6 ms·

The Magic Keyboard design is not the 2012-2015 MBP keyboard design, it's the design from their line of external keyboards. iFixit's jokey intro is misleading in

The Magic Keyboard design is not the 2012-2015 MBP keyboard design, it's the design from their line of external keyboards. iFixit's jokey intro is misleading in this regard.

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
pwthornton 7y ago
This is correct. The Magic keyboard has been beloved for several years, and it is not a keyboard that has ever been in a laptop before.
- inferiorhuman 7y ago
  Ugh. I despise the "magic" keyboard as there's way too little travel. I always found the whole thing a bit physically painful. It's never going to happen but I'd love to see a return of the Aluminum / Titanium PowerBook keyboard.
  - jacobolus 7y ago
    Those were great, but having slightly sculpted keytops and longer travel takes an extra 2–3 millimeters of vertical space, which isn’t going to cut it if the #1 goal is for the folded up machine to be as thin as possible. Personally I wish sommeone went back to the keyboards used on IBM 5140 or IBM P70. Probably not too likely though. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_PC_Convertible https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_PC_Convertible https://deskthority.net/wiki/IBM_P70/P75_keyboard https://deskthority.net/wiki/IBM_P70/P75_keyboard
    - torgian 7y ago
      Meh. Give me a fully mechanical keyboard in a somewhat portable body. Like those old Apple IIe boxes. This is a joke btw.
      - jacobolus 7y ago
        The two I linked to were “fully mechanical keyboards in a somewhat portable body” (for very modest definitions of “somewhat portable” – they were 13 and 20 pounds, respectively). Not really “laptops”, but two fantastic keyboards.
        torgian 7y ago
        TBH I was trying for a joke, but it came out pretty flat ._.
      - DennisP 7y ago
        It's a joke for you but a laptop with a good mech keyboard is exactly what I want. I plug a mechanical keyboard into my laptop all the time, because it's easier on my fingers. A thicker laptop that I can type on is better for me than carrying around a separate mech and putting the laptop on a nearby flat surface instead of my lap.
        gambiting 7y ago
        Those do exist - MSI and Asus made a few recently I'm sure. For example: https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/msi-gt75vr-titan-pro https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/msi-gt75vr-titan-p... I mean, at 4.5kg it's extremely heavy for a laptop, but it does have a mechanical keyboard and very beefy spec.
        magashna 7y ago
        That's for a very niche, need to game on the go, market. It's otherwise ridiculous looking
        gambiting 7y ago
        We actually use something very similar to run our servers at conferences and presentations, don't really care about the gpu but having a desktop-grade CPU in a "portable" package is very useful for this.
    - vr46 7y ago
      Is it possible to remove the glossy screen cover to get that extra space? My 2010 mac was the last with a matt screen and had "plenty" of space available.
    - kps 7y ago
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_Portable https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_Portable — the last good Apple laptop keyboard.
      - jacobolus 7y ago
        I should have included that one too. I like the Mac Portable keyboard even better than the IBM 5140 (orange vs. brown Alps SKCM switches were not quite as stiff). I got a couple of NOS Mac Portable replacement keyboards on ebay a few years ago, but never got around to putting them into a working case.
  - C1sc0cat 7y ago
    And I found that the ones that came with a previous employers mac minis tended to fail quite quickly I had 2 or 3 in my parts cupboard with all the other broken and old equipment. And I also did not like the feel Put it this way I brought in an old Zenith keyboard from a p90 system from the mid 90's to use instead.
- cassianoleal 7y ago
  Personally, I prefer the MBP2015 keyboard to the Magic Keyboard. I have been to an Apple Store recently to try out the MBP16's keyboard and it's good - but not as good as the one I'm typing this on. I also don't understand the obsession with key stability on the corners. I like the instability. I use it when I'm touch typing - it gives my fingers a lot more tactile feedback.
  - torgian 7y ago
    That probably means the keyboard isn’t that good ;) Sloppiness shouldn’t make it feel better.
    - dannyw 7y ago
