I have a mid-2012 MacBook Pro (non-retina) lying around that I don't need. It does not startup, but it's keyboard and mouse work fine. I have no use for the computer anymore.
I also have a Mac mini and I was wondering whether there is any hardware/software that allows me to use the keyboard and trackpad from my MBP as direct input to my Mac mini, just like an external keyboard/trackpad, without having to go through the OS on my MBP.
In other words, I was looking for some sort of adapter that would connect my keyboard and trackpad from my MBP to a USB input which I could use on the Mac mini. I do not want a solution like this: https://apple.stackexchange.com/a/338568
Thanks
Best Answer
In theory it is possible - but there's no on-the-shelf solution that you can go out and buy.
You would either have to make it yourself (requires experience with electronics and programming) or hire someone to build a solution for you. In either case, such a solution would cost many, many times more (considering the cost of your own time) than simply buying a new keyboard and mouse.
The keyboard connector on the mid-2012 MacBook Pro does not feature USB or anything that you can simply plugin to a new computer. Instead it is a special connector, for which you require an adapter board, and the signalling is not USB or anything standard on a Mac Mini - so you would need to create a PCB with a microcontroller or similar to convert the signals from the keyboard into a USB HID device for the Mac Mini.