Left shift key just fell off

Hello,
My left shift key (Dutch keyboard, small shift key) fell of and I cannot get in back. It keeps falling of. It looks like a small pin at the back of the key broke... strange.
Can you tell me how to get an new one? My apple will only order a complete keyboard set.
Regards,
Thomas

Thomas,
Welcome to Apple Discussions.
Keyboard parts are not sold separately. If you want to get a working keyboard you will probably have to replace the complete keyboard. BTW this is the case with every keyboard manufacturer I've run across for the past 20+ years.
Regards,
Roger

Similar Messages

Key just fell off keyboard

The D key just fell off my keyboard. I can use D but have to carefully press the little knob. The key cover (?) is completely off. How do I replace it? I tried pressing down on the key cover in the hole it left. That didn't work. No Apple store within 100 miles, so can't take it in. Please help.

It's a very delicate process but once you figure it out, it's very easy afterwards. Tweezers also comes in handy too.
Did the two latch pieces come off with the key? You will have to take them off and put them back on first. Hopefully the little tabs didn't break which keeps them attached to the keyboard.
To see how how they go back on is easier visually then describing so remove any key next to it by taking the tweezers and prying just the key from the top. That way you will leave the 2 pieces underneath in tact. Once you get those attached, just center the key up and press down until it snaps.

Left Shift Key fell off

Hi guys, I don't know if this is such a weird issue but about two weeks or so ago, my left shift key fell off. I knew I couldn't snap it back on since one of the mini white clips on the upper side (back portion) of the key is missing.
Right now, I can put it back on the keyboard but it wiggles as I know it doesn't fit securely as it used to be. I wish I could take a photo of it and post it on here.
This should be covered by the generic 1-yr battery, right?
Message was edited by: ricpacs

1-yr battery or warranty? The falling apart of keys may or may not be covered. There are various things that can happen to keyboards which are controllable by Apple, and the user. I would call AppleCare if you believe you didn't do anything that might damage the computer. A list of things that could include:
1. Food
2. Water
3. Drink
4. Walking by door jams without making sure the machine is inside a well padded notebook bag.
5. Not paying attention to situations where the computer apparently overheats and shuts down on its own. Making sure that the machine has its display turn off when the lid is closed, and making sure that the battery is replaced if it is under the exchange program.

My left shift key on Macbook Pro Retina (15") is behaving like the F11 key (show/hide open windows). The key behaves the same for the laptop keyboard and for an external Apple keyboard? This just started in last week after 6 months of use

My left shift key on Macbook Pro Retina (15") is behaving like the F11 key (show/hide open windows).
The left shift key behaves the same on the laptop keyboard and on an external Apple keyboard.
This just started in last week after 6 months of use. The right shift key and other keys on the keyboard all appear to work correctly.
Suggestions greatly appreciated.

I have a solution to this issue now after a discussion with Apple Support. Some where in the last few weeks, there was a change in the key that would do a Show Desktop under the Mission Control settings in the System Preferences. Even though the key sequence that was shown for the Show Desktop setting did not include the Left SHift key, by changing this first to having no key sequence and applying that and then changing it back to the F11 key, the Left SHift key issue that I was having has cleared up.
A second issue that was uncovered was that the SSD had some issues (uncovered when I ran Disk Utility using the Repair Disk key). I had to restart and use the Disk Utility through the Command R sequence to get to the stand alone Disk Utility. The SSD appears to be running better as a result as well.
Hope that this is of use to someone else in the future.

How do I fix my left shift key? Any open windows leave and make the desktop visible.

How do I fix my left shift key? Any open windows leave and make the desktop visible. I have tired to go into system preferences and reset all of the keyboard settings to default but the issue hasn't gone away.

You are not running as administrator, I think, which may be required and the only way to properly work and register. Also check for compatibility mode settings, UAC and DEP, all of which may require to be adjusted for a legacy app like PS CS2 to run properly. Also turn off Aero and switch to a conventional visual theme. The brush issue may be related to that or is a more generic problem with your graphics card and mouse config, but since you didn't provide any info on that, it will be hard for anyone to advise.
Mylenium

T40's Left Shift key makes right click/context menu appear?

