Swiss Keyboard

Are you asking them for a replacement? I would. (Although the urge to keep on using it once I had it would be substantial! 😉 )

Cheers

Rod

944/3390

Hi Alexander,

This is a simple mistake, just ask for a replacement.

The most efficient way I know for that, is to call the Warranty support, and have them do that for you.
Case number, talking with him(her) about the one last letter in the Apple product (a "B" instead of a "A", something like that...).
They are very friendly, they work all together in the same room somewhere in Ireland anyway, so if the first doesn't know, just talk to the next guy.

I've done it for a white keyboard replacement, successfully.

"Swiss made":
Everything comes from the same Chinese factories,
That's another reason why replacement is not a problem for Apple.

Unusually tiny keys:
I never saw a MacBook, but what I know (enable Keyboard Viewer in International Preferences, see if it's true for notebooks also),
is that all keyboards have the same total keys number. It's only the printed letters on them that differ.
Although a US keyboard, with your usual semicolon, brackets etc will feel more comfortable than those é, è etc, I'm afraid the size of keys will be exactly the same with the US keyboard.

Enjoy your new-new Mac!
Axl

Given you specifically called them up to ask them for an International English keyboard I would at minimum take it up with the Apple Store.

Yes, it is unfortunate that you cannot simply buy an English version in Switzerland like you canin other European countries.

960/3406

Thanks Alexander for the info.

but the layout is uncomfortably different

I'll second that one… I have to say that the French keyboard has to be the most bizarre, Roman alphabet, based keyboard I've ever seen.

961/3407

Hi Ned,

"I have to say that the French keyboard has to be the most bizarre, Roman alphabet, based keyboard I've ever seen."

(AZERTY) Well I guess it fits to French language? 🙂

But the Swiss French, the one we were discussing here,
(QWERTZ)
is not so bizarre.
(Or was it the Swiss German, which is almost like the German?)

It is more like the Canadian French one: a good compromise between the US layout and the need to use accented letters.

Axl

🙂 QWERTZ is a swiss german/normal german keyboard, I have to use them sometimes @ work when I cant get my hands on a US or UK one.

It's not very different when you are just typing words - the problem comes when you want to do punctuation, or type in a web-address for example. Then it gets confusing unless you are used to it 🙂

The french keyboard is even worse, I can't use them at all unless I switch the input language to US and then you can just touch type; but as mentioned, it fits the french language much better 🙂

funny, i am a swiss expat and have recently had the same issue.

ordered the macbook and was told i could get an english keyboard.

checked my order, and it said local keyboard and english mac osx.

dropped them a line, and they said sorry i cant have english keyboard.

called them and they said the same thing.

still, while i really would prefer the english keyboard with the bigger enter key, i think i can live with the german keyboard and since my girlfriend is swiss she will be happy too.

so i let it pass. apart from the key size, i am assured that i can select "german" for the keyboard and "english" for the operating system so it should work all ok.

hmmmm. for me, i think it will be fun and exotic to have the swiss keyboard. but i can understand the concerns of the original poster and well done for getting the english one.

krlock

.... although i must admit to being scared of that tiny enter key.

oh well.... in my dexterity we trust.

🙂