Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

pshufd

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2013
10,147
14,573
New Hampshire
I believe the silver keys ended with the 2008 model. Here's what my 2009 Unibody keyboard looks like. Depending on where the light hits, it's either new looking or very shiny.

I think these keys collected oil just as fast, but they just didn't look as shiny because the finish was more forgiving.

View attachment 2354750

I just took out my 2007 (my 2008 17 died in 2018) and it looks fine. The silver is already shiny so skin oils don't look any different from the keys.
 

halledise

macrumors 68020
I sort of agree but at the end of the day it's not the worst keyboard I've used on a laptop. The worst was probably the first Intel butterfly MBA that came out. That was horrible to type on. I'm currently using an external Magic keyboard as the laptop spends most of the time docked to the studio display and that feels slightly better but not ideal. I have got used to it though and it's probably the least bad mac keyboard on the market (MX keys is horrible).

All of the keyboards on computers have been downhill since the proper keyboards they used to have on ThinkPads. The T61 was the last good keyboard I had on a laptop

View attachment 2354421

Cherry do a comparable keyboard now called the Stream SX. If they ever do a wireless, Mac layout version I will use that.
dare i ask what the pink button is for … ;)
 

Apple Knowledge Navigator

macrumors 68040
Mar 28, 2010
3,692
12,911
Keyboard 'tastes' can be subjective, and I can only speak from my 20+ years experience of using Apple keyboards when I say that the current MBP version is my favourite laptop keyboard, period.

I couldn't stand the butterfly keyboard, I found it hurt my fingers after extended use and was prone to having stuck keys.
 

bearinthetown

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 5, 2018
287
333
Keyboard 'tastes' can be subjective, and I can only speak from my 20+ years experience of using Apple keyboards when I say that the current MBP version is my favourite laptop keyboard, period.

I couldn't stand the butterfly keyboard, I found it hurt my fingers after extended use and was prone to having stuck keys.
The last statement is not true. It was random, I had no problems for 5+ years.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: G5isAlive

bearinthetown

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 5, 2018
287
333
I never said it was true for you. I said it was an issue for me.
You said it was "prone to". Has anyone actually have this problem appear years after using it? From my observation it's more a matter of a faulty or valid unit (that said, faulty being more than 50%, which Apple called "a small number of users" 😂).
 

Apple Knowledge Navigator

macrumors 68040
Mar 28, 2010
3,692
12,911
You said it was "prone to". Has anyone actually have this problem appear years after using it? From my observation it's more a matter of a faulty or valid unit.
Yes, and the sentence opened with “I couldn't stand the butterfly keyboard, I found it hurt my fingers after extended use and was prone to having stuck keys.”
 

Jim Lahey

macrumors 68030
Apr 8, 2014
2,743
5,681
You said it was "prone to". Has anyone actually have this problem appear years after using it? From my observation it's more a matter of a faulty or valid unit (that said, faulty being more than 50%, which Apple called "a small number of users" 😂).

Mine was fine for four years then started disintegrating. Unresponsive taps and double taps.
 

idkwhat

macrumors newbie
Jan 8, 2024
23
12
I just wish they didn’t have that black background. I’m still on a 2014 MacBook Air and eventually I’d like to upgrade to an m3 or m4 and while I’d like a Pro, the keyboard design is almost enough to make me go for the Air. I just worry that some day I’m gonna want to use two external monitors and also miss those extra ports. I don’t know how they decided that the better more expensive computer should have a new, uglier, keyboard design.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Technerd108

AlmightyKang

macrumors 6502
Nov 20, 2023
483
1,489
Good advice except when you buy one of those you end up with dell or hp computer.

That too. The keyboard on the high end Dell laptops is garbage as well. I have a 16" Dell 7670 and they stupidly tried to cram a full size keyboard in it. The end game is that I have a keyboard designed for hobbits. Also it's missing all the useful keys on a PC and half the edit keys you have to hit Fn first to do. It's horrible.

Also notably the Dell is named "Dick Burn" because it gets so bloody hot.
 

jlc1978

macrumors 603
Aug 14, 2009
5,870
4,848
Personally, I don't like laptop keyboards in general. For work, I always use an external mechanical keyboard and put my MBP 16" in clamshell mode. I feel way more productive with a 27" 4K monitor + a mechinical keyboard + a good mouse. Just for coding though.

Yea, keyboards preferences are very personal; I feel there hasn't really been a great keyboard since the old original IBM Model M ones.
 
  • Like
Reactions: G5isAlive

smirking

macrumors 68040
Aug 31, 2003
3,942
4,009
Silicon Valley
Yea, keyboards preferences are very personal; I feel there hasn't really been a great keyboard since the old original IBM Model M ones.

You can find newly made replica versions of Model M's with USB connectors and there are plenty of working copies of the originals that will work with active USB adapters. You can also find some upcycled vintage Model M's outfitted with USB plugs.

Model M's are really nice, but I don't think it's fair to say that it was the last great keyboard, especially since we seem to be in a custom keyboard renaissance period right now. I own 4 Model M's because I thought keyboards were all just gonna suck from here on out so I hoarded them.

I still think my Model M's are fun, but I don't actually like them all that much anymore. Once the nostalgia kick wore off, I realized I actually prefer current day keyboards.
 
