A judge has given the green light to AppleThat settles a class action lawsuit over defects in its MacBook’s butterfly keyboards. These keyboards, introduced in 2015, were thin and light, but also more fragile and sensitive to dust. Many users have complained of keys not working or getting stuck. Now Apple will have to compensate users for a total of 50 million dollars.
Apple pleads for butterfly keyboards on Macbooks
Apple has agreed to pay $50 million to settle this issue and to refund customers who have had problems with keyboards. The compensation ranges from $50 to $395 depending on model and repairs done. The judge overruled objections from some clients who felt the settlement was insufficient or unfair.
The class action lawsuit was initiated in 2018 by a group of MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro owners with butterfly keyboard. Apple then replaced the butterfly mechanism with one scissor in later models of its laptops.
Some customers complain that they have not achieved what they wanted, as some users have had to pay for repairs in excess of $300. But the judge said Apple’s payment may be enough. “The court recognized that, while there is no compensation for all injured customers, the agreed solution is beneficial for many of them”.
This means that the agreement reached between Apple and the owners of MacBooks with butterfly keyboard covers a significant part of the cases. MacBooks with butterfly keyboards were produced between 2015 and 2019 and experienced key malfunctions due to dust accumulation. Apple has offered free repairs and replacements for some models, but not for alli.
Now, new Apple laptops have ditched the butterfly mechanism and reverted to the more reliable scissor system. Leaving consumers much more satisfied.