You are currently browsing comments. If you would like to return to the full story, you can read the full entry here: “How to Reset an Apple Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard, Mouse or Trackpad (Troubleshooting Pairing and Other Common Problems)”.
Travelling Through Life
You are currently browsing comments. If you would like to return to the full story, you can read the full entry here: “How to Reset an Apple Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard, Mouse or Trackpad (Troubleshooting Pairing and Other Common Problems)”.
Hi,
I have a really old Bluetooth keyboard from Apple. No power button indicated anywhere. There is a toggle switch in the back that turns the blinky green light on and off.
It looks like this model :
http://www.oreillynet.com/digitalmedia/blog/images/Apertureallwhite.jpg
I’m attempting to pair it to a MS Surface 2, which I know was not part of your article, but i thought I’d ask anyway. My Surface 2 detects the keyboard and knows it by name, but the pairing process always fails. I never get the code. It just gives an error message stating that it couldn’t pair with the keyboard and that I should try again.
Are you familiar with these old style keyboards? Is there a key combo that acts as the power button that I can hold down while it tries to pair?
Thanks,
Steve
Sorry, no experience with this type of keyboard, it’s possible it’s just not compatible with the MS Surface.
Dear Dave,
after two days of testing and trying to make a BT keyboard work on my Mac mini I found your description. THANKS!!! That is the solution I was looking for. Holding down the Power-Button until the pairing-windows appears was the solution!
You saved me at least another two days 🙂
I just turned on my new IMac and couldn’t type in my password t get into the computer, a messages comes up There isn’t a keyboard connected, the key board has the flashing light on, Attempting to connect spins and then says no keyboard, and keeps saying make sure your keyboard is discoverable …. what does that mean…. thanks
Work carefully through the tips in the article, if that doesn’t work, get a replacement keyboard. A cheap USB keyboard will at least let you get back to work.
Hi Dave,
Please assist urgently, my keypad keys just stopped working after I cleaned the keypad.
Now I cannot get into my MAC cause it requires a password and I cannot type the password cause my keys on the keypad are not working.
It seems when I press the middle of the keyboard, some keys sort of work but then nothing else happens.
Please, please assist urgently as I was working on a presentation and now cannot go in and complete.
Thanks
Jen
Sounds like your cleaning might have damaged the keyboard. If the tricks in the article don’t help, I would in the first place buy a cheap USB keyboard (usually less than $10) so that you can get working again, then look at getting the keyboard checked.
Thank-you so much! I was having trouble pairing my ‘old’ wireless keyboard to my new mac air, and I followed your steps which involved holding down the keyboard power. At first they did not work, then I entered a custom code, and I got a ‘could not connect’ error, so I gave up, released the power button and clicked continue – then like magic I got the request to enter the new code, and it worked. : )
Laurie
Thank you! This worked for my Apple wireless mouse. There is not a power button to hold down (it has an on/off switch), but depressing the mouse pad several seconds during the setup process caused it to pair when nothing else worked. Many thanks to you and Dr. Google for sending me to your page.
After an hour of failing to connect an wireless keyboard I found your instructions. Apple should be paying You for this service, since they can’t seem to post these specific instructions in any easy to find place, if at all.
I am not a fan of Bluetooth.
But, Thank You very much for making this information available.
Thanks, I tried a lot of other ways to pair my keyboard with an iMac, MacBook Pro and iPhone and all failed to pair. Your tip was my last effort before accepting that I would just have to buy a new keyboard and IT WORKED! Thank you very, very much!
Paul
Worked for me! The only problem I faced when connecting both the keyboard (done first) and trackpad ((done second) was that as long as the keyboard was turned on, the trackpad would not show up in the devices list (I guess they looked identical to the PC). After connecting them once, they work simultaneously.
Worked like a Charm!
Thanks a lot. All right!
