Hands go numb, tingle from trackpad

My fiance and I have made a grave discovery. When I am touching my trackpad and she touches my face she gets the same mild electric resistance that has been discussed on this forum. Then, when she was touching her trackpad, I found the same resistance while touching her cheek. We wonder how many tumors we will have in ten years.

what country do you live in? What kind of current and/or converter are you using for your Macbook? 😊

After posting on this thread a while back, the situation with my laptop become worse and worse to the point that my finger would swell up around the area that touched the trackpad.

My battery "check indicator was on" you know that notification at the top of screen that says "your battery may not function as intended but you can continue to use your computer normally, and to take it into apple whenever you feel like it."

So i didn't take it in, and eventually my battery expanded and expanded, to the point the track pad wouldn't even press down, all the while I went without noticing, and continued to use normally. I had gotten so used to being zapped while touching it during my 12+ hours of routine daily use, that I couldn't even tell anything was wrong.

Eventually I started to question why my middle finger on my right hand, was so swollen up.

Then the next day while I was on the computer I was using the track pad and I looked down and noticed, that my middle finger was the only finger I ever used to touch the trackpad. It was swollen and bleeding, and I had to constantly bandaid and tried various mediciations thinking it was caused by a food allergy when finally i made the discovery. I called apple care, and told them all of this information, At first I didn't even think it was my track pad, I thought it was perhaps my battery because it was expanded so big, but they kept reasuring me that I could purchase a new battery and nothing was wrong. When I first called apple care they didn't seem to care and kept saying I could purcahse a new battery. I called again the next day and insisited that I showed them pictures of my finger. They replaced my macbook pro, "motherboard, trackpad, battery, case top and bottom" and I'm pretty sure there is some deeper issue going on here they don't want anyone to know about. They never did tell me what was wrong with my computer, but were happy to replace it for me, my finger hasn't swollen up since. I use my trackpad just as much, but I'm worried it can happen again, perhaps in a couple years when the trackpad wears down.

Take it into Apple. I'm sure they will take care of you.

@Thailand Amulets
Im really lookin forward to read about your tests and what your docors and maybe court says.

Sadly i dont have the money needed to go to a specialist doctor or even to try and sue apple..

If you have any news about this. just post here. i folow whis forum.

@ElRojito

i dont think apple is gonna respond to a usercase, when their product stands out in a negative way they will stay silent.

- what country do you live in?

Switzerland..

- What kind of current and/or converter are you using for your Macbook:

original 85watt one.. it came with the laptop...

The relatively simple solution for me was to buy stickered covers for both the macbook and normal trackpads. Do it sooner than later. At this point I'm still not sure if it's battery or the glass itself. The trackpad are made of glass, and since glass doesn't normally conduct electricity, my alternative suspicion is that over time the glass isn't resistant enough to scratches which over time causes microabrastions to the finger. Thus I welcome Apple's recent trend toward sapphire with interest. I suspect they are aware of this long standing problem and are taking steps and investments to address that first with iPhones, which I also bought plastic sheet cover stickers for

Anyway now my tingling sensation is subsiding; I put up with it for 8 months so your results may vary based on your usage intensity

I have the same "problem" the tingling sensation. However, it goes away if I unplug it. But it doesn't happen everywhere, it depends upon where (office 1, office 2, home) I plug it in, and office 2 is the worst. It must be electrical.

Has anyone else had their fiingers swelling up and getting tiny rashes and or cuts on the insides of first and second bends on their right hand middle finger. I also noticed a very tingleing sensation when resting my hand on the laptop, almost an electrical feeling when touching the computer with the plams of my hands only when the laptop is plugged in these sensations occur while touching both the left and right sides near the lower part of the speakers. Sometimes it occurs the most when I can feel the harddrive spinning inside my computer while playing a game or a high performace software. I have the newest style of electical cord. But it feels like a very small electical shock is occuring. As far as the rashes, on my finger, I first suspected electical shock that was causing irritation to my middle finger while using the track pad, but like you say it is made of glass, which does not conduct electricity. The glass having small scratches in it that could cause my finger tips to become numb or sore also happens and that would explain the finger tips but the rashes further up on my middle finger make me suspect that a small amount of radiation is occuring or other allergic or senestivity while toching the trackpad. It only occurs on my middle finger. Orignally When I showed the pictures of my swollen finger to apple, and sent pictures of my very swollen battery that was expanding the case making it impossible to click with the track pad, they replaced my my mother board track pad, and case, they did not tell me what the problem was that caused my hand to become hurt, but orignally ensured me that the battery was not leaking and that it was not caused by the battery. My apple support advisor sent the pictures to the enginnering team and she replied saying that they would cover the repair of my computer. The whole phone call started when I assumed it was the battery leaking that caused my injury, and they were insisting that the battery could not leak, and they were going to just charge me for a new battery, I kept insiting that the injury was caused by the computer and eventually they agreed, and I didn't have to pay for the battery or for the replacement of the other parts, that I suspect were the real problem. I don't know what makes up the trackpad, is it Mercury, or what causes the trackpad to register a click, I assume that part is the problem. Either way, with the laptop I have now that was repaired, I can still feel the same electrical shock.. My finger hasn't swollen since, but I assume If i use it regularly there is a chance of it happening again. Apple is aware of whatever orignally caused the injury to my finger, but they wouldn't tell me what "the problem was" however I was happy to have my computer replaced so I didn't take it any further..

