Apple to Replace Its Butterfly Keyboard With Scissor Switch in Future MacBook Models: Ming-Chi Kuo

Apple is reportedly finally ready to ditch the controversial butterfly keyboard and will start using a new scissor switch-based mechanism. The company has been using butterfly keyboard in its MacBook models since 2015 and despite regularly tweaking the keyboard's design, Apple has been unable to fix all issues. According to an online report, Apple's new scissor switch design will offer durability and longer key travel. Apple is not a stranger to the scissor switch mechanism, in fact the company has traditionally used scissor switches in its desktop keyboards.

According to a report by 9to5Mac, Apple's new scissor switch-based keyboard design will use glass fibre for added durability and offer longer key travel, citing the latest report by famed Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The analyst reportedly noted that butterfly keyboards were expensive to make, and even though scissor switch will be pricier than other laptop keyboards, it will not cost as much as butterfly keyboards.

According to Kuo, the first new MacBook model to feature the revamped keyboard will be the new MacBook Air model set to debut later this year. The scissor switch-based design will also make its way to MacBook Pro models, but not before 2020.

To recall, Apple had introduced the butterfly keyboard with the 12-inch Retina MacBook back in March 2015.

“… [Apple-designed butterfly mechanism] is an amazing 40 percent thinner than a traditional keyboard scissor mechanism yet four times more stable, providing greater precision no matter where your finger strikes the key,” Apple had said at the time in a press note.

The company then brought the second-generation butterfly keyboard in 2016 MacBook Pro models and third-gen came with 2018 MacBook Pro models. The latest and fourth-generation of butterfly mechanism debuted with 2019 MacBook Pro. While the jury is still out on the fourth-generation butterfly keyboard, the previous generation keyboards have suffered from reliability issues. In June last year, Apple announced a free repair programme for keyboard problems in select models and expanded it to more models this year.