My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix • Hacker News Board

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#361

Post by lefra » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:09 PM UTC

ginko wrote: post #263

Gigachad wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Insurance for things you can afford to replace never makes sense anyway. The expected cost of insurance will always exceed the expected cost of replacement in the long run. Unless for some reason you know you will be breaking your device much more than the average person. Insurance is for things that are unlikely to ever happen but would financially ruin you if they did.

>Insurance for things you can afford to replace never makes sense anyway. The expected cost of insurance will always exceed the expected cost of replacement in the long run. Not sure about Applecare but Lenovo has support packages where if your thinkpad breaks they'll send a technician over to your place to fix it within 24 hours. That's definitely worth it for a work device IMO.

I bought this kind of insurance for my PhD (Dell laptop, same 24 hours technician on site guarantee). Although quite expensive, I don't regret it: my screen and motherboard got replaced about two years in.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#362

Post by port11 » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:16 PM UTC

jawilson2 wrote: post #332

throawayonthe wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

i mean it's pretty nice for a laptop keyboard, but i've never thought of it as good enough to use externally tbh or do you mean integrating it into a different laptop a la framework? that could be cool, but would also have to think how much the chassey stiffness/specific construction contributes to the feel p.s. has anybody here tried (the external) magic trackpad? the macbook trackpad is infuriatingly good

I have the external Magic Trackpad. It is wonderful. I use it with my split Moonlander keyboard, and keep it in the middle. I honestly can't use a normal keyboard now, MacBook Pro included.

Anecdotal but I never had more hand pain than when I ordered a Magic Trackpad and tried to commit to it. Pretty bad cramps after a few weeks.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#363

Post by port11 » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:19 PM UTC

Grisu_FTP wrote: post #308

While i think the usecase of a Macbook and a Framework are really different i will always be thankfull to framework for how easy they make it. Broke my keyboard, a few days later i had a new one that didnt even take a minute to swap. Wanted to upgrade my GPU twice, didnt even take 10 minutes. Biggest difficulty was swapping the motherboard, but even that was easy. The ports i need change all the time, and i can just…

A Framework running a sane version of macOS would be peak computing for me.

Not that repairability isn’t great, but in 16 years of Apple devices my only needed repair was their atrocious butterfly-style keyboard, and Apple footed the bill thanks to the Class Action Lawsuit.

We merely have to wait on Apple to continue debasing its OS, and then many other options will look preferable. Or perhaps Linux on Apple Silicon will eventually become stable.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#364

Post by hliyan » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:32 PM UTC

MostlyStable wrote: post #42

>Here’s hoping governments regulate laptop manufacturers to actually make repairable machines in the future. No, this is a bad solution. If you want a repairable machine, buy one. They exist. Others have already mentioned Framework, but there are other options that aren't that far down the spectrum either. One of the things macbook users praise the most is "build quality", which often means the solidity of the device…

I assume you consider this a bad solution because the free market would always converge on the right solution(s), including reparable machines.

However, if all participants (in this case manufacturers) in a market conclude that:

(1) product B has a lower profit margin than product A, and

(2) product B is superior enough to eventually become the dominant variant and

(3) the market size is fairly static and

(4) the first mover on product B is unlikely to maintain a lead for very long,

then all participants would choose to suppess product B, even without having to resort to collusion.

Not only that, if the manufacturers consider regulation to be a market in its own right, i.e. it is available for purchase (which it de facto is in countries where lobbying is legal), then market forces will also drive regulation away from product B.

To me, this explains why some products peak in build quality sometime after innovation plateaus, and the continue to diminish over time (usually measured in decades). Some household appliances have already reached this stage. For Apple products, this phenomenon may still be in the future.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#365

Post by ToucanLoucan » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:32 PM UTC

sandworm101 wrote: post #327

RajT88 wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would actually suggest this is symptomatic of the real problem: money in politics. Elected officials (and some appointed, like SCOTUS) keep changing laws and precedents to allow more and more money in politics. They can't quit all that dark money - without a lot of funding, you don't get elected. Usually the best funded candidate wins. There was an anonymous oped from a congressman some years back which bemoaned th…

Yes yes yes. Dark money. Nepotism. Corrupt courts. Gerrymandering .... anything to deflect from the fact that so many voters still put thier mark beside the biggest idiot. And i mean that literally. American voters like tall people. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heights_of_presidents_and_pres...

They're all problems and they all contribute to the reality of our government being unable to actually do anything beyond tax cuts.

* People elect morons because we have been slowly destroying our education system since the 50's and we can barely turn out anyone who can think worth a shit. That's by design, as local elections overwhelmingly swing Republican, and Republicans on balance gain from an ignorant electorate.

