external mac keyboard not working with maverick on macbook air

I have the same problem on my MacBook Pro. I wonder if it's possible for me to get my money back and go and buy a Dell instead? I never had any problems with the 6 Dell machines I owned. Switching to Mac has been a terrible experience both in terms of hardware and software.

Same problem: keyboard plugged in, won't work 90% of the time, then suddenly, it decides to start working until it doesn't again. Will Apple ever respond or send out an update to solve? I regret upgrading to 10.10 Yosemite. Should've never done it.

Hello !

Here is my discussion on a french forum : http://www.commentcamarche.net/forum/affich-31465013-clavier-mac-usb-filaire-ave c-pave-bug-entre-lui-et-mon-book-air#p31484439

I used a hub to connect my external Apple keyboard on my Book Air under Yosemite ! But it took me a long time to solve that problem which prevents from working !

Could someone signal that bug to Apple ? So that they correct and update ?

Thanks !

Yes. We are quite a few. A hub, as I said, does help identically.
Again, it would be good to signal that software problem for correction by the Apple support. Being French, I do not know how to proceed.

Regards.

Add me to the list. MB Air, late 2013, external display, Yosemite/10.10.2. This started happening whenever I would unplug my Air from the display; when I reconnected, external keyboard (plugged into display) wouldn't work. But switching USB ports after waiting 10 seconds, restarting, etc. would work. TOday nothing worked until I discovered this thread and tried the USB extension (non-apple). Plugging it into display STILL didn't work, but plugging directly into Air IS working (with USB extension only).

Seriously, seriously frustrating. External keyboard is less than a year old. THis has been going on for over a year and Apple still isn't addressing it, TTBOMK. What the...?

Add me to the list too.

I have tried all sorts of combinations without any success. And sometimes the keyboard just seems to work again.

It does not appear to be a problem with the USB port - the Apple mouse running from the keyboard will work direct from the MacBook Air and so will a cheap Microsoft wired keyboard.

The A 1243 keyboard is great when it is working but it is immensely frustrating that it suddenly stops for no obvious reason. It is working at the moment thanks to a (non Apple) extension cable.

When you pay this much for a keyboard it really should work with NO issues. Apple please get it sorted. The MacBook Air is a great piece of kit but the experience isn being spoiled by a problem interface to your own hardware.

Same problem here,

In my case only the left USB is not working when I plug the Apple keyboard, I think is a power issue. Really mad at Apple, they do have a forum on their webpage but nobody from their team answer our questions / doubts. Is this the first class user support Apple claims to have?

Absurd.

Same over here: Desktop Mac with Yosemite 10.10.2 and an original Apple A1243 keyboard.

After each startup or restart, my Mac does not recognize the wired keyboard.

Workarounds, which do not always work :-(

- Swap the USB connector with another port. Wait for a few seconds. Sometimes it will recognize the keyboard suddenly.

- The keyboard has a USB connector. Connect your Phone/iPad to the USB on the keyboard. Sometimes it will recognize the phone (and thereby the keyboard)

I don't see Apple working on this. However this is a very frustrating situation. I takes 5 to 10 minutes to get it working after each startup. I have bought original Apple equipment to avoid this kind of problems. Next time go for a cheap keyboard from China?

Hi guys. This issue is really getting on my nerves now. I plugged my old black KB that came with my silver into the iMac to see if the iMac would react and it did. I then plugged the black KB into back into my old Silver and now the KB does not work....jajajaja this is a joke. It does not work with or without the extension. This KB has always worked on the Silver. This makes me think that something happened to the black KB when plugged in the iMac. The KB that came with my iMac (the new silver & white) is not working and I´m writing from a white KB that with the extension plugged into a cinema monitor rather than the iMac, works just fine. Any thoughts?

Wow. never thought would have been a fix but has indeed solved the issue on my Mac Pro. Had been searching for the last 4-5 weeks for a solution so now having to spend 5 minutes of unplugging and plugging in each time I start up will be a great help. Apple... update... please...

I have the late 2013 Mac Pro with dual Thunderbolt monitors. I had the USB keyboard issue as well (totally quit working). Plugged in the extension and everything started working again.

Extremely annoying but luckily found this fix.

This is ridiculous BUG!!! I mean come on it's around over 2 years! Apple doesn't even bother to respond as it looks!

I'm having issues with this constantly! Sometimes extension cable helps, other times it does not!!!! Restart doesn't help, nothing! And after few days it decides to start working again! Come on seriously!?!?!

Late 2013 MBA, keyboard bought yearly 2015.

Hi Vehovmar. I tried everything and nothing worked. it seems that the KB somehow fails electronically. I took it to the apple store and paid 1/2 price for a new one and it`s working just fine. You guys don't waste your time. Go to apple and get a new one. Good luck.

Ok, it might be partially irrelevant, because I'm on OS X El Capitan, but still had very similar problem with the keyboard. I contacted Apple Support (as I was writing earlier) and they didn't know the cause of the problem but suggested trying SMC reset, which worked for some time, but then the problem came back. When I called back to Apple Support they told me the keyboard has to be replaced. So what solved it was really replacing the keyboard with a new one (i was lucky to fit into 14 day window after purchase to replace the keyboard for free). It works just perfectly. No problems. I assume the problem is in the keyboard itself. Maybe. So, as antoniopedota suggests, yes, I also think the solution of the problem is to get a new keyboard.

OS X El Capitan

Version 10.11.1

21.5-inch iMac, late 2012

Yet another confirmation of the USB extension cord trick on another of the Macs…new OS, same old problem.

My wife just did the latest update for El Capitan. After the restart the wired Apple USB keyboard wasn’t reading no matter what port I plugged it into.

The Bluetooth set-up window came up searching for the bluetooth keyboard that came with the iMac that we have stuffed in a drawer (why doesn’t apple make a full-sized bluetooth keyboard?).

I found this post and tried the USB extension trick and the keyboard worked immediately.