It’s frustrating when certain keys on your laptop suddenly stop responding—especially when it happens after a few hours of gaming. If keys like D, T, F, R, 4, or B only work occasionally (or 1 out of 5 presses), it can feel like the keyboard is dying.
But on the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i, this problem is often caused by heat, firmware bugs, or software conflicts, not a broken keyboard.
Here’s what’s really happening—and how to fix it.
1. Heat Can Cause Temporary Keyboard Failures
The IdeaPad Gaming 3i is known to run hot during long gaming sessions. When the system heats up, the keyboard’s internal ribbon cable can become unstable, causing certain keys to stop responding.
How to fix it:
- Clean the fans to improve airflow.
- Switch the laptop to Performance Mode using Lenovo Vantage.
- Use a cooling pad during long sessions.
- Take a short break when keys start glitching—if they work again after cooling, it’s a thermal issue.
If the problem only happens after 1–3 hours of gaming, heat is the most likely cause.
2. Update BIOS and Keyboard Firmware
Lenovo has released multiple updates for this laptop to fix keyboard responsiveness issues. Many users report the problem disappearing completely after a BIOS or firmware update.
Steps:
- Install Lenovo Vantage (official app).
- Go to System Update.
- Install all updates—especially BIOS, hotfixes, and firmware.
- Restart the laptop.
This alone solves the issue in many cases.
3. Try a Full Keyboard Reset
Sometimes the internal keyboard controller gets stuck, especially after sleep mode or heavy gaming.
Do this:
- Shut down the laptop completely.
- Hold the power button for 20 seconds (forces a hardware reset).
- Turn it back on normally.
If the keys work again afterward, the problem was with the keyboard controller.
4. Disable Third-Party Overlays
Games like CS2, COD, Fortnite, and others use overlays. If you have too many overlays running at the same time, key detection can break or get delayed.
Try disabling:
- NVIDIA Overlay
- Discord Overlay
- Xbox Game Bar
- MSI Afterburner / RivaTuner
- Steam Overlay (test off temporarily)
If keys only fail while gaming and work fine in Windows afterward, this is very likely the cause.
5. Rule Out Driver Issues
You already tried uninstalling drivers, but make sure you do this specific method:
- Go to Device Manager → Keyboards.
- Right-click → Uninstall device.
- Restart (Windows will automatically reinstall).
- Update again through Windows Update → Optional Updates.
This refreshes the keyboard driver stack completely.
6. When It Might Be Hardware
If the same exact keys fail even when the laptop is cold, freshly started, and no games are open, then the keyboard membrane could be failing.
But if the keyboard works perfectly again after:
- a reboot
- cooling down
- closing a game
…then the hardware is usually fine.
Final Thoughts
When several keys suddenly stop working on the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i, it doesn’t always mean the keyboard is broken. In most cases, the problem comes from:
- Heat buildup
- Firmware bugs
- Gaming overlays
- Temporary controller glitches
Start with a reset, update everything through Lenovo Vantage, and reduce thermal load. Most users are able to fix the issue without replacing the keyboard.