Got the M3 Pro last week and the right arrow key came off from one side. I pushed it back again and it’s responding normally. Are these keyboards fragile or is this expected to last? Is it like a design thing that they come off like this?
I’ve already setup the whole thing now and thinking if I should return the whole thing back (setup takes time 
)
PS: I didn’t get apple care too because it’s expensive!
No need to return it, keyboards are designed to do that if they get hit. I believe that is the same keyboard that has been used for a few generations, no issues here after a couple years on my M1 MBP. You are more likely to break the plastic cap than the keyboard hardware in my experience.
Did something happen or were you just typing normally and it popped off?
People on Reddit are claiming Apple is quoting $300 - $500+ to replace a keyboard on the M3 MacBook Pros. If you have any doubts about your keyboard I would have it checked out.
A broken key does not equal broken keyboard though. If he said the key wasn’t working sometimes, return it, but a key coming off because it was hit from the side too hard (assuming that is what happened here), is pretty common. Apple will fix that for free from what I heard, if the actual plastic is broken and it won’t stay on.
Likely fine, but in the return window I’d be quick to bring it back if there’s any doubt. If you want to return it and your configuration is immediately available, you could buy another, Migration Assistant to the new one, then return the old one. That way you wouldn’t have to redo everything.
A brand new M3 MacBook Pro with a possible problem and no AppleCare? Apple has even paired parts that have nothing to do with security, like the lid angle sensor, to insure that you have to use Apple to repair even many minor problems. They really want everyone to buy AppleCare.
I guess I don’t see knocking a key cap off is unusual (or a big deal). I’ve done it, just snapped it back on. It has nothing to do with the quality of the keyboard. I have seen people with (Windows) laptops missing key caps, but they actually broke the cap. OP was worried about the MBP keyboards being fragile, but I don’t think they are.
We need more info on what he did to knock it off.
I don’t really care what happened. More than anything else I was just pointing out that fixing these new Macs could be very expensive without AppleCare.
It’s relevant though. Did he drop a 10 lb medicine ball on it? Or did he move something just over the top of the keyboard and caught an edge?
So the reason the cap came off was I had a tiny sticky/double sided patch on that key which keeps my keyboard cover in place (to avoid dust). I have it on all four corner. Had it on my previous 2018 MBP as well which lasted 5 yrs. On this new one, I just was removing that cover, so this double sided tape (it’s very thin) pulled the key a bit and it came off. The keyboard mechanism seems very delicate to me compared to the 2018 keyboard lol (I know that 2018 ones had issues but my keys were absolutely and perfectly sturdy for those 5 yrs). I used to do it all the time with that butterfly keyboard and it was rock solid. for me in terms of reliability.
I’m also curious why did they make the arrow keys so small instead of using a proper sized key for left and right arrow. There’s clearly space available. These keys are one of the most used keys on the keyboard. Remove the right shift key lol but at least make the keys sturdy.
Still debating what to do . This is not cool and frankly concerning after spending $3k on a machine !
I already put this silicon cover, a skin and hand rest cover on this machine costing a total of $70ish. I’d have to remove them and then restick them back on the new one and usually that doesn’t work well. So sad
How reliable is migration assistant. Does it deep clone the existing mac. because I just setup my dev env and install so many custom thing, ssh, bash configs, brew, pip, etc
All of that will come over. You’ll only have to redo things that are device-specific (activate some licenses, reconfigure your hardware keyboard if you use special modifier keys, re-enable accessibility permissions, etc.)
I’m pretty sure there’s a 90 day limited warranty even if you didn’t pay for Apple care yet
But everything is working fine and the key isn’t broken right? Any keyboard if you tug hard enough, the keys will come off. There is no way you could have damaged the keyboard itself doing that.
I had a book slide off a notebook into my MacBook years ago. The one with the infamous keyboard. One of the edge keys popped off. I put it back on and never gave it another thought.
I much prefer the current design with the left and right arrow keys at half-height. It lets me discriminate the up arrow key from the shift key with my fingers, without looking. I held off upgrading my old MacBook Air for years because of the full-height left and right arrow keys on the butterfly keyboards. Glad they switched back to half-height.
I acknowledge that you may prefer otherwise, but I just wanted to point out that they did not make this choice for no reason.
It’s a year on the hardware. 90 days for phone support.
By the way, Apple advises against using keyboard covers on MacBooks because it could scratch the screen. I don’t think that is possible personally, because I used to put a very thin microfiber cloth cover on mine to stop from getting finger grease on the screen. I stopped doing that when someone pointed this article out. Just something to be aware of.
Right. I use a silicon case, it’s pretty soft and I used to use it on my previous MacBook as well. It’s worth for me to not have to worry about the keyboard spilling with food, dust and other particles. That’s what kept my butterfly keyboard going for 5 yrs.
