As you've no doubt heard by now (if you follow tech news at all), last week Apple surprised nearly everyone by releasing new versions of the 13- and 15-inch Touchbar MacBook Pro. Amid the other upgrades and improvements was the addition of the Third Generation Butterfly Keyboard "to decrease the noise level" of the previous generation. Not as Apple was quick to point out, to increase the reliability of the keyboard itself. Because you know, the problem with the previous generation of keyboards was reported by only a very small number of users. That's why they're replacing even out-of-warranty keyboards free of charge now and refunding the folks who've forked out money to get them repaired in the past.
It has nothing to do with all the bad press and multiple class-action lawsuits. Um. Yeah. Whatever, Apple.
As the folks at iFixit quickly discovered, Apple's redesign includes what I call a keyboard condom; a extremely thin layer of silicone polymer between the key mechanism and key cap that not only cuts down on the sound of the keyboards, but also does it's best to keep out the detritus that can render the previous keyboards inoperable.
While this will affect me in no way whatsoever because Apple has categorically stated these new parts will not be used to repair the previous generations, ("We're going to replace pieces that break with more pieces that will break!") it at least it restores my faith enough that I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new machine if/when the need arises.