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Repair guides, support, and troubleshooting information for the first 13-inch MacBook Air to feature Apple's ARM-based M1 SoC (with an 8-core CPU and up to an 8-core GPU). Released in November 2020 and identified by model numbers A2337 or EMC 3598.

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Keyboard and Trackpad stopped working

Hi! I have a MacBook Air M1 (2020) and after two months of my warranty expiration the keyboard and the trackpad suddenly stopped working. No liquid was spilled and no other damage was made.

The backlit of the keyboard works but the keyboard and the trackpad are both dead. If I connect an external keyboard and mouse they work fine (also if I press the caps lock on the external keyboard the led on the internal keyboard does not lit up).

I tried everything on software level with no luck. I opened the laptop and cleaned all the connectors with isopropyl alcohol but nothing happened. The ribbon cable and the connectors have no visible damage. Also I disconnected the keyboard connector from the board and left only the trackpad part of the ribbon connected with no result.

Is it worth to give $20-$30 try a new ribbon or it may be a motherboard problem? Apple said that the cost of the repair could go up to $600.

Thank you!

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Both the keyboard and trackpad signals travel to the logic board over the one cable assembly MacBook Air 13" (A2179, A2337 2020) Trackpad Cable so it’s worth the expense to replace it first.

But before we do that how does the battery look? Compare it to the images in this guide MacBook Air 13" Late 2020 Battery Replacement as a puffed up battery can cause problems with the cable.

Was someone inside before this happened? One other possibility is a damaged logic board connector so when you take the cable off really inspect the contact pins didn’t get damaged on the board side and I would also check the cable end side as well.

crwdns2886500:0Replace a torn or damaged cable that connects the trackpad and keyboard to the logic board compatible with the model A2179 or A2337 2020 13 inch MacBook Air laptop. Part #821-02663.crwdne2886500:0

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MacBook Air 13" (A2179, A2337 2020) Trackpad Cable

$14.99

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The battery is flat like the one in the pictures. I have this laptop from day one and I only opened it, after the problem. I will order the ribbon cable for a start as there is no visible damage on the logic board connector.

Thank you for your reply

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im also having this issue, flex was replaced, but trackpad is unresponsive, tried new trackpad and works, but is there any way to repair current trackpad?

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@robergza - Anything is possible! It comes down to skills and availability of the needed damaged element.


Most people just don’t have the very deep micro-electronics skills to reverse engineer the circuit and identify the components. Remember the Trackpad/Touchpad is not documented (Blackbox) even in the schematics and board view drawings which have found their way to the free world! Lastly, some of the components are programmed which will require tools to program them.


Basically, the cost of the time and tools is more expensive that just replacing the part. Yes, it sucks! Please join the Right to Repair movement!

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