Q: Magic Trackpad Erratic Movement

Neil..

Hmm..the Time Capsule is in other room. (About 25 feet apart).  MacBook Pro is on a shelf right of where Keyboard/MTP is, almost same level. 

Most of the time, have no problem.. almost like it has a mind of its own.  Maybe I should try moving MBP lower or something if MTP continues to have drinking problem...

Billy

It may be just that, a slight re-positioning. Weird. I'm no techy by any stretch of the imagination, but I just wonder if the bluetooth widget and the wifi antenna need to "point" to their targets in a non-crossing/conflicting way, at close proximity. My Time Capsule is on my desk, two feet from the iMac, so it's not a distance issue, more a directional one. Failing that, a stiff vodka may do the trick!

Check to see if your trackpad is not bent. It's possible that leaning on it too hard (or pounding it in anger!), or having something fall on it causes it to get a little concave. Since MTP works by comparing pressures between two layers, it's possible that warping of the surface distorts the relationship between the two layers. This (and a couple of anger management sessions) seemed to fix it for me.

Neil:

For some time, I knew that mouse's drunk behavior had to do with TM because when TM's running, I imagine it's running at maximum data transfer speed between TM & MBP since it's "peer to peer" without involving Internet's backbone.

Couple weeks ago, I decided to enable 5GHz-only on TM which creates a secondary 5GHz-only WiFI (i.e. <networkname> is regular WiFI and "<networkname> 5GHz" is 5GHz WiFi.. then had my MBP connect to the 5GHz and deleted the primary WiFi from MBP's memorized list.

Ever since then, my mouse's totally on his best behavior as if he went to Betty Ford Center.

It's funny cos I sorta miss the mouse's drunken behavior after dealing with it for long time.

I could have made it 5GHz-only WiFi network entirely but I still have couple devices that isn't 5GHz-complaint including iPhone 4S. iPad 2 & the new iPad is 5GHz-ready, just FYI.

Billy

OK, here's an off-the-wall addition to this discussion. I too had the jumpy pointer issue (with the odd half-inch up the screen move as a bonus). I read some of the issues here, but none of them seemed to apply, so I went back to "What was the last change I made to my system" - As it happens the answer was I re-installed an old M-Audio Trigger Finger USB audio drum surface.

I couldn't imagine how this could be involved but just for a test I unplugged it and suddenly the pointer is solid as a rock once again. The Trigger was very close to the MTP, so fields of shielding may have been issues. I'll experiment and see if it works further away.

Moral of the story - "What have you done since it last worked correctly?" try stepping backwards, just for a test. The difference is dramatic when it works.

Hi guys,

I had the same "erratic movement" issue with my Magic Trackpad since I got a new wi-fi router which was one from Asus with 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. First I thought it was wi-fi interference from the router, but even when nothing was transmitting and when the 2.4 GHz mode was deactiveated, the problem persisted. I gave back the router and got an Airport Extreme Base Station, but that did not help at all. As soon as the base station is plugged in (even when it is 3 rooms further away from the trackpad), the movement of the trackpad becomes erratic.

Then, by coincidence, I moved my trackpad away from the keyboard (I have the Apple Aluminum Keyboard, the big one with a USB cord, not the cordless one) just a little and instantaneously the trackpad worked as it should. I tried if I could reproduce the problem and I could. Every time when the edge of the keyboard touches the edge of the trackpad it becomes erratic.

I suspect the following: within current routers there must be some component that somehow resonates on 2.4 GHz regardless of anything being transmitted or not. That resonance is then propagated through the power line all the way to the usb ports and the Apple Aluminum Keyboard which then works as an antenna of some kind and interferes with the trackpad's bluetooth as soon as they touch or are very close to each other.

Please report if this has worked for you. I would be very interested. Do any of you have that problem with other keyboards as well? (e.g. the blueetooh model?) In that case my hypothesis must be wrong at least in parts.

Best regards

Hi guys,

I think you're right. Whenever my trackpad becomes erratic it always happens during backup.

After reading youre raction I tried to move the trackpad a few inches to the left, right or down and the problem is solved. The interference has been lifted so to say. This is temporarilly because a couple of minutes later the erratic movement starts again. When I repeat the "trick" the curor movement is going back to normal.

