Intermittent severe Magic Keyboard lag

My new MacBook Pro 16" really annoys me. I use it with a Magic Keyboard, and intermittently, there's an awful input lag. Every few minutes, the computer seems to stop listening to the keyboard; I stop typing, and then the letters turn up very slowly until almost all of them are in place (not all, there's always a few missing). This totally ruins my workflow, of course.

I have tried two different keyboards, same problem. No problem with these keyboards on my previous MacBook Pro.

Does anyone know what this is?

(I tried to select "Topic: Peripherals" for this post, but sadly, the Magic Keyboard is not listed under peripherals. "Only Magic Mouse and Trackpad". Hence "Topic: Bluetooth".)

MacBook Pro 16", macOS 10.15

Posted on Mar 24, 2020 7:59 AM

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750 H2C Author

Level 1

72 points

Posted on Apr 2, 2020 2:02 AM

I have gone through my peripherals, an it seems the culprit might be my Logitech Master MX 2 mouse, wireless via a small USB dongle. When I use an old cable mouse instead, I don't experience any lag at all.

I have used the Logitch mouse via a USB-C-to-"old USB" adapter. Hard to say whether the adapter, the mouse itself or the dongle is to blame. Regardless, things work fine after "de-Logitechisation".

Has anyone else experienced anything similar?

Note: still only, or at least mostly, in Apple's native apps like Mail, Notes and similar. Veeeery strange.

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51 replies

Sep 17, 2020 10:29 AM in response to 750 H2C

I have the same issue with my mid 2017 15" MacBook Pro with Touch Bar. It tends to be intermittent and the only solution I've found is not really a solution, but a workaround. Simply plugging in the keyboard eliminates the lag. I began this sentence with the keyboard plugged in and unplugged it before the second sentence. There is no noticeable lag now. But it's only temporary. While I love many of the features of macOS Catalina, it's definitely been the absolute worst version in terms of reliability. It can be especially frustrating when I'm teaching a technophobe or former Windows user how to use their new Mac.

May 20, 2020 2:44 PM in response to 750 H2C

That's exactly what's happening with my Magic Keyboard. I thought for a bit my brand new MacBook pro is so slow and have one of the new 16" MBP as well :/

ShyGuy69

Level 1

4 points

May 21, 2020 2:20 PM in response to mestor

I'll try this and let you know how it goes, thanks for the suggestion!

mestor

Level 1

13 points

May 22, 2020 10:24 AM in response to chaddio72

You need to get all devices connected via Bluetooth before you try.

Remove all wires, get all bluetooth devices connected and then try again the instructions.

sbjorn

Level 1

4 points

May 23, 2020 4:48 AM in response to jseemann

This worked for me too. Had started up in safe mode and a number of other things. Nothing worked.

Just turning off and on the keyboard did.

May 23, 2020 8:38 AM in response to jseemann

So strange but true! Worked a charm for me.

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Intermittent severe Magic Keyboard lag