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

Stupid Setup Question

D

DeepPurple

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 3, 2011
4
0
I am trying to set up my new mac mini server. I bought the Apple wireless keyboard. I cannot seem to bluetooth sync the keyboard with the mac. The instructions in the Mac manual say to follow the instructions in the keyboard manual. THe keyboard manual says to turn on the keyboard and then turn on the mac and presto... they will connect. But this aint happening.


The mac mini is clearly on. I have mouse and monitor.

The keyboard is on, the batteries have been checked and the tiny green light comes on to confirm. It goes blinky-blinky-blinky which should mean it is in "discovery mode" looking for something to connect to. The keyboard is within a foot of the mac mini, so it should find it.

the keyboard manual says
1) press on/off switch to turn on keyboard
2) turn on mac and follow the onscreen instructions in the setup assistant.



The mac has no "set up" assistant, at least for the keyboard. IT had me choose a country, etc, and then wants me make an Apple ID. How the heck do I make an Apple ID without a keyboard?




This is the kind of crap that I thought Apple was supposed to be superior to Windows for.
 
Did you go into the "System Preferences" and then into the bluetooth settings? I tried this just trying to duplicate what you did and at no time did I have to set up an apple ID. All it required was to click the discoverable check box and then click on set up new device. Try this again and let us know.
 
This same thing happened to me last night when I was setting up my new Mac mini. I had to run to Walmart to buy a $10 USB keyboard. Even after finishing the initial setup the Mac still wouldn't recognize the wireless keyboard. The Bluetooth was on and after the setup was finished it recognized the touchpad right away. It finally decided to recognize the keyboard about twenty minutes later. I have no idea what the trick is. I went through the keyboard options instead of the Bluetooth options in system preferences though, i think but I'd keep trying both.
 
DeepPurple said:
I am trying to set up my new mac mini server. I bought the Apple wireless keyboard. I cannot seem to bluetooth sync the keyboard with the mac. The instructions in the Mac manual say to follow the instructions in the keyboard manual. THe keyboard manual says to turn on the keyboard and then turn on the mac and presto... they will connect. But this aint happening.


The mac mini is clearly on. I have mouse and monitor.

The keyboard is on, the batteries have been checked and the tiny green light comes on to confirm. It goes blinky-blinky-blinky which should mean it is in "discovery mode" looking for something to connect to. The keyboard is within a foot of the mac mini, so it should find it.

the keyboard manual says
1) press on/off switch to turn on keyboard
2) turn on mac and follow the onscreen instructions in the setup assistant.



The mac has no "set up" assistant, at least for the keyboard. IT had me choose a country, etc, and then wants me make an Apple ID. How the heck do I make an Apple ID without a keyboard?




This is the kind of crap that I thought Apple was supposed to be superior to Windows for.
Click to expand...

WELL Steve is dead welcome to the new Apple. Get a wired keyboard or bring it to the apple store.

I have a wired keyboard for setups like yours most likely you need a wired keyboard for setup. I have done 40 to 60 with the new minis and I use a wired keyboard first. I don't know of any other way.
 
There is a way to bring up an on screen keyboard to run through the setup process, but I forgot how. Has something to do with the left or triple click I believe. During setup it should have asked for "Before you Begin" and then gone through the setup of a wireless keyboard or mouse. Perhaps you skipped over it because you had a plug in mouse?
 
At the setup step where it's trying to find the keyboard, leave it there for like 30 minutes. That's about how long it took my new mini to find the bluetooth keyboard.

Now that I'm in and setup, I operate the mini purely via Hippo Remote and remote desktop so I can't say if this continued to be an issue.
 
I ran into this as well (kinda)

brand new mac mini, however I purchased the apple USB keyboard, and the magic trackpad.

During setup, the first screen that shows up is the fancy turn on the mouse/trackpad screen. Instructions wanted me to have the trackpad on, then turn mini on. This did not work. Once I reversed this, and turned the mini on, waited for that screen to appear, THEN turned on the trackpad. PRESTO, it immediately paired and I was good to go.

So try that, turn the mini on, wait for the screen, then turn on the keyboard.
 
I never got to a screen that had me setup a mouse/keyboard. I am using a generic wireless mouse with a tiny usb connection. The mouse works fine.


