MacBook Keyboard Randomly Turns Itself On and Off

A number of MacBook owners have reported that their laptop’s keyboard seems to have a mind of its own. One minute it’s working fine, the next, none of the keys respond when pushed. If you have dropped your computer or spilled anything onto it recently, you should probably have that checked out. On the other hand, if you have done nothing wrong yet your MacBook’s keyboard is misbehaving, keep reading.

Leopard May Be to Blame

You will find this problem being discussed on many message boards around the Web. One thing most of the people experiencing MacBook keyboard difficulties have in common is that they are using Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. If you bought a new MacBook with Leopard, or upgraded to 10.5, you may be able to fix your keyboard by upgrading to the latest version of Mac OS X.

1. Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
2. Click on the Apple logo, located on the top left corner of your screen, in the menu bar.
3. Click “Software Update…”
4. Your Mac will check for updates. With all the most recent updates checked off, click “Install”.

Now, here’s the tricky part: at this point, your Mac will probably ask you to input the Administrator password in order to proceed with the upgrade. If your keyboard is not working, you may have a little trouble typing your password! Fortunately most of the people experiencing this problem report that the keyboard turns itself on and off at random. Wait for the keyboard to begin functioning again, input your password, and your MacBook will take care of the rest.

What if this doesn’t work?

If upgrading Mac OS X does not fix your keyboard, or you recently damaged your laptop in some way, then you may be experiencing a similar but different problem. If there is a physical disconnection between your keyboard and the rest of the computer, or there is damage present, I suggest you either contact Apple support or head to the Genius Bar at the nearest Apple store. You may need a professional to open up your MacBook and perform more extensive troubleshooting.