Hello All-
On my T40, on which I just recently got Windows 7 correctly installed, has a curious behavior:
When I press the left shift key, it functions the same as if I had pressed the right mouse button. It functions correctly otherwise, I.E., when using it to capitolize a letter in an email, the letter is capitolized, but as soon as I let go of the shift key, the right click/context menu immediately appears.
This is exceedingly irritating, as I cannot continue typing until I have navigated out of the menu.
I have checked to see if the Keyboard Customiser utility is causing this, as I currently have my left Alt key functioning as a Windows button, but it does not appear to be causing this particular issue.
Does anyone have any idea how I might go about fixing this?
Thanks in advance,
G
Solved!
Go to Solution.

Nevermind-
Had the keyboard customizer set to use the left shfit key as the application key. Duh.

3 letters + left shift key not working - 2 of them + right shift key working

Hi all,
as in subject, I have just bought a laptop g50-45, italian keyboard.
I encountered this problem:
"LEFT shift key" + "e" or "d" or "c" combinations do not work. Nothing happens.
"RIGHT shift key" + "e" or "d" work properly
"RIGHT shift key" + "c" do not work. Nothing happens
CAPS key + "e" or "d" or "c" work properly.
I noticed this issue before making any updates of windows 8.1
I tried making an update of the bios and later updating windows but the problem is still there.
I check with an external keyboard and everything work correctly
I don't think it could be a mechanical problem because "e", "d" and "c" keys alone work properly, so it seems more a software side problem.
Thank you for your help.

thanks, i thought there some quick procedure to do before heading to apple store. i was just wondering, it was working for a while, and then suddenly like that. i have macbook 10.6.8 software. intel core 2 duo. less than a year old, if i'm not mistaken.

Left shift key inserts ± (plus/minus symbol)

When I try to use the left shift key and hold it down for more than a half-second or so it will insert the ± symbol. Not being the speediest of typists, this has rendered the key useless (besides being a shortcut for that symbol, of course). This occurs in all profiles.
I am using a Macally ICEKey keyboard with the latest drivers. The behavior occurs when I set the keyboard to the "unknown generic keyboard" option, as well. I tried uninstalling the drivers and trashing the com.apple.keyboardtype.plist file, but the problem continued to occur after it went through the generic keyboard setup on reboot. I should also mention that the keyboard worked fine for a few months before this problem arose.
The only other USB keyboard I have is a generic Dell keyboard (that does work with a Windows box), but when I plugged it in after removing the Macally it was not recognized by my Mac, even after reboot.
Besides trying another keyboard that is confirmed to work with Snow Leopard, are there any settings I should change (the language and character settings are default English with an ANSI keyboard layout) or other diagnostics I could try?
Thanks,
Sam

I have a Macally keyboard (NetKey) and I know that Macally hasn't issued drivers or updates for Intel Macs for some time; I checked on their download page for your model and the latest driver is for "10.4 or above" (which means it's been there for quite a while), which may also mean that it may or may not work with Snow Leopard. I know the driver for mine does not work on SL and I've lost all the cool functions on it (media keys, etc), but I still like the keyboard. My iMac also recognizes the keyboard immediately without any drivers installed.
As for your question, have you looked in the Keyboard pane of System Preferences to see if for some reason that key has been assigned a special function?
And, as far as I know, just about any keyboard - especially USB - should work with SL as long as you don't plan to install any drivers that happen to be for Windows only for any special function keys or features. I don't know why the Dell wouldn't be recognized unless it is made to function only after some software (driver) install (which wouldn't be compatible with SL).

Help! Left shift key not working!

all of a sudden today my left shift key has ceased to work. the right key works fine, increasing the chance that it's hardware. I'd like to remove the key cap and see if re-seating it might fix it. I've looked in many places on how to remove it, but no luck. Is there a web site that shows how it's done for a G4 Aluminum? Thanks in advance.

Marco,
I've been having intermittent left shift key problems for several months. My laptop is now 3 days out of Warranty, Apple web site says so. Anyway, the only reliable fix I've found is to do a re-boot. I can also (sometimes) get reliable shifting if I slide my finger closer to the outer edge - meaning, no shift if pressed on one side of the key, sometimes shift on the other side.
I've also had success shifting in one application which seemed to "clear" the problem in the original application. Example: typing in Mail when left shift key stops working. Switch to MS Word, shift works fine. Switch back to Mail, shift works fine.
I have a feeling it's a combination of software and slowly failing hardware. I feel bad to have waited until after the warranty period, and now the problem is getting worse. My wife was just in for brain surgery, so you can't really blame me! She's doing fine.
So, my suggestion is to try rebooting to see if that clears a memory buffer problem. Kinda annoying, maybe a future software update will fix the software problem?

