Why is it that the Apple keyboard cannot handle simultaneous typing of the 'Tab + W + Space' keys, which are commonly used in games?

I have noticed that external keyboards connected to an Apple computer support the simultaneous pressing of 'Tab + W + Space' keys, but the in-built Apple keyboard does not. When I press the 'Tab + W' keys and then press the Space bar, the Apple computer only receives the 'Tab + W' events but not the Space event. Other combinations, such as 'Tab + A + Space', work normally. Can you please explain why this is the case and provide any solutions or advice? Thank you

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kodywu
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  • Hi kodywu. What model Mac are you testing the built-in keyboard of, and which API is your application using to receive keyboard events?

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    Justin
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It is not related to any specific API (such as NSViewController's keyDown/KeyUp). All Mac computer keyboards (iMac and laptop) cannot receive the 'Tab + W + Space' keys pressed simultaneously. You can verify this by testing it on any text editor - pressing the Tab and W keys together and then pressing the Space bar does not generate the Space event in the text editor. The 'WSAD' keys are typically used as the four directional keys in games and are often used in combination with other keys. Apart from the W/S directional keys, other combinations such as pressing 'Tab + A + Space' simultaneously can receive the Space event.

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kodywu
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  • Hi kodywu. I am not able to reproduce this in TextEdit. Pressing the Tab and W keys together and then pressing the Space bar, I see tab, w, and space characters entered into the document. I am also not able to reproduce this in a test app that uses the GCKeyboard API to listen for keyboard events. GCKeyboard correctly reports the press states of all three keys. This is with the built-in keyboard on a MacBook Pro running macOS 13.4.

    —
    Justin

  • Do you have a second Mac with a built-in keyboard available, to rule out a hardware/software issue with the Mac where you are observing this behavior?

    —
    Justin

  • Can you or your testing colleague quickly verify the issue by using the Keyboard Test Online website (such as https://keyboard-test.space)? When pressing the 'Tab + W + Space' keys simultaneously, the corresponding key color on the website should turn green. we have already tested this issue on iMac 13.3.1/Mac Pro 12.6.6/M1 and have found that it does not work(no space key event)

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    kodywu
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This image can help illustrate the issue described above and is very easy to verify. I connected the iMac keyboard to a Windows computer and found that the same issue exists (no Space event). Please see the image for more details.

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kodywu
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  • Hi kodywu. I see the expected behavior in the test website with the built-in keyboard on my MacBook Pro running macOS 13.4. I will need to track down an available iMac keyboard to test with.

    —
    Justin

  • Hi kodywu. I was able to reproduce this with a Magic Keyboard. Have you submitted a feedback issue about this already? Could you share the feedback ID?

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    Justin
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MacBook Pro also has the same issue (no Space event). Can you please help me by asking the testing team to verify this issue as well? Thank you

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kodywu
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Hi kodywu

Please submit a feedback report detailing your findings. Include the models of external keyboards and MacBook Pro built-in keyboards you observed the issue on. For external keyboards, you can find the model information on the bottom in small print. For MacBook Pro(s), you can find the model information in the Apple > About This Mac menu. If possible, connect the external keyboard(s) to the Mac prior to opening Feedback Assistant. This will allow Feedback Assistant to gather additional information about those keyboards.

Please post the feedback ID here.

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Justin
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