Dear Dave,
My iMac wireless mouse’s cursor seems to have gone to a halt..! Not able to move the cursor, though it’s right click is still working and Bluetooth options shows the mouse as “connected”. Tried everything to make it move, from a fully charged new set of batteries to cleaning up of the shells and mouse..nothing is working out for this one. I am clueless about resetting the bluetooth settings without a mouse.. Please do comment…
Thanks,
Soorsj S
the only procedure that works.
how I hate the half cooked apple instructions. thats all loveless stuff. and the software even more so.
thanks dave. have a great trip.
system: imac late 2011, mavericks, newest wireless keyboard.
Hi Dave
Thanks for all your help. You should get payed by Apple.
I have tryed to follow your advice, but i cannot se how to ask my imac to forget the keybord. Only how to dissconnect. (Its in danish lay-out).
I have the same problem as a few others here, that the keybord is connected, but some of the keys doesnt repond. Ive tryed to connect the keybord to my iphone, and its the same there. (But i can make the iphone forget the keybord, which i cannot on the imac 27
Mecanical failure ? (Ps no i did not cleaned it. Problem occured after a restart).
Best Lars
When in Bluetooth preferences, it shows a list of known devices. It may say its currently connected, and there is an X to the right that allows you to disconnect. Once disconnected, the X will allow you to remove/forget the device.
If the keyboard is failing with particular keys, and you find that when connected to a different device (like iPhone) that the same physical keys fail, then probably you have a defective keyboard. Even Apple kit can go wrong!
Thanks Dave :-)))
It worked, but i had to go through a few more menues before the x appered.
I suppose different lay-out. Computer is set to danish, the keyboard is Catalan and Apple is American. So of course a lot of things can go wrong.
After that, i tried, just for fun, to connect again to my iPad, and now it worked here too ???
My iMac and my iPhone cannot “see”each other (meterthick walls), and i only moved the keybord.
So some kind of memory the keyboard must have.
If not this is a little to magic.
Best and thanks again – sooooo much 🙂
Lars
Well hmmm. It didnt worked for long.
After a period of sleepmode, same problem again.
Working on it.
Lars
Hi Dave, I hope you can advise.
We have an Imac that is nearly 3 years old. It sits happily in the kitchen making movies, playing music and searching the internet, it has quite a nice life apart from frequent attacks by a 8 and 9 year old. Yesterday I came home to find my iTunes library playing, I did not recall turning it on before I left, but the music was good so I paid little attention. Later that day the imac started making noises like someone was typing and the problem worsened to constant error noises and the screen flitting around various boxes. The keyboard was non responsive. So I shut everything down, turned off the keyboard, changed the batteries and restated. Still no keys working as pressed but the Imac responding to some connection as the typing and error noises restarted.
I am not super technical, but we have owned apples since out first tangerine imac many years ago.
The keyboard is paired, I have tried to unpair to pair with my iPad, but the keyboard seems not to type the code required to pair with the iPad. I have reconnected it to the imac but it keeps asking for the code to be input, yet in system preferences it says it is connected to the wireless keyboard. So I really just wanted your advice, has the keyboard died or is there something I can do?
Many thanks
Sarah
Hi Dave,
Thanks for staying active on the comments for this thread. I’m not sure if you could figure out my problem, since I’ve tried almost every suggestion on the Internet to no avail, including this one. My Macbook can recognize the Bluetooth connection from my Mac keyboard, but it refuses to pair. When given a passcode, I try to enter the code, but nothing happens. Apple seems to think it is a hardware problem, but what do you think?
Thanks!
Well done you are a star, thank you so much my key board & mouse are now connected, mouse is a bit erratic seems to disconnect & reconnect on its own batteries are fine wonder whats causing this ?
have absolutely tried all of the above and I still get “couldn’t connect to the device”. So frustrating that Apple can’t actually provide help!!!
You are a star Dave Meehan – your instructions and advice worked well. Thank you
Thank you for a super helpful article! The very detailed instructions about ‘un pairing’ with my old computer was key. Thanks again!