Last edited:

AlmightyKang

macrumors 6502
Nov 20, 2023
483
1,489
You can find newly made replica versions of Model M's with USB connectors and there are plenty of working copies of the originals that will work with active USB adapters. You can also find some upcycled vintage Model M's outfitted with USB plugs.

Model M's are really nice, but I don't think it's fair to say that it was the last great keyboard, especially since we seem to be in a custom keyboard renaissance period right now. I own 4 Model M's because I thought keyboards were all just gonna suck from here on out so I hoarded them.

I still think my Model M's are fun, but I don't actually like them all that much anymore. Once the nostalgia kick wore off, I realized I actually prefer current day keyboards.

The thing with Model M keyboards, and similar mechanical keyboards, is they are completely antisocial and everyone around you hates them.
 

jlc1978

macrumors 603
Aug 14, 2009
5,870
4,848
The thing with Model M keyboards, and similar mechanical keyboards, is they are completely antisocial and everyone around you hates them.

Which is great because then people leave you alone while you are working...

I still think my Model M's are fun, but I don't actually like them all that much anymore. Once the nostalgia kick wore off, I realized I actually prefer current day keyboards.

For me it was having used a Selectric the Model M provided the tactile feedback that is lacking today on most keyboards

Edit: Fixed typos
 
Last edited:

za9ra22

macrumors 65816
Sep 25, 2003
1,441
1,931
Which is great becasue then people leave you alone while you are working...



For me it was having used a electric the Model M provided the tactile feedback that is lacking today on most keyboards
Of course there are quieter mechanical keyboards in the modern era - my favorite being Cherry brown switch TKL models, which are not quite so antisocial, but I have a couple of blue switch alternatives which keep people away!

For me, modern keyboards are awful. As one of the devices critical to interfacing with a computer, having a keyboard that is good for the individual to use is vitally important - and there hasn't been an even half-decent one on anybody's laptop for years, since the design objectives of ultra-light, ultra-slim were prioritized over comfortable use.

When you look at something like the classic Model M (and many of the modern mechanical units too), not only do they provide key travel and feedback, but also a keycap shape which helps to locate the fingers. Take all these factors away, and at best each different keyboard is simply a different bag of scrabble tiles to type on.
 

smirking

macrumors 68040
Aug 31, 2003
3,942
4,009
Silicon Valley
For me it was having used a electric the Model M provided the tactile feedback that is lacking today on most keyboards

Look around if the typing experience is important enough to you. There are sooooo many very tactile keyboards out there now, but the problem is that there are so many varieties and subvarieties that it's hard to know where to start.

And there's always this if you want to go Model M on steroids...

Of course, nothing will ever beat the slam fest of the IBM Selectric II. Man, those things really thumped.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: AlmightyKang

Saturn1217

macrumors 65816
Apr 28, 2008
1,360
1,048
To each their own. The keyboard on my 16" M1Max MBP is probably my favorite keyboard on a laptop since the thinkpad. The one on my personal 14" M1Pro MBP (which should be the same) is a little less good. But both are preferable to the keyboards on the old 2015 era retina MBPs. They are kind of what I was hoping the butterfly switch would be. A shallow crisp keyboard which is my preference. Kind of like the magic keyboard (although that is better).

I was never really a fan of the older slightly more travel and heavier feeling keyboards of the older MBPs.

Definitely better than the butterfly keyboard which I actively didn't use on my 2017 MBP because typing on it became so annoying.
 

bearinthetown

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 5, 2018
287
333
To each their own. The keyboard on my 16" M1Max MBP is probably my favorite keyboard on a laptop since the thinkpad. The one on my personal 14" M1Pro MBP (which should be the same) is a little less good. But both are preferable to the keyboards on the old 2015 era retina MBPs. They are kind of what I was hoping the butterfly switch would be. A shallow crisp keyboard which is my preference. Kind of like the magic keyboard (although that is better).

I was never really a fan of the older slightly more travel and heavier feeling keyboards of the older MBPs.

Definitely better than the butterfly keyboard which I actively didn't use on my 2017 MBP because typing on it became so annoying.
+1 for shallow crisp keyboards. Actually I started to enjoy the 14" keyboard once I changed the way I'm typing. I still consider it not reliable enough though.
 

dakicka

macrumors newbie
Apr 15, 2024
5
15
I 100% agree that the MacBooks M1, M2, and M3 have very poor keyboards : ( As I write this I'm on my 'Early 2015 MacBook Air' with a beautiful, responsive keyboard that has double the travel and doesn't cause pain on my finger joints when typing like both the M1 and M2 did that I wasted money on. Also, the trackpad actually depresses (you can press it down and up by force) unlike most Mac laptops since ~2016 ish? Pressing down on glass puts so much stress on the joints. I have tried all new MacBooks at the Apple store in hopes that one will have a legitimate keyboard but instead they are made thinner and thinner with less travel. it's a truly poor typing experience both for accuracy - closer to typing on a phone or tablet without looking at it. I am disappointed with Apple and hope more people raise these concerns in forums. If anyone here used laptops and computers prior to 2000 they'd probably share a similar sentiment. Apple has sacrificed function and ergonomics for form factor and thinness :(

PS - Does anyone know if perhaps the M3 MacBook PRO has a larger keyboard and one with more travel when compared to the M2 MacBook Air? And does the M3 MacBook AIR have the same keyboard - travel, size, pressure as the new M3 Airs? Is the new 15" Air any larger of a keyboard than the new 13" Air?
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.