      Instability allows you to know exactly where your fingertip is positioned once you know it.
      - visarga 7y ago
        Having the keycaps slightly curved inside allows for better finger positioning.
        ahartmetz 7y ago
        Yes! Fujitsu desktop keyboards have rather pronounced concave keys - not fashionable but very nice to type on. (They have also figured out tactile response with rubber domes.)
        lostgame 7y ago
        I miss the 2004-2007 PowerBook / OG MacBook Pro keyboard. Curved keys, great feeling on depression, this was paradise for me.
      - cassianoleal 7y ago
        Exactly this. Also, the instability means the keyboard is more forgiving of small aim mistakes. If my finger presses 10% of the wrong key and 90% of the right one, key stability on the corners will mean the keyboard registers both. On the 2015 keyboard it only registers the one I meant. The fact that it wobbles also gives my fingers an extra milisecond to adjust position if it feels it's wrong. It's also more obvious when I did hit the wrong place and I can automatically reach for the backspace/delete key without even thinking or noticing the wrong key visually on screen. It's overall a more fluid typing experience. This is especially useful when I'm typing at night or if my fingers are not moving optimally - like when they're cold or otherwise tight or tired.
- eugeniub 7y ago
  To me it actually seems that the 16" keyboard is a brand new keyboard, that has never been in any laptop or external keyboard. But it's derived from the external Magic Keyboard and shares the marketing name. It has 1mmb of key travel, which is less than the 1.25mm of the external Magic Keyboard. It's also less than the 1.35mm of the 2015 MBP. But it's much more than the 0.5mm travel of the Butterfly keyboard. This is all to say that although the 16" MBP has a new scissor-based keyboard, it's not quite fair to say it's the same as the Magic Keyboard. And although it probably fixes all of the keyboard woes of the past couple years, I would still wait a few months and see.
- gnicholas 7y ago
  I love (and am typing this on) a bluetooth keyboard that came with my 2008 iMac. Is the "magic keyboard" (which apparently came out in 2015 and is lower-profile than its predecessors) sufficiently better to warrant the moniker "magic"?
  - agloeregrets 7y ago
    They branded it as such to match the Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad (the only product to earn the name) It is a rechargeable Bluetooth keyboard, no real magic, little innovation. It is a very nice Bluetooth keyboard though, reliable, easy to clean, feels higher quality
- nbevans 7y ago
  I have a full size Magic keyboard (because my MBP 2018 keys started dying and they couldn't guarantee same-day repair) and it really isn't all that. Sometimes I get a similar feeling as the MBP keyboard in that it seems to "miss" keystrokes, or get them in the wrong order. Though admittedly the worse MBP characteristic of doubling or tripling up a single keystroke is not there.
Twirrim 7y ago
I rarely complain about that kind of stuff, but the sheer number of jokes in that article had it reaching the "trying too hard to be funny" stage in near record time.
- larusso 7y ago
  I felt the same way. And I consider myself a very funny person. Like it’s written by Deadpool.
skocznymroczny 7y ago
I wish Apple released a butterfly switch external keyboard. I know I am in a minority here but I really loved these new flat keyboards on Macbooks and I'd love to have a keyboard like that for my Windows PC.
- nautical 7y ago
  How long you have been using the keyboard ? Mine got screwed after couple of months of usage (I took really good care of it as I had read about the initial backlash)
  - Ralfp 7y ago
    I've got my MBP in November 2016, as soon as it became available in my country. I was using it at home and office, carrying between both of those locations using sleeve, taking extra care to don't mess my precious new laptop up. Its keyboard worked perfectly all this time. Reading about all the keyboard woes others had, I've been wondering if I am just lucky. In November 2018 I've traveled to another town with my laptop (in the sleeve, as usual). This was single day travel and it turned out that I've didn't even have to pull it from the bag a single time. After coming home 10 hours later I've pulled my laptop from the sleeve and pressed "R" key. It didn't "click". I've pressed it again. It didn't click either, but it sticked to the tip of my finger and popped out of its slot. I was now part of the people blessed with keyboard fault.

