Apple is known for being obsessed with making its products thinner. However, this year was different with the iPhone; the company actually increased the thickness of its new iPhones from the older models, so as to improve the battery life.
One of the most important products of Apple’s that has suffered badly from the company’s “thin” attitude is the MacBook line. Due to the company’s plan to make its laptops thin, the butterfly keyboard was introduced. However, the keyboard design is plagued with major issues.
For sometime now, the rumours and reports by noted Apple analysts pointed to a near future where Apple will go back to using normal (scissor mechanism) keyboard design to improve the reliability of its keyboards. However, AppleInsider reports that a new patent filing by Apple shows a new keyboard design which will feature a membrane directly pasted on the printed circuit board (PCB).
The keyboards could suffer badly
Generally, the membrane is used to close the connection and by removing the connection, Apple could very well reduce the amount of space required. It all sounds good; it was the same case with the “butterfly” keyboard design. However, if the past is any sign, making products thin will lead to serious problems.
Take for example, the iPhone – the reduced thickness of the iPhone was one of the reasons, the battery life was subpar compared to major Android phones (the other reason being 3D Touch). Also, the current generation MacBook laptops suffer badly because of Apple’s design choices.
If Apple is seriously considering the new “thin” keyboard design, we strongly suggest the company to reconsider its thoughts. We also request Apple to focus more on reliability on the keyboard (and the laptop as a whole) rather than making it thin. The MacBook Air can definitely be thin but don’t make the MacBook Pro thin, it’s supposed to be a “Pro” machine, not a throttle-machine.
