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I previously used a MacBook Pro 2016, and I had problems with the b where the key produced a bb about one third of the time I hit the key. After getting it repaired, several months later, the same problem started with the N key.

I now own a MacBook Pro 2017, and I have the same problem with the M key, but maybe with an occurrence of only one in forty, which makes it much harder to demonstrate.

It's always the same zone on the keyboard, I was wondering if anyone else was experiencing the same problem and what they did to fix it?

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    I had this once and a NVRAM reset cleared it completely for me: (a restart using <cmnd - option - p - r > wait for 3 sets of startup chimes.)
    – Solar Mike
    Jul 31, 2017 at 6:33
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    When I type using the 'n' key on the macbook pro 2016 15" with touch bar keyboard, it prints twice, sometimes it does not print, even the caps lock key misses the press the first time and needs to be pressed twice. The feeling on the keyboard keys is not uniform. Apple care had no clue about these problems. They asked me to dump the machine with them for at least 2 weeks and then they would do a hit and trial, if nothing works then they would replace the top. So much harassment for a $4500 machine, Apple is no more the same brand you could trust. They do not want to understand customer anymore
    – Varun Agarwal
    Aug 9, 2017 at 20:18
  • @VarunAgarwal Ha! I have the same problem with the letter nn
    – FooBar
    Feb 21, 2018 at 18:35
  • I've got the same with he "b" key, and apple wants $1015 to replace the keyboard...
    – Jthorpe
    Feb 24, 2018 at 22:46
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    For me, what fixed it is removing software by Wacom, for my Wacom tablet. If you have such software on your computer, try to remove it! Solution found here ---> reddit.com/r/MacOS/comments/df4oqq/…
    – Georgios Balasis
    Dec 19, 2019 at 15:04

4 Answers 4

Reset to default
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Finally, if anyone had or has the same issue, Apple is replacing the keyboard free of charge / refunding the past repair : https://www.apple.com/support/keyboard-service-program-for-macbook-and-macbook-pro/

UPDATE. There is a small program, called Unshaky written on Swift. It fixed this issue for me. It lets you configure a timeout for each key to suppress duplicate keypresses. For instance, if the 'e' key is giving you trouble, you can configure the timeout for a longer duration and adjust for the best results. There is also a statistics panel that shows how many times a key was suppressed by the software, as well as a detailed breakdown for each key.

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  • Thank you. It's a bit useless when this happens with about 20 keys on the keyboard.
    – PKHunter
    Mar 12, 2020 at 21:26
  • Thanks, Unshaky seems to be working for me for my letter B problem!
    – DanglingPointer
    May 1, 2020 at 5:38
  • Unshaky is awesome. I had been struggling with this damn problem for a such a long time.
    – John Red
    Jun 4, 2020 at 7:27
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    +1 for Unshaky!
    – Tim Dearborn
    Jun 23, 2020 at 2:08
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I have the same problem. I gradually started noticing double key presses for few keys showing up in the text I typed. The offending keys are: i, t and e.

How to reproduce

  • I went to Keyboard > Key Repeat > Off.
  • When I press down the i and then slide my finger from the left edge to the right edge of the key, it triggers more keypresses.
  • If I key my finger still and press down with more pressure, it sometimes triggers more keypresses.

Pressure seems to be important. If I rub lightly it doesn't happen as much.

I wonder what is causing it. I hope its dust. I will clean my keyboard tonight. But seeing as they all occur in the same row, maybe its something to do with the circuitry - I have to research more about how the keyboard works.

Sprayed my laptop keyboard with a lot of pressurized air. Did not help at all. the T and I keys are still consistently causing issues.

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    I also have this issue, and tried to address it using software: try Unshaky, in case you want to try it.
    – xhg
    Jun 21, 2018 at 12:37
  • Disabling Key Repeat had no effect on this issue for my 2018 MacBook Air. I still get duplicate letters, and strangely I can still press and hold the spacebar for multiple spaces.
    – 2540625
    May 12, 2019 at 21:35
  • Disabling Key Repeat didn't solve it for 2018 MacBook Pro (15") either. It's lettter t for me. Interestingly the repeated t doesn't always appear immediately after the first t.. e.g. it'll result in thte when typing the.
    – jbaums
    Oct 29, 2019 at 23:21
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    (seems to be solved by unshaky with 40ms delay on t)
    – jbaums
    Oct 29, 2019 at 23:32
  • Unshaky is a good application, it resolves issue to a great extent. 60ms worked for me.
    – Omar Tariq
    Dec 29, 2019 at 9:05
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The current range of MacBook Pros seem to be suffering from this problem with the keyboard. To the point where they have released this technical note about how to attempt a fix.

But a recent article has brought this to the forefront of the tech-news, and as a result Apple may be forced to take more action on this obvious design flaw. It has reached the point where there is even a song now.

I also had a problem with the L key on a new laptop at work. Spare a thought for those of us who live in a country that has no Apple stores. From here in Thailand, any repair that requires a return means a three-week (at least) trip to Singapore. It's still under repair, and we are still waiting for it to come back.

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    I also have this issue, and tried to address it using software: try Unshaky, in case you want to try it.
    – xhg
    Jun 21, 2018 at 12:37
  • Thanks you @xhg!! So far, it seems like Unshaky fixes the issue for me.
    – Ryan Alford
    Feb 2, 2019 at 22:53
  • 2018 MacBook Air is also affected.
    – 2540625
    May 12, 2019 at 21:36
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A seemingly workable way is to Enable Slow keys under the Accessibility setting of Keyboard. For me, a slight adjusting above Short can mostly resolve the problem.

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  • Thanks for this, this worked for me 👌
    – Matthew Carpenter
    Mar 1, 2021 at 11:51

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