To test the theory I also just moved the keybord away from the trackpad and this also smoothes up the cursor movement.

In my case it doesn't really matter if the two touch eachother.

Anyhow, I now know what to do when it happens.

Bruno

(I have a macbook pro on the right side of the wired keybord and the trackpad on the left side and a third party screen in the middle.)

Both my MTP and Apple Keyboard are Bluetooth.

Sure wish Apple would fix this issue!

Have a great 2013!

Thanks Billy - that sorted my problem instantly.

So after having my Magic Trackpad for about 8 months w/o any issues, I started having issue with erratic behavior, or just not working at all. The only thing I did recently - several days before the issue appeared - was change the batteries. I tried everything, i.e. new batteries, tried cleaning any contact including the threads were you install the batteries, PRAM, SMC, etc. I didn't have any issues with my other BT devices on my Mac so I tried a different Mac and the same problems persisted, so I was left with the conclusion that it was the Trackpad that had the problem. I really love using the trackpad and twice I went online with the intent of replacing it, but at $70 I found myself unable to complete the purchase simply because I feared that in another 8 months the new one would die on me.

I was able to get the trackpad working again if I warmed up the trackpad surface either by holding against my body or warming it under a light. It would work for a few minutes and then the problems would start up again.

For some reason, when I should have given up on it, I decided to try a few different searches for a solution and I came across a site that listed several things, most of which I tried or didn't apply to my situation except for one: Clean the surface of the trackpad with Windex. Now I did aggressively try to clean the surface with my cleaning cloth I use for my iPad, infact that's were I got the warming of the surface idea, I also tried a mild cleaner I use on screens (omniclean), so the Windex was a long shot, but the website mentioned a buildup of residue. Well, it worked, my trackpad is still working and is continuing to work. Just make sure the Windex is completely dry, apparently any dampness will continue to futz it up. My guess is folks that tend to have oily skin will likely need to clean their trackpad more frequently.

It appears I spoke too soon. I'm heating the surface of it with a hair dryer whenever it cuts out, comes back everytime. Ridiculous? You bet.

Same problem :

When I plug my USB 3,5' hard drive, my magic track becomes eratic. But not only the magic trackpad is concern the trackpad of my macbook air has the same issue.

The only workaround is to touch a metal part (the right side of the magic trackpad with my finger) to stop the erratic cursor.

I thought it was the hardrive enclosure, I bought a new one, same problem.

No problem when I plug my 2,5' hardrive or dvd recorder only with electric powered usb device.

So I have to figure out if the problem comes from the hard drive itself or from the macbook air...

Anyone with the same USB problem here ?

I had the same problem, I had it for more than a year working perfectly and then all of a sudden it starts going crazy erratic, clicking and hightlighting own its own. I tried just about everything everyone recommended on here, but the problem would come back again. I thought that the problem was the Bluetooth range or interference but my trackpad is right next to my Macbook Pro after a while i kinda got tired of it. So i took it appart.

I think i figuered out what the problem was, it worked for me. i havent had a problem with it for months. so i basically pulled the bottom piece where it clicks up so that it won't keep touching the bottom.

http://d3nevzfk7ii3be.cloudfront.net/igi/veMQepRFOnIWLSUs.large

(6 screws on the left and on the right )

  i guess over time my heavy hand kept forcing it closer together to the point where it was completly touching.

I don't know but it worked for me. 

I started having this problem a few days ago after I installed a USB 3.0 hub right next to my MBP.  Moving the hub to the other side of my monitor, opposite of the MBP, fixed the issue for me and my MTP is working fine once again.

My problem is related but slightly different, appears on and off, and is only solved using "Restart", which is annoying when I have to interrupt the copying of large files for instance. I use a wireless trackpad with a MacBook Pro hooked to a large Apple screen. I can work for hours and days without any problem, and suddenly the pointer moves in all directions and much farther than desired. It does not move on its own though. Only when I touch the trackpad. The only solution I found is to restart the computer. Sometimes the problem comes back in a couple of minutes (like now), sometimes after days or weeks. Any solution to this? (NOTE: I have no problems whatsoever with my MacBook Pro's and MacBook Air's integrated trackpads.) Thank you.