged defect in February 2018. After purchasing a new MacBook Pro in January 2018, Rao claims he began experiencing keyboard failures. The “b” key allegedly became unresponsive, resulting in “many typing errors and incomplete words.”

He reportedly attempted to fix the problem with at home troubleshooting, including cleaning his keyboard. However, his efforts did not fix the issue, and the Apple store was allegedly unable to fix it without extensive wait time and fees.

Barbaro says he had a similar experience after purchasing a MacBook Pro in 2016. In July 2017, he reportedly started to experience problems with his space bar and caps lock keys. Barbaro also attempted to troubleshoot by cleaning the keyboard, but his efforts did not work.

He brought his laptop in for repair in September 2017 and had the issue fixed. However, in December 2017, the problem allegedly manifested again. Barbaro claims that the Apple store told him it would cost more than $700 to fix the problem so he declined further repairs.

“Each Plaintiff was unaware before purchasing a MacBook that it is defective,” the Apple MacBook class action lawsuit states. “Had Apple disclosed the defect, Plaintiffs would not have purchased a MacBook, would not have bought it at the price they did.”

The problem with the keyboard is allegedly common with thousands of consumers sharing Rao and Barbaro’s experiences. The defect in the butterfly keyboard reportedly occurs when dust or debris accumulates under or around the keys, causing keystrokes to not register. The defect can cause one or more keys to permanently fail, thus rendering the hardware inoperable.

“Despite awareness of the defect, Apple touted—and continues to tout—the MacBook as having a superior and highly responsive keyboard, with ‘four times more key stability than a traditional scissor mechanism’,” the Apple MacBook class action states. “Apple failed to disclose that the keyboard is defective, and this information would have been important to Plaintiffs’ decision to purchase a MacBook.”

Rao and Barbaro seek to represent a Class of consumers who purchased a 2015 or later MacBook, or a 2016 or later MacBook Pro, equipped with a butterfly keyboard.

The Apple MacBook defect class action seeks actual, general, special, incidental, statutory, punitive and consequential damages, as well as court costs and attorneys’ fees.

The plaintiffs are represented by Daniel C. Girard, Jordan Elias, Adam E. Polk, and Simon S. Grille of Girard Gibbs LLP; Benjamin F. Johns, Andrew W. Ferich, and Mark B. DeSanto of Chimicles & Tikellis LLP.

The Apple MacBook Butterfly Keyboard Class Action Lawsuit is Rao and Barbaro v. Apple Inc., Case No. 5:18-cv-02813, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

UPDATE: On April 22, 2019, a California federal judge eliminated some claims from a class action lawsuit arguing that Apple knew that its “butterfly” keyboards are likely to fail.

UPDATE 2: On Nov. 22, 2019, a California federal judge ruled that Apple must face a MacBook class action that alleges its laptops were equipped with defective keyboards.