* Additionally, we are now bombarded with "information" from wake to sleep every single day, and beyond the actual problems which are already stressful enough, we also have a whole bunch of made up culture war nonsense that mainstream and alternative media loves to discuss, both to fill airtime and because researching and covering nonsense is far less work, less legally actionable, and garners more attention overall. Information overload affects people too and makes them more likely to choose easy/quick things.

* Dark money is also a HUGE issue because it permits capital to influence elections like never before. It's no coincidence all of this shit got turbocharged after Citizens United.

* Gerrymandering is also a huge, huge issue wherein Democrat votes are simply disregarded or packed into single districts, which helps local elections shift further right constantly.

* The courts are also hideously corrupt. The Supreme Court is utterly failing to reign in the Trump administration on everything short of wiping their asses with the constitution, and that's not shocking considering how many of them were appointed by Trump and confirmed by the inept Congress.

And then any time Democrats do manage to acquire something resembling power, they have so many fires to put out that they can barely get us back to an even keel before another "outsider" dumbass comes in and starts screwing it up again.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#366

Post by commandersaki » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:33 PM UTC

throawayonthe wrote: post #204

deaux wrote: post #174

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if anyone has hacked it (in the "Hacker News" sense of hack) so that the above keyboard can be used in an external casing, without inserting it into the Macbook body. I'd pay a lot of money for that. The Magic Keyboard is different.

i mean it's pretty nice for a laptop keyboard, but i've never thought of it as good enough to use externally tbh or do you mean integrating it into a different laptop a la framework? that could be cool, but would also have to think how much the chassey stiffness/specific construction contributes to the feel p.s. has anybody here tried (the external) magic trackpad? the macbook trackpad is infuriatingly good

I have a magic keyboard for my studio, bloody expensive, but I just love the ergonomics and feel compared to my two TKL (really nice) mechanical keyboards.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#367

Post by raw_anon_1111 » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:35 PM UTC

Gigachad wrote: post #84

MostlyStable wrote: post #42

>Here’s hoping governments regulate laptop manufacturers to actually make repairable machines in the future. No, this is a bad solution. If you want a repairable machine, buy one. They exist. Others have already mentioned Framework, but there are other options that aren't that far down the spectrum either. One of the things macbook users praise the most is "build quality", which often means the solidity of the device…

Decades of HN users finger wagging and suggesting FOSS hardware has progressed society nowhere. 12 months from EU mandatory replaceable batteries and products across the industry are being redesigned with repairability, usb-c, and user friendly designs. It’s time to accept regulation actually does work when you have a competent government.

And making them more repairable as someone else said has tradeoffs. It’s not like Apple is the low cost leader. Choose another vendor

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#368

Post by raw_anon_1111 » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:36 PM UTC

Gigachad wrote: post #134

RajT88 wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed, government regulation is decried mostly because of all the cases where it got polluted by special interests, instead of following the interests of general consumers. This is how you end up turning a chunk of your food supply into fuel to subsidize crops which aren't all that good at being distilled into fuel in the first place...

This is mostly because Americans keep electing total morons.

It’s not like “privacy first EU” didn’t just try to pass Chat Control

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#369

Post by raw_anon_1111 » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:37 PM UTC

alsetmusic wrote: post #157

RajT88 wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would actually suggest this is symptomatic of the real problem: money in politics. Elected officials (and some appointed, like SCOTUS) keep changing laws and precedents to allow more and more money in politics. They can't quit all that dark money - without a lot of funding, you don't get elected. Usually the best funded candidate wins. There was an anonymous oped from a congressman some years back which bemoaned th…

When one party will violate every norm and law to the greatest extent that they can get away with it, it's pretty much impossible to compete with them. I want good things for people. I can't compete with fascists because they will cheat and lie and employ violence. My positive intent is almost impossible to out thwart their dirty deeds if they are willing to break laws / change laws and I won't.

It amazes me that so many people blame the politicians and not the people who elected them.

Re: My MacBook keyboard is broken and it's insanely expensive to fix

#370

Post by hypeatei » Mon, Mar 30, 2026, 3:40 PM UTC

throwaway85825 wrote: post #195

alsetmusic wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When one party will violate every norm and law to the greatest extent that they can get away with it, it's pretty much impossible to compete with them. I want good things for people. I can't compete with fascists because they will cheat and lie and employ violence. My positive intent is almost impossible to out thwart their dirty deeds if they are willing to break laws / change laws and I won't.

There's only one party and it's color is green. Donors know red or blue doesn't matter, so they give to both.

Do you want another authoritarian, corrupt, cult of personality leader like Trump? Proclaiming "both sides" and ignoring nuance like you're doing is how no one gets held accountable for the real harms that are taking place. Please stop holding water for the MAGAs/GOP.