Disable Magic Keyboard Trackpad for iPad Pro 12.9 and maybe others!

After another evening of losing work due to a light tap on the trackpad while typing, and getting extremely frustrated, I finally got the nerve to slide a knife blade under the edge of the trackpad, and lift up. There is a strip of adhesive that runs around the edges on the underside of the trackpad, which attaches to the frame below. This frame (stainless steel section in the pic below), which supports the trackpad has a spring mechanism gives the trackpad its ability to be depressed and to click the button that’s on the back of the trackpad, right in the middle. The trackpad is attached electronically to the keyboard only by a ribbon cable on the right side, and the end of the cable fits into a click lock connector on the underside of the trackpad at that right side, directly in the middle and about 1/2” in from the right edge (see pic below).

So at first I tried sliding the knife in from the right side (I’m right-handed, so…), and then worked my way around the bottom edge (closest to the front of the keyboard edge), and then pried up. I didn’t know that I could just detach it from the adhesive, so initially, I was unfortunately pulling up the entire spring system as well. Once I saw an opening where the adhesive began to let loose, I slid the knife in there at the front edge, and was able to completely separate the trackpad from the adhesive. Initially, I didn’t know the ribbon cable attached at the right, but as I lifted the trackpad, the ribbon cable dislodged itself from the connector, I heard a tone from the tablet (yes, I did this while it was attached to the tablet and powered on, so I could know whether what I was doing would resolve the issue or not), and from that point on, the trackpad was completely disconnected and no longer responded to touch or clicking.

I flipped the tiny door on the connector shut, and made sure the cable was tucked out of the way, laid the trackpad back down, pressed it into place, and EUREKA! No more trackpad, and yet the entire keyboard still works completely as it should. I did bend the spring mechanism ever so slightly up at the front edge, and so now, the trackpad is slightly above the keyboard surface at the front (maybe 1/32” or even less), and slightly below at the back (by about the same amount);But it’s completely not an issue in the least, and if you didn’t know it, you would probably not notice it.

Now knowing how the trackpad connects, I would recommend anyone trying this should start on the left edge of the trackpad, by inserting a thin bladed knife just under the edge, while pressing down on the right side of the trackpad. This will make it easier to get the blade under the trackpad. Fortunately the entire trackpad with all its electronics and the click button are all on the plate that you touch, and the only function the silver tray underneath serves is to give it spring and for a spot in the center that “clicks” the button on the underside of the trackpad. I am somewhat optimistic that if I needed or wanted to reattach the trackpad, I could do so, and it would then function as normal again, but for now, and likely for as long as I will be using it, I no longer have a need for it, and it will no longer cause me to lose work.

Good luck to anyone else who wants to give this a try. It is not going to ruin the keyboard electronics to remove the trackpad, and as long as you’re able to get it freed from the adhesive without breaking it, you should also be able to return it to normal operation without too much difficulty.