The Magic Keyboard design is not the 2012-2015 MBP keyboard design, it's the design from their line of external keyboards. iFixit's jokey intro is misleading in this regard.

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

pwthornton 7y ago

This is correct. The Magic keyboard has been beloved for several years, and it is not a keyboard that has ever been in a laptop before.

inferiorhuman 7y ago
Ugh. I despise the "magic" keyboard as there's way too little travel. I always found the whole thing a bit physically painful. It's never going to happen but I'd love to see a return of the Aluminum / Titanium PowerBook keyboard.
- jacobolus 7y ago
  Those were great, but having slightly sculpted keytops and longer travel takes an extra 2–3 millimeters of vertical space, which isn’t going to cut it if the #1 goal is for the folded up machine to be as thin as possible. Personally I wish sommeone went back to the keyboards used on IBM 5140 or IBM P70. Probably not too likely though. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_PC_Convertible https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_PC_Convertible https://deskthority.net/wiki/IBM_P70/P75_keyboard https://deskthority.net/wiki/IBM_P70/P75_keyboard
  - torgian 7y ago
    Meh. Give me a fully mechanical keyboard in a somewhat portable body. Like those old Apple IIe boxes. This is a joke btw.
    - jacobolus 7y ago
      The two I linked to were “fully mechanical keyboards in a somewhat portable body” (for very modest definitions of “somewhat portable” – they were 13 and 20 pounds, respectively). Not really “laptops”, but two fantastic keyboards.
      - torgian 7y ago
        TBH I was trying for a joke, but it came out pretty flat ._.
    - DennisP 7y ago
      It's a joke for you but a laptop with a good mech keyboard is exactly what I want. I plug a mechanical keyboard into my laptop all the time, because it's easier on my fingers. A thicker laptop that I can type on is better for me than carrying around a separate mech and putting the laptop on a nearby flat surface instead of my lap.
      - gambiting 7y ago
        Those do exist - MSI and Asus made a few recently I'm sure. For example: https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/msi-gt75vr-titan-pro https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/msi-gt75vr-titan-p... I mean, at 4.5kg it's extremely heavy for a laptop, but it does have a mechanical keyboard and very beefy spec.
        magashna 7y ago
        That's for a very niche, need to game on the go, market. It's otherwise ridiculous looking
        gambiting 7y ago
        We actually use something very similar to run our servers at conferences and presentations, don't really care about the gpu but having a desktop-grade CPU in a "portable" package is very useful for this.
  - vr46 7y ago
    Is it possible to remove the glossy screen cover to get that extra space? My 2010 mac was the last with a matt screen and had "plenty" of space available.
  - kps 7y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_Portable https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_Portable — the last good Apple laptop keyboard.
    - jacobolus 7y ago
      I should have included that one too. I like the Mac Portable keyboard even better than the IBM 5140 (orange vs. brown Alps SKCM switches were not quite as stiff). I got a couple of NOS Mac Portable replacement keyboards on ebay a few years ago, but never got around to putting them into a working case.
- C1sc0cat 7y ago
  And I found that the ones that came with a previous employers mac minis tended to fail quite quickly I had 2 or 3 in my parts cupboard with all the other broken and old equipment. And I also did not like the feel Put it this way I brought in an old Zenith keyboard from a p90 system from the mid 90's to use instead.
cassianoleal 7y ago
Personally, I prefer the MBP2015 keyboard to the Magic Keyboard. I have been to an Apple Store recently to try out the MBP16's keyboard and it's good - but not as good as the one I'm typing this on. I also don't understand the obsession with key stability on the corners. I like the instability. I use it when I'm touch typing - it gives my fingers a lot more tactile feedback.
- torgian 7y ago
  That probably means the keyboard isn’t that good ;) Sloppiness shouldn’t make it feel better.
  - dannyw 7y ago
    Instability allows you to know exactly where your fingertip is positioned once you know it.
    - visarga 7y ago
      Having the keycaps slightly curved inside allows for better finger positioning.
      - ahartmetz 7y ago
        Yes! Fujitsu desktop keyboards have rather pronounced concave keys - not fashionable but very nice to type on. (They have also figured out tactile response with rubber domes.)
      - lostgame 7y ago
        I miss the 2004-2007 PowerBook / OG MacBook Pro keyboard. Curved keys, great feeling on depression, this was paradise for me.
    - cassianoleal 7y ago
      Exactly this. Also, the instability means the keyboard is more forgiving of small aim mistakes. If my finger presses 10% of the wrong key and 90% of the right one, key stability on the corners will mean the keyboard registers both. On the 2015 keyboard it only registers the one I meant. The fact that it wobbles also gives my fingers an extra milisecond to adjust position if it feels it's wrong. It's also more obvious when I did hit the wrong place and I can automatically reach for the backspace/delete key without even thinking or noticing the wrong key visually on screen. It's overall a more fluid typing experience. This is especially useful when I'm typing at night or if my fingers are not moving optimally - like when they're cold or otherwise tight or tired.
eugeniub 7y ago
To me it actually seems that the 16" keyboard is a brand new keyboard, that has never been in any laptop or external keyboard. But it's derived from the external Magic Keyboard and shares the marketing name. It has 1mmb of key travel, which is less than the 1.25mm of the external Magic Keyboard. It's also less than the 1.35mm of the 2015 MBP. But it's much more than the 0.5mm travel of the Butterfly keyboard. This is all to say that although the 16" MBP has a new scissor-based keyboard, it's not quite fair to say it's the same as the Magic Keyboard. And although it probably fixes all of the keyboard woes of the past couple years, I would still wait a few months and see.
gnicholas 7y ago
I love (and am typing this on) a bluetooth keyboard that came with my 2008 iMac. Is the "magic keyboard" (which apparently came out in 2015 and is lower-profile than its predecessors) sufficiently better to warrant the moniker "magic"?
- agloeregrets 7y ago
  They branded it as such to match the Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad (the only product to earn the name) It is a rechargeable Bluetooth keyboard, no real magic, little innovation. It is a very nice Bluetooth keyboard though, reliable, easy to clean, feels higher quality
nbevans 7y ago
I have a full size Magic keyboard (because my MBP 2018 keys started dying and they couldn't guarantee same-day repair) and it really isn't all that. Sometimes I get a similar feeling as the MBP keyboard in that it seems to "miss" keystrokes, or get them in the wrong order. Though admittedly the worse MBP characteristic of doubling or tripling up a single keystroke is not there.

