Apple's New MacBooks Have a Keyboard Change You Might Have Missed - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple's New MacBooks Have a Keyboard Change You Might Have Missed

The new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models feature a keyboard change that was easy to miss during Apple's announcements last week.

2026 MacBook Pro Keyboard GlyphsThe new U.S. English keyboard layout

On the U.S. English version of the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro keyboards, the tab, caps lock, shift, return, and delete keycaps now have glyphs on them. On previous-generation models, these keys are labeled with text instead.

This change was spotted by "Mr. Macintosh" last week, and it extends to the MacBook Neo.

2024 MacBook Keyboard Text LabelsThe previous U.S. English keyboard layout

Given the U.S. English keyboard layout is the default option for MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Neo models sold in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, this change effectively extends to those countries and a few others.

If you live in Europe, this will look familiar to you. Apple has long showed glyphs on the tab, caps lock, shift, return, and delete keycaps on its keyboard layouts for British English and other European languages, so this is nothing new there.

The new MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Neo models launch this Wednesday.

Related Roundups: MacBook Neo, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air

Popular Stories

macbook air prime day 2

5 Reasons to Buy a MacBook Air Now Instead of Waiting

Tuesday July 28, 2026 7:53 am PDT by
Apple's next MacBook Air is several months away, but if you've been holding off on an upgrade, here's why now could actually be a good time to buy. The Current Air is the Best Value Mid-Tier Mac The M5 MacBook Air starts at $1,299 following Apple's recent $200 price hike, but Amazon is already knocking $100 off, bringing it down to $1,199. The base model's 16GB of RAM means it's no longer...
M4 MacBook Air 13 and 15 inch Feature

MacBook Air Experiencing 'Major' Shortage Despite $200 Price Increase

Sunday August 2, 2026 7:12 pm PDT by
Despite receiving a price increase in June, the MacBook Air is currently experiencing a "major" shortage, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Retail store sources say Apple is struggling to keep the laptop in stock and that shipments of new units are more constrained than they can ever recall," he said. In the U.S., the MacBook Air is facing a 2-6 week delivery estimate on Apple's...
macbook ultra

MacBook Ultra OLED Touch Panel to Be Exclusively Supplied by Samsung

Tuesday July 28, 2026 2:16 am PDT by
Apple will exclusively rely on Samsung Display for the production of OLED touch panels for its redesigned upcoming MacBook Pro models, according to a new report from Korea-based The Elec. Citing industry sources, the publication says that the 14-inch and 16-inch panels will be produced at Samsung's 8.6-generation OLED line at Asan, in Korea's South Chungcheong Province. The estimated initial ...

Top Rated Comments

naoul Avatar
24 weeks ago
I applaude, next step for the US consumers: use Meter, Kilogram and Celsius :)
Score: 55 Votes (Like | Disagree)
24 weeks ago
I like the old keyboard better.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
24 weeks ago
THIS IS TERRIBLE! UNUSABLE.

Just kidding, just trying to Macrumors correctly.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple MessagePad Avatar
24 weeks ago
This changes everything. Just cancelled my pre-order.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Aka757 Avatar
24 weeks ago
Well, I was on the fence about upgrading but now I’ll pull the trigger. Fully loaded 16” M5 Max to be sure.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
24 weeks ago
You’d think for the thousands of dollars these cost, they could fit a few measly little letters on these keys 🙄

I actually like the words, even though I rarely look at the keyboard. It has a more balanced aesthetic. Very disappointed.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)