Apple Agrees $50M Settlement Over Defective Butterfly Keyboards

Apple has agreed to pay a $50 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit over its butterfly keyboards which have plagued users with typing failures. The butterfly keyboards are thin models that are installed on some MacBook laptops and designed to boost precision typing. But according to a report in the New York Times, many customers who used the keyboard complained that the characters were repeated when pressed or did not show up on their screens at all. Some said the keys felt sticky and did not respond consistently.

Defective Butterfly Keyboards

Customer frustrations spurred a class-action lawsuit in 2018, which led to the settlement in the San Jose Division of the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of California. Apple did not admit fault for these products as part of the agreement. But with this settlement, the company could soon make amends to MacBook users who got repairs on a laptop with a defective butterfly keyboard from 2015 to 2019. In the class-action lawsuit, customers said the company knew about the defect on these MacBooks. Apple offered free repairs to customers with the defective keyboard back in 2018 and then gradually phased them out. The company has proposed to pay amounts ranging from $50 to $395 to affected customers. The lawsuit represents those who bought about 15 million computers. Anyone in the United States who received repairs for keyboard issues for MacBooks bought between 2015 to 2017, MacBook Pros from 2016 to 2019, and MacBook Airs from 2018 to 2019 can claim a share of this settlement.

Faulty Products and Class Action Lawsuits

When a company produces a faulty or defective product, consumers who purchased those products may be able to file a class action lawsuit against the manufacturer. These types of lawsuits seek compensation for the cost of the product itself and also any damage it may have caused to the consumer such as property damage or injuries. In class-action lawsuits, instead of filing individual lawsuits against a large corporation, consumers band together as a class and bring a civil action against the corporation to hold them accountable for defective products. Often, in such cases, consumers believe they have been cheated, misled, or purchased something that did not conform to representations made by the company. If you have purchased such a product and would like to explore your legal options, please contact an experienced California class action lawyer who can provide you with more information.   Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/20/technology/apple-macbook-butterfly-key-settlement.html