An Apple analyst has suggested that Apple’s new MacBook with a scissor-switch keyboard may be released in mid-2020.
According to a new prediction from respected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of TF Securities (via MacRumors), Apple may at last be reverting to the scissor-switch design for the 2020 MacBook Pro.
This doesn’t mean that Apple is simply bringing back the beloved keyboard it used in older MacBooks. Instead, Kuo claims the new keyboards will have a fresh design that includes glass fiber for reinforcing the keys. Interestingly, Kuo suggests that such a scissor-switch design should cost Apple less to make, although we’ll have to wait to see if that translates into savings at the consumer level.
As the report notes, it’s unclear whether this has any bearing or reference to the highly touted rumors of a 16-inch MacBook Pro, which had previously been pegged for release in fall 2019. According to a previous report, Kuo had predicted that Apple would launch a 16-inch MacBook Pro in fall 2019 with a scissor keyboard mechanism, eschewing the love-or-hate- butterfly mechanism of current MacBook offerings.
Apple’s butterfly keyboard was introduced with the 2015 MacBook, to help with making the machines thinner. It was not well received, even though it received a number of updates over the years. Issues with keys getting stuck or accidental double presses were so common that Apple had to launch a 4-year free keyboard replacement program, even for brand-new MacBook and MacBook Pro models.
Kuo claims Apple could unveil the new laptop at the WWDC developer conference, but at the same time, there’s also a chance that the company sticks with just a simple press release to introduce this model.