The screens were, in order
1) Pick a language (English)
2) pick a home country (USA)
3) Agree to license agreement
4) Apple ID for product registration


No keyboard setup screen appeared. I cannot go further without a keyboard. I cannot press any "settings" button without registering. I cannot register without a keyboard.



I cannot let the mac mini search for 30 minutes because the keyboard turns itself off after a 5 second start up & a 3 minutes search for something to pair/attach/connect.

Apple really sold me a keyboard and a computer that were not compatible?????? How dare they?
 
DeepPurple said:
I never got to a screen that had me setup a mouse/keyboard. I am using a generic wireless mouse with a tiny usb connection. The mouse works fine.


The screens were, in order
1) Pick a language (English)
2) pick a home country (USA)
3) Agree to license agreement
4) Apple ID for product registration


No keyboard setup screen appeared. I cannot go further without a keyboard. I cannot press any "settings" button without registering. I cannot register without a keyboard.



I cannot let the mac mini search for 30 minutes because the keyboard turns itself off after a 5 second start up & a 3 minutes search for something to pair/attach/connect.

Apple really sold me a keyboard and a computer that were not compatible?????? How dare they?
Click to expand...


if i remember right, the first screen i saw was the mouse setup screen. Then it went into the language etc.

I think a call to apple care will fix this....it came with the computer afterall
 
DeepPurple said:
I never got to a screen that had me setup a mouse/keyboard. I am using a generic wireless mouse with a tiny usb connection. The mouse works fine.


The screens were, in order
1) Pick a language (English)
2) pick a home country (USA)
3) Agree to license agreement
4) Apple ID for product registration


No keyboard setup screen appeared. I cannot go further without a keyboard. I cannot press any "settings" button without registering. I cannot register without a keyboard.



I cannot let the mac mini search for 30 minutes because the keyboard turns itself off after a 5 second start up & a 3 minutes search for something to pair/attach/connect.

Apple really sold me a keyboard and a computer that were not compatible?????? How dare they?
Click to expand...

They are compatible, you just need a USB keyboard for initial setup unfortunately.
 
Cameron500 said:
They are compatible, you just need a USB keyboard for initial setup unfortunately.
Click to expand...

you are correct. like i said welcome to the new apple. the op needs to have a usb keyboard for setup or bring it to the apple store. all other methods are not very reliable for a few reasons.

server no server.

10.7 install vs 10.7.2 install.

or the best of all you are close enough to an apple computer that is setup and your wireless is trying to bond to it. once the machine has been setup with a usb keyboard adding a wireless is easy.

btw thanks for the minus rating on my earlier post.

the truth is very simple apple is heading to a new direction and problems like this will abound.

I just spent sat at a nice speakerfest diy in the brooklyn navy yard. I had a conversation with an IT from PHILIADELPHIA

APPLE sold hundreds of lion only mac minis to a large place of business that don't work with any of the business software. Third IT to tell me this problem. Large purchases of mac minis with lion only and tons of snow software not working. Then no fix from apple support and worse even if you have the cash no replacement software to be purchased.




On a fun note
this is a link for the speakers. Some are very nice. Note not a sales pitch just some fun.


http://techtalk.parts-express.com/showthread.php?t=227922
 
Last edited:
I ran into the exact same problem.

I could not setup my new mini until I got a cheap USB keyboard.

I was blown away that Apple dropped the ball on this one.
 
Same thing happened to my brother, he bought the base model with a bluetooth keyboard about a month ago, stupid thing wouldn't pair. My new Mac Mini server should be here next week, but I have at least 3 extra USB keyboards lying around here.
 
philipma1957 said:
you are correct. like i said welcome to the new apple.


btw thanks for the minus rating on my earlier post.

the truth is very simple apple is heading to a new direction and problems like this will abound
Click to expand...

IMHO the rot has already set in: in todays competitive environment you only succeed when working as a team. The snub of giving executives minus Jon Ive a share bonus tells me enough. Similarly the deal Tim Cook cooked up with the 10 year retainer tells me another.

The recent class action about the T-connector fraying and Apple loosing it is another: not looking after the customer while making premium profits. There goes the reputation of "making things right".

The latest EFI update on the 2011 Mac mini (by the way do you know how to undo that one) is causing me grief.

No longer does Apple play nice with Windows in Bootcamp.

