Radiotante

Q: iMac does not find wireless keyboard

Hi Folks,

 

my wireless keyboard is on and it has new batteries but the iMac does not recognize it.

The keyboard led does not blink which means it does not try to connect.

I read about a solution by resetting the P-RAM.

What do you think?

 

Thanks for help,

Eva

iMac, Mavericks, OS X 10.9.5

Posted on Jun 26, 2015 3:03 AM

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Q: iMac does not find wireless keyboard

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  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 26, 2015 3:11 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 26, 2015 3:11 AM in response to Radiotante

    Are the batteries either Duracell, Apple, Energiser or Eneloop?    Where did you buy them?   Is there a green light showing consistently.

  • by Radiotante,

    Radiotante Radiotante Jun 26, 2015 3:21 AM in response to seventy one
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 26, 2015 3:21 AM in response to seventy one

    The batteries are the same I used all the time (when the keyboard was working correct connected to the iMac): Panasonic

    No, there is no green light showing consistently.

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 26, 2015 3:31 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 26, 2015 3:31 AM in response to Radiotante

    Not all batteries are regular in size; a mm or so difference is enough to cause a problem.  Also, if the batteries you replaced showed any sign of corrosion it may have left residue in the compartment.    In any event ...

     

    Remove the batteries and using a cotton bud, dampened with alcohol, white vinegar or the like (not wet), clean the contact points inside the battery compartment.  Then the batteries themselves.   Wait until dry and replace the batteries and try again.

     

    Do you have a monitor like istat pro to monitor battery strength.   If the connection is bad the batteries may register  as spent whether they are or not. 

  • by Radiotante,

    Radiotante Radiotante Jun 26, 2015 3:41 AM in response to seventy one
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 26, 2015 3:41 AM in response to seventy one

    Thanks for the advice.

    How to reach the contact point deep in the keyboard??

    I thought the batteries could not be the problem because the LED of the keyboard is okay.

    The monitor shows the battery strength - but of course not if the keyboard is not connected.

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 26, 2015 3:49 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 26, 2015 3:49 AM in response to Radiotante

    Puzzled by your reply.   The contact points much be reachable if you can put new batteries in.    Disconnect and take another look, if only for future reference.   You say the LED is okay.    If the keyboard LED does not blink then ... it is either not showing green or is consistently green.   Which of these is correct.

  • by Radiotante,

    Radiotante Radiotante Jun 26, 2015 3:59 AM in response to seventy one
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 26, 2015 3:59 AM in response to seventy one

    It´s hard for me to explain all this in English.

    To put batteries into the keyboard I open the slim "tunnel" at the top of the keyboard and let the batteries slide in. The contact in the inner side of the "tunnel" can not be reached actually.

    The LED of the keyboard shows as descripted by Apple: When I press the on/of-button the LED shows green for about two seconds. It does not blink as if it was trying to connect to the iMac.

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 26, 2015 5:20 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 26, 2015 5:20 AM in response to Radiotante

    You don't need to apologise; your English is very good.

     

    Try these resets.

     

    Reset the SMC.

      https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201295  You may have to do this two or three times.


    Or for the PRAM (NVRAM)

      https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204063  This too may need more than one go.


    Do one of them, then test to see if it connects before trying the other.


    Several edits.  Sorry about the changes of screen

  • by Radiotante,

    Radiotante Radiotante Jun 27, 2015 4:49 AM in response to seventy one
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 27, 2015 4:49 AM in response to seventy one

    Well, I tried the SMC-Rest three times. No result.

     

    To try the NVRAM-Rest please help me again: Because I have to use a non- Apple-keyboard for the moment I don´t know which keys I have to use here corresponding the apple-keyboard-keys "command" and "option".

    In the instructions I am requested to press  "command, option P, and R". Will be a challenge to press them all at once...

     

    By the way: The keyboard connects to my iPad without any difficulty but not to my MacBook Air.

     

    (Last not least: You say my English is okay - but I don´t understand "sorry about the changes of screen"... )

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 27, 2015 5:46 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 27, 2015 5:46 AM in response to Radiotante

    You will need to provide us with a screen shot of your keyboard ... and even then it may be tricky.   The P and R are of course the letters P and R ... but whether they have alternate underlying jobs to do on a Mac,  I don't know.   Command is almost always to the immediate left and right of the space bar and Option is often called alt.

     

    My reference to the screens was made because I had to do two edits to what I had written, and I wasn't sure if you were reading at that time.   If that had been the case, the screen may have gone off and come back on again.

  • by Lexiepex,

    Lexiepex Lexiepex Jun 27, 2015 6:13 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (10,492 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 27, 2015 6:13 AM in response to Radiotante

    Even when you think that you have put in a full battery in, take it out and put another new one in. In 99% of the issues this helps.

    (Hi S O, have a wonderful day)

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Jun 27, 2015 6:30 AM in response to Lexiepex
    Level 6 (15,140 points)
    Peripherals
    Jun 27, 2015 6:30 AM in response to Lexiepex

    Hi Lex,

     

    I suppose with a bit of Jiggery Pokery one could manipulate a cotton bud to reach the inside contact point.   Our friend, Radiotante never did say what the condition was of the batteries S/he replaced.  But there is a trace of green from time to time so some connection is there.

     

    Keep well,

     

    71. 

  • by WZZZ,

    WZZZ WZZZ Jun 27, 2015 6:51 AM in response to Radiotante
    Level 6 (13,112 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 27, 2015 6:51 AM in response to Radiotante

    May have nothing to do with batteries. I'm on Mountain Lion, but you should find the same, or something similar, in whatever OS you are running. Open Bluetooth in System Preferences, click the Advanced button, and see if the following is checked. See also https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204621

     

    Screen Shot 2015-06-27 at 9.43.33 AM.png

  • by WZZZ,

    WZZZ WZZZ Jun 27, 2015 7:04 AM in response to WZZZ
    Level 6 (13,112 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 27, 2015 7:04 AM in response to WZZZ

    Should have asked, since I don't think you said anything about this: was the keyboard working and being recognized before you changed the batteries?

  • by Radiotante,

    Radiotante Radiotante Jun 27, 2015 7:36 AM in response to WZZZ
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 27, 2015 7:36 AM in response to WZZZ

    @ LexSchellings: Thanks, but did you see that I mentioned that the keyboard connects to the iPad without problems both with the former and the new batteries.

    But I followed your advice anyway. Did not change anything. (So what the **** is this remaining One-Percent-Problem??)

     

    @ WZZZ: Thanks too; I did all this before. - The keyboard worked fine and I changed the batteries only after the problem occurred. But BEFORE the problem occurred I had unplugged the power adapter because I moved the iMac to another place to use it there. Worked after replugging and starting fine. Afterwards I unplugged the power adapter again to remove the iMac to the former place and replugged the power adapter. The next day when I started the iMac the keyboard was not recognized. I removed it from the Bluetooth-List hoping that could help. And then I startet this thread.

     

    @seventy one: I will now try to reset the NVRAM with my old Windows-keyboard and hope that will finally help... (but I read somewhere that the bluetooth settings are not saved in the NVRAM of intel iMacs)

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