ibook smell

Cleaning update: Three weeks later -- the Endust smell is gone and the bad keyboard smell persists. So much for all of that work. It did alleviate it somewhat for a while, but certainly didn't seem worth the effort it took. I had hoped for a permanent fix.

I'm from Ontario, so needless to say, it's pretty %$#& cold here right now (although it does get humid in the summer). And I have to agree with the previous post -- the smell isn't a "moldy" one.

What I am interested is knowing if this happened over a large amount of time, or when the iBook was first bought. Like in percentage?

How long did it take to happen? (if it happened)

I'm pretty sure it's not a harmful chemical element. The only element that could cause harm in the iBook is mercury, which is located in the Apple Lamp at the back.

I bought mine August, 2001. Everything fine till about 8 months ago, around the beginning of summer. Terrible body odor type smell coming from keyboard that seems to increase with the machine temperature. It can be smelled when walking by the iBook when it's on. I think it's safe to say it's not mildew or moisture as it's pretty warm and dry here (Los Angeles). Plus the heat from the machine is sure to evaporate any moisture there might be.
I have tried everything short of a new keyboard. Mild soap on damp cloth, alcohol swabs, Endust, etc. Nothing works. The smell might get covered by one of those for a few days but it seems to return within a few days. It's kinda frustrating. I think it is the plastic the keyboard is made of reacting to heat. Maybe the newer iBooks (newer than mine) don't do it because they seemed to have changed the plastic and/or the paint. Anyone noticed that?
The Apple Store is of no help other than to keep it cool and clean. Thanks. Oh well. At least it runs fine.

Sniffed my iBook at home, and the only thing i smelled was plastic. Nothing strange here..

I bought mine in October of 2001, but it didn't start smelling until about September of 2002 -- a similar period of time it seems from when you bought yours.

I'm curious to see if all those folks who report no smell have newer models.

Also, if this persists, I'm tempted to get a new keyboard -- but what is to say that that new keyboard won't have the same problem, and then I'm out $150 and right back where I started?

Has anyone called Apple Care about this? If the store isn't responding, how about customer service?

My iBook started to smell at around the 12 month mark.

Eric Steelberg said:

I bought mine August, 2001. Everything fine till about 8 months ago, around the beginning of summer.... I think it is the plastic the keyboard is made of reacting to heat. Maybe the newer iBooks (newer than mine) don't do it because they seemed to have changed the plastic and/or the paint.

LauraF said:

I bought mine in October of 2001, but it didn't start smelling until about September of 2002 -- a similar period of time it seems from when you bought yours.

I'm curious to see if all those folks who report no smell have newer models.

That's probably not it, or at least not the only factor, because I bought mine in July of 2001, and mine doesn't have the smell at all.

The smell free people all seem to have newer models...ones with the newer plastic. If you compare them, older ones, like mine, are enclosed in clear plastic (or acrylic...whatever) with white painted on the inside to give it the white appearance. The inside plastic is also a more silver color than white. Newer iBooks seem to be enclosed in actual white-colored plastic with the inside also being more white. I've also noticed the "iBook" font and size is different on the bottom of the screen. So all of this leads me to believe that Apple either changed vendors for iBook assembly or their factory started using a different king of plastic. July 2001 is the same "body" as the one I have and the one LauraF has.
Of course I could be thinking too much. But I am right about the change. The newer ones look cheaper...but at least they don't have B.O.

The smell free people all seem to have newer models...ones with the newer plastic.

No, I'm trying to point out that isn't necessarily true: I'm smell free 😉 and have a model that shipping in July, 2001.

If you compare them, older ones, like mine, are enclosed in clear plastic (or acrylic...whatever) with white painted on the inside to give it the white appearance. The inside plastic is also a more silver color than white.

That's mine. 🙂

Just trying to give you a data point, to help narrow down the cause. Mine is the same age as yours, with the same kind of plastic (in terms of appearance, at least) inside and out, but has no bad smell at all. (As I've described it before, my keyboard has a smell of fresh, clean plastic.)

My iBook is basically all white, but the palm rests are darker. I bought mine in the first few weeks of January (yes, still new!). So that probably means I have the new model, and I just hope mine doesn't start smelling, or I'll be forced to go back to a PC labtop...not running windows though!

Hmm. Ok, well so much for that theory. So bizarre. Does it got hot where you are? I'm thinking maybe mine began to smell because it overheated in the house on some of the hot LA summer days.

Hmm. Ok, well so much for that theory.

It could be a combination of things, though, like vintage + [some other factor] = smell.

Does it got hot where you are?

I'm in Colorado, on the Front Range. We've had record heat for the area the last couple of summers, in the 90s for stretches of time. It's quite dry, though, although that's clearly not the only factor, either.

This really is a strange thing.

My stinky keyboard is getting worse.

I just called AppleCare Canada, and then Apple Canada Customer Relations. Because my iBook is out of warranty, it's of course my problem, not theirs.

But I WAS able to have the problem formally recorded and assigned a case number. If enough people do this, Apple MIGHT decide to do something about it. Those of us who had reported the problem would probably not be personally notified of this, but Apple's response would be posted in a kKnowledge Base article, and conceivably on the 'hot news' section of the web site.

I'm not naive enough to expect that Apple will actually admit fault and replace our keyboards (perhaps if many many many people complain). I can't wait that long - the smell is too unpleasant, so I'm probably just going to replace the keyboard. (If the replacement starts to smell I'll really raise a stink.)

If you're reading this thread and your iBook is still under warranty, if the keyboard has even the faintest BO-type smell I'd report it to Apple right away so you can get a replacement before it's too late.

Rosie

How much does a new keyboard cost in Canadian $$$? I'm thinking of replacing my stinky keyboard too.