Just a warning to watch out for rashes or swelling on your middle finger that you use the track pad with, I know there is something wrong with these models that cause it, and if i continued to use it who knows how bad my finger would have gotten, I used it for quite a while and noticed one day my finger became very very sore and I was using my computer and relaised hey the soreness is just on one finger, and I was having a hard time evening using the trackpad, I finally called apple realizing this and it suddently all made sense.

Kodi Lane wrote:

1. Sometimes it occurs the most when I can feel the harddrive spinning inside my computer

2. I know there is something wrong with these models that cause it

3. make me suspect that a small amount of radiation is occuring

4. they did not tell me what the problem was that caused my hand to become hurt.....swollen battery under trackpad

5.and they were insisting that the battery could not leak

1. Your macbook Air doesnt contain a hard drive, rather a SSD with no moving parts inside your Air except for the fan.

2. Not true at all.

You may have the extremely rare condition of being allergic to aluminum alloys

3. Absolutely not possible.

If you are getting a shock of any variety, I assume you are outside the USA? Use the supplied charger extension cord to ground your power better.

4. if you continued to use your macbook Air while the battery was swollen that was a big mistake.

offgassing of a ruptured cell or lithium compounds could have caused a skin reaction.

5. lithium poly batteries dont leak, but they can offgas a lithium compound that your skin could be reactive to, Lithium salts and compounds are often cause of allergic reactions.

macbook pro... 17" inch.. I live in california you're dumb, my computer was already replaced...

for unknown reasons that apple wouldn't spill the beans on, I continued to use while the battery was swollen because the indicator light said battery needs checked by apple retailer at your earliest conviniance.. but "you can continue to use your computer normally"

i forget the default message

This is the MacBook Air forum, however the current Pros are identical to the Air, no hard drives and likewise lithium polymer battery cells.

There is no sensor inside any notebook or macbook or any laptop by any mfg. to detect a swollen battery,... As such nobody should use any notebook upon any given indication of a swollen battery.

Peace

look at one of the oringal posts I made in the forum..

It's funny, these complaints are specifically about the trackpad, yet I haven't found anyone complaining about the Apple external trackpad that uses the same components ;).

Read my entry earlier in this thread on this page. My tingling started with the external trackpad. After 6 months of use, I thought I was going mad. But I wasn't. I later bought a Macbook and found the tingling sensation would occur with both trackpads. As mentioned earlier, my simple solution was to buy a sticker to cover both trackpad surfaces. Took a while digging on Amazon to find the right ones. Now my tingling after 2 months of cover is subsiding to point of mild rough numbness with the sharp pain gone. That I procrastinated for 2 months and spent 8 whole months putting up with the pain until I absolutely couldn't even browse the web. Paging back in Safari using trackpad gesture made me pull out the mouse for a while.

Like I alluded to earlier, my suspicion is the trackpads' glass surface getting scratched with repeated use rubbing against it causing micro abrasions. I do press down on the trackpad fairly persistently just like I type fairly hard preferring tactile keyboards and all. I also found the tingling occurring albeit not as painfully when using the iPhone for extended periods of time (also bought a cover for that). That's what gave me the idea that it was the glass in both phone and trackpads that was getting scratched; after noticing smears and micro scratches on my iPhone, it occurred to me the same scratches was happening with the trackpad though with the aluminum finish it would not be as apparent as the phone.

In any event, get the stickered covers for your trackpads and phone touch screens. See if that also solves it for you.

ElRojito wrote:

anyone complaining about the Apple external trackpad that uses the same components

A: almost nobody is using an external trackpad with a macbook

B: the angles and ergonomics on the external trackpad are totally different.