Apple has released MacBook, MacBook Pro Software Update 1.1 which addresses a responsiveness issue on MacBook and MacBook Pro notebook computers.
Some MacBook and MacBook Pro systems may occasionally experience a temporary suspension of keyboard input which can last a minute or longer.
The Mac OS X 10.5.1 update is required before installing the MacBook, MacBook Pro Software Update 1.1.
MacBook, MacBook Pro Software Update 1.1 is availbale via Software Update and also as a standalone installer.
More info and download link (979KB) here.
Finally!
Solves my Leopard keyboard issues.
Now if they would only fix my MBP’s battery lasting only 1 hour (it lasted 2.5 hours before I installed Leopard). 🙁
apple refuses to believe it is an issue that also affects Tiger systems as well.
odd. in the support forums there are hundreds of Tiger system users reporting dead keys on their keyboards as well.
Snappy!
@MacMan
You have a defective battery. If it’s under warranty, get it replaced. If not, buy a new one. My battery lasts 3.5 to 4 hours, so there’s definitely something wrong with yours and I don’t think it’s software.
@niji
This patch doesn’t fix “dead keys”. It fixes a problem where the keyboard would become unresponsive. “Dead keys” is most likely a hardware problem and cannot be fixed with a patch. Either the keyboard gets replaced under warranty or if out of warranty, the user has to pay to get it replaced.
My Keyboard is much warmer now
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” />
when the keys are dead does the mouse still work?
Some Tiger users have expereinced unresponsive keyboards since upgrading to 10.4.11. I am one of them. I could move the mouse but not use the mouse or keyboard for anything else. I went back to 10.4.10
I was having the dead keyboard problem on my new Macbook. It started about a week after delivery and stopped after about 6 days of it happening on occassion. The mouse still did work. Hasn’t happened in about 2 weeks.
MacMan, if your battery has less than “300” cycles, Apple will swap it out. Another older Macbook I have had only 45 cycles and the machine would just shut down at about 40%. No warning, just blam, black screen. Took it in to the Apple Store and they swapped it no problem almost 4 months after warranty expiration.
Of course the nice thing about posting without registering is that we get our own personal MW!
But wait! That’s not what I’m saying…
The new update has fixed my trackpad input. Most of the time, it wouldn’t accept a mousepad click. I had been reduced to a wireless Mighty Mouse (which connection the MB would sometimes lose) to keep running. It completely stopped after Leopard. Apple had previously replaced the keyboard but the problems continued. I had a repair number but couldn’t give up the computer long enough to send it in. Anyway, I don’t know whether losing the BT mouse connection is fixed, but the trackpad finally works.
My perineum is much snappier now. Coincidence?
I don’t think you should snap that part…
MW: part. seriously.
“I don’t think you should snap that part…”
Taint that the truth!
(thanks)
No, the connection still periodically drops for the BT Mighty Mouse. It then finds itself again after about 30 seconds. But now I can continue work directly on the computer. Good news for that!
Lots of bugs still in Leopard. Hope Apple releases more updates expeditiously.
Geepers creepers. I thought my MBP was fast BEFORE this update…
Zzzzinnngggg….
@Mr. Reese:
Damn, you beat me to it.
Thanks for everyone who said they thought my battery was defective. How is it that on December 12 at 9am my battery would last for 2.5+ hours yet on December 12 at 11am (after installing Leopard) it only lasts 1 hour?
THIS IS NOT A HARDWARE PROBLEM. There are COUNTLESS other MBPs on Apple’s supprt page with the same problem.
(Plus, Apple exchanged my battery only 6 months ago.)
They need to fix this in Leopard (I would be willing to bet a LOT of money that if I downgraded back to Tiger it would last 2.5+ hours again.
@MacMan…my new MBP did the same thing although I cannot give you specific times. I only had the MBP for a week before I installed leopard and I know it was > than an hour. Now I only get an hour or thereabouts.
My son just took his MacBook Pro into Apple for repair because of this problem. Too bad this didn’t come out a while back. I’ve seen him struggling in frustration trying to meet homework deadlines as his keyboard quit working.
@no-no
How do you go back to 10.4.10-? I’ve had so many problem with Safari not responding after downloading 10.4.11 and Safari Version 3.0.4 (523.12.2). The wi-fi antenna shows full strength but Safari stops responding and I have to reboot.
the stuck/non-responsive/dead keys issue is not a hardware or physical keyboard issue.
proof:
during the startup process i can toggle the caps lock on and off. when i start up in safe-mode i can toggle the caps lock on and off at the menu prompt for password. this proves the key is functioning perfectly.
but when the operating system fully loads, timing-wise somewhere between the dock and the menu bar appearing the function is lost. pressed or not pressed, no green light on the key and when pressed it doesnt work.
another example: i can do a command+option+P+R to do a PRAM reset. but after the OS fully loads,the command key doesnt work.
not a hardware issue.
and it is on a Tiger 10.4.11 system.
apple, we need it fixed.
The backlighting on my MBP feels much brighter now!
MacMan:
The only reason I would agree with those that say it is a bad battery is because you state it only last 2.5 hours to begin with…my experience is that I never get less than 3.5 hours of battery life from my MBP 15″.
That being said, I don’t do much “heavy-lifting” with my MBP except for the occasional iPhoto albums and iMovie movies…
@silverhawk:
I reinstalled my system from the disks that came with my MBP. That brought things back to factory configuration, which for me was OS-X at version 10.4.9. Then I applied the 10.4.10 combo update that I had saved a couple months ago, and declined to accept the Software Update prompt for 10.4.11. There may be an easier way but I’m not aware of it. Also, I’m not sure what you’d do if your machine came with 10.4.11 from the factory.
Making this sort of thing easier is why I tend to download from the Apple site and keep copies of the full combo updates, instead of just using Software Update.
Sorry for a dumb question, but I really can’t get, what AIR is?…