Left shift key not working

left shift key not working.

thanks, i thought there some quick procedure to do before heading to apple store. i was just wondering, it was working for a while, and then suddenly like that. i have macbook 10.6.8 software. intel core 2 duo. less than a year old, if i'm not mistaken.

Left shift key is stuck after cleaning?

I recently had to clean my left shift key because it was sticking so badly, no other keys had the problem so I carefully took off the key cap and plastic doohickies as per a video. I cleaned the back of the key and a little around where it sets. After I put everything back the shift key is now locked. I can only type in capitals etc. Have checked caps lock and stick button in systems but to no avail. I restarted the computer and now it has booted in safe mode.
Please help!
cjk

Did you double check to make sure you replaced the shift key correctly?

HP Pavilion notebook left shift key not working

My reasonably new HP Pavilion has a problem with the left shift key not working. The Right shift is fine, as is the Caps Lock.
Windows version is 8.1 64 bit
Can you advise me on whether this is a driver issue or a hardware issue, in which case I will return to the supplier
Thanks, Helen

Dear Customer,
Welcome to HP Support Forum and we are glad to assist you
It looks like you are having issues with the Keyboard on your Notebook
We will surely assist you with this
Let’s start with a questions.
1. Was there any liquid split on the Notebook Keyboard
2. Is there any Dust settled on the Notebook Keyboard
3. Are there any Keys which are fallen off / Any Keys which are loose
Troubleshooting:
Step 01. Could you please check and verify if External Keyboard works fine or not?
Note: Please click on the below shown link to find more troubleshooting steps
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c03738933&tmp_task=solveCategory&cc=us&dlc=en&lc...
Hope this helps, for any further queries reply to the post and feel free to join us again
**Click the KUDOS star on left to say Thanks**
Make it easier for other people to find solutions by marking a Reply 'Accept as Solution' if it solves your problem.
Thank You,
K N R K
I work on behalf of HP

Left Shift Key Came Out

Hello, everyone. Upon cleaning my laptop, my left shift key came out. This computer isn't even a year old and I barely use it at all. I don't know if the mechanism underneath the actual key wore out or what not. However, when the key popped out, I was examining if there was anything broken and there wasn't anything at all bent or broken. All I had in my hand was the left shift key with a white plastic piece and with the actual key came attached a metal piece that was attached to it. So what I did was I attached the white plastic piece first and it went into place and I inserted the metal piece that was attached on the shift key into two seperate metal tabs and I snapped back into place.
What I don't understand is if this usually a common problem amongst keyboards, especially for Powerbook G4's. And if I did anything wrong as in attaching the shift key, please let me know or if there is anything I could possibly do.
Thanks for reading and hoping for some responses.

Hi Tenlions,
Keycaps do sometimes come off. It's nothing to be worried about. As long as they go back on ok and still work normally, there's no harm done.
The only thing to worry about is if they actually crack in half, or come off continually.

New MacBook Pro - left shift key clicking

Just got a brand spankin' new MBP and have found that the left shift key is "clicking" - while all other keys have nice smooth, quiet action, the left shift key is harder to depress (as though it's getting slightly stuck on something on the way down) and making a loud clicking sound.
Is this something that is easily fixable? Or will I end up having to take it in for a new keyboard?

Thanks for your reply Peter. I restored defaults, and restarted twice, but still nothing. Both keys work on an external keyboard, so I think that it's a mechanical fault. I'll send it back next week when this job has finished- let's hope that it's not part fo a faulty batch.

Left shift key is making a capital R..........

My Right shift key tRies to adjust volume but still woRks....left shift key makes a capital R and when I just tRy to type the letteR R it is capitalized.....what is wRong with my macbook?
you can email me at
[email protected]

I have two last things to try. The first is a hard reset. The instructions for that are here: Performing a Hard Reset or Forced Reset
If that doesn't help, the last option is to try to restore your BIOS. The instructions are here: Restoring the BIOS
If that fails, it will most likely be a hardware issue. I am not certain of your warranty coverage, you can find that information from support, as well as your repair options.
Alternatively, you might be able to look your warranty status up here: Check your product warranty
HP technical support: 800-474-6836. If you live outside the US/Canada Region please click the link HERE to get the support number for your region.
TwoPointOh
I work on behalf of HP
Please click “Accept as Solution ” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.
Click the “Kudos, Thumbs Up" on the bottom to say “Thanks” for helping!

Left shift key just fell off

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for