Twirrim 7y ago

I rarely complain about that kind of stuff, but the sheer number of jokes in that article had it reaching the "trying too hard to be funny" stage in near record time.

larusso 7y ago
I felt the same way. And I consider myself a very funny person. Like it’s written by Deadpool.

skocznymroczny 7y ago

I wish Apple released a butterfly switch external keyboard. I know I am in a minority here but I really loved these new flat keyboards on Macbooks and I'd love to have a keyboard like that for my Windows PC.

nautical 7y ago
How long you have been using the keyboard ? Mine got screwed after couple of months of usage (I took really good care of it as I had read about the initial backlash)
- Ralfp 7y ago
  I've got my MBP in November 2016, as soon as it became available in my country. I was using it at home and office, carrying between both of those locations using sleeve, taking extra care to don't mess my precious new laptop up. Its keyboard worked perfectly all this time. Reading about all the keyboard woes others had, I've been wondering if I am just lucky. In November 2018 I've traveled to another town with my laptop (in the sleeve, as usual). This was single day travel and it turned out that I've didn't even have to pull it from the bag a single time. After coming home 10 hours later I've pulled my laptop from the sleeve and pressed "R" key. It didn't "click". I've pressed it again. It didn't click either, but it sticked to the tip of my finger and popped out of its slot. I was now part of the people blessed with keyboard fault.