It all is the behaviour of an arogant vendor. But rest assured - if someone is happy with a purchase they'll tell on average 3 people about it. If they are peeved off then about 8 people. There goes the hard won goodwill.

Apple is now after the mass market with a new gadget and they think they have sown it up. Well in technology nothing is more uncertain, look where Motorola, IBM, Nokia, RIM are today.

Every Tom, Dick and Harry thinks the world of an iPad yet it is the most useless piece of (brown matter) that there is. You cannot use it for any serious work without a keyboard and by that time it is easier to have a laptop, more compact and lower total weight and longer battery life.

I gave your posts the thunbs up but the fanboys don't want to know the truth, they rather stick their heads in the proverbial place and pretend not to notice.
 
MJL said:
IMHO the rot has already set in: in todays competitive environment you only succeed when working as a team. The snub of giving executives minus Jon Ive a share bonus tells me enough.
Click to expand...

There is no particular reason to believe that Ive did not receive shares. His position simply does not require S.E.C. disclosure.
 
For the record, I borrowed a USB keyboard and set up the Mac just fine. Once I was through the initial set up, I was able to sync the wireless keyboard to the Mac just fine.



I still am rightously pissed that Apple would sell me a computer and a keyboard KNOWING that the keyboard could not be used with the computer out of the box without telling me so.
 
DeepPurple said:
For the record, I borrowed a USB keyboard and set up the Mac just fine. Once I was through the initial set up, I was able to sync the wireless keyboard to the Mac just fine.



I still am rightously pissed that Apple would sell me a computer and a keyboard KNOWING that the keyboard could not be used with the computer out of the box without telling me so.
Click to expand...

join the club it has been down hill for a few years. ever since iPod/iPad/iPhone caught on Apple has created a shift away from real computers.
 
I've never had this issue. I use an Apple Wireless keyboard with my Late-2009 Mac Mini. The trick, IMO, is to hold the power button on the keyboard until the light starts easy blinking. This should start the discovery process of bluetooth.

Hope this helps.
 
This is a known issue with the 2011 Mac Mini all models. It is likely an oversight in Lion because iMac models all come paired from the factory and MacBook Pro models all have built in keyboards. You can try to pair the mouse track pad at the initial pairing icon displayed. Continue setup until you reach the keyboard input required point the power on the Apple Wireless Keyboard and put into pairing mode. Some claim this method solved the problem.
 
I had no problems whatsoever

I bought a mini (base model) about a month ago (it came with Lion), and I had a wireless keyboard from an earlier purchase. I just un-paired the wireless keyboard from the MBA it was playing with, turned it off, then booted up the mini for the first time and waited for it to prompt me to pair the keyboard. It worked like a charm.
 
To Put the Keyboard in discovery mode hold the power button until the green light flashes, It usually takes 2 try's (in my case.) The the Mini should see a keyboard is searching.
 
radicalcentrist said:
I bought a mini (base model) about a month ago (it came with Lion), and I had a wireless keyboard from an earlier purchase. I just un-paired the wireless keyboard from the MBA it was playing with, turned it off, then booted up the mini for the first time and waited for it to prompt me to pair the keyboard. It worked like a charm.
Click to expand...
Hit or miss but you are correct it can work

WAM2 said:
To Put the Keyboard in discovery mode hold the power button until the green light flashes, It usually takes 2 try's (in my case.) The the Mini should see a keyboard is searching.
Click to expand...
Also hit or miss.

shortcut3d said:
This is a known issue with the 2011 Mac Mini all models. It is likely an oversight in Lion because iMac models all come paired from the factory and MacBook Pro models all have built in keyboards. You can try to pair the mouse track pad at the initial pairing icon displayed. Continue setup until you reach the keyboard input required point the power on the Apple Wireless Keyboard and put into pairing mode. Some claim this method solved the problem.
Click to expand...

Once again hit or miss.


Op needed USB and it worked like a charm. As for the 2009 mini it will work as it will for 2009 iMac. I did a lot of these 2011 minis since I upgrade and sell on ebay. I have wireless keyborads and usb keyboards. Since I do two or three minis a day I can't afford to spend 30 minutes or more to make wireless work. I have done a 2011 mini wireless quickly a few times but the usb just works everytime so I stopped the wireless attempts.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back