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Image description: Image shows batches 1, 2 and 3 sold out for the Ryzen 7 7840HS which costs $1,399.
For now both DIY and prebuild edition (all configurations) are in batch 4 which ships in late Q4 2023.
Does Framework do anything regarding FOSS drivers or firmware?
I have personally used fedora and nixos on a gen 1 framework 13 and it works great.
Does Framework do anything regarding FOSS drivers or firmware?
Regarding your question they say this:
We deliberately selected components and modules that didn’t require new kernel driver development and have been providing distro maintainers with pre-release hardware to test to improve compatibility. We’re also working on enabling firmware updates through LVFS to complete the Linux experience.
source: https://frame.work/gb/en/linux
It’s good to know it uses drivers already there. Sadly being part of the kernal somehow doesn’t guarantee the driver are not proprietary binary blobs.
I almost threw my hat in this ring but I must wait on people who use Linux to get ahold of it and review it. Proably an early 2024 buy date for me.
At least for framework 13, Linux support was great. I am guessing the same trend would continue. More details here. https://frame.work/linux
EDIT: my comment got eaten and I don’t want to type it again.
TLDR: I had the FW 11 gen and it was not good with Linux when it came to being a laptop. Sleep was fundamentally broken due to hardware issue.
I just looked at the framework site. My wifes laptop died recently and was looking at a new one.
Literally everything from the last year is out of stock new stock is pre-order only.
I think they may have some 11th gen models still.
I just bought the wife a Thinkpad T480 refurb instead for 400 bucks.
I’m guessing Linus’s investment is safe then :)
His investment is probably part of why these are such a hot commodity.
The media presence and advertising from LMG is worth a crazy amount. His followers are the exact target audience of this device and as long as he’s showing off what they’re up to I think they’ll continue to sell like this.
Spot on. I would have no idea Framework existed without LTT, and I likely would not have clicked into the article or comments on this thread, either.
Hell yeah Framework deserves all the goodness coming their way. I have an ASUS that’s serving me well for now, but I think when I go to replace it next year, they’re the ones I’m going to. Hopefully by then, they have AMD boards in the smaller sizes.
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Big-yet-thin, affordable Ryzen laptops with the option to add a real GPU to, that are just as upgradeable (component wise, if not market-availability wise) as a desktop?
Demand is high. Demand will remain high.
I can’t be the only one waiting to see more “real people” reviews of production units before plunking down money. I don’t upgrade laptops frequently and I don’t want to buy something buggy (i.e. Linux compatibility for wifi, ACPI, battery life, etc).
And while I’m waiting, I haven’t looked into a good answer to the USB-C dock story for the AMD versions. I see a lot of ambiguous statements about USB4 “being Thunderbolt” but not a lot of concrete statements on compatibility and capability.
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Their website crashed shortly after pre-orders went live. Could be a coincidence, could be high demand. Could also be crappy server infrastructure.
Previous products took much longer for batches to sell out. Even the AMD framework 13 laptops didn’t sell this fast and they were the #1 thing the community had been asking for for about a year.
We (sadly) can’t tell how many units are in a batch. But we can tell that demand is far exceeding their expectations.
If you find the Linus tech tips video on Linus’s investment in the company, you might see why. Very interesting!
I thought it was insane that they take apart a fully built laptop to sell the diy version.
It’s way more work for Framework, but they charge less for the diy model.
I wonder if user comfort with modifying internals on the diy model creates more sales in the long run, because customers can visualize what they’d be doing when installing an upgrade.
I’m really happy they’re seeing good demand. Fully upgradable laptops have been a dream of mine for years and I’ve been thinking when it’s time for me to replace mine, the Framework would be at the top of my list.
My only hesitation points when I first heard about the laptop was whether the company would survive long enough to make upgrades/accessories and whether the main board upgrades would actually work. The concept was, as you say, a dream.
Both of those concerns have faded away for me, my next laptop is pretty much 100% going to be a framework. Just need to stop spending money on dumb stuff so I can afford it…
They really do produce great hardware, in my dev team we either use MacBooks or Framework Laptops depending on what everyone wants to use. Upgradability is great and everyone is really happy with their device so far.
You can also buy MiniPCs from bee-link or others with same AMD or others powerful ones for cheap, if you don’t absolutely need a laptop
Great to see!
I bought my last laptop a couple months before they started shipping to Australia last year (dang it…), but Framework will be high on the list next time.
waits excitedly for Framework to ship in my region
It’s fine, my current laptop has a couple of years life left in it. They’ll open up orders by then right? Right?
Great to see this news about a company focused on repairability and sustainability .
Batches 4 and 5 are also sold out by now.
Meanwhile, batches 8 and 9 have been added to the list. Looks like they did not anticipate this kind of success.
I do badly want to like these… but I don’t see the point.
Repairability wise mid range ThinkPad is nearly as good. Only major difference is I think Framework claims they will release schematics… and as someone who actually does component level repairs I’ve seen promises like this work I’ve or twice, but then they stop maintaining their data or pays get hard to get rendering the gesture null.
Upgrade wise… I switch machines every 4 to 6 years… at which point the chassis has a bit of wear and tear.
Spec wise I buy what I need and add a little headroom with the ThinkPad.
Spare parts are good for ThinkPad and Lenovo actually has component replacement guides that no one seems to mention or know about.
And when I do upgrade I appreciate having a complete spare machine.
I think it’s also not unreasonable to assume my style of buying and upgrading is not uncommon.
This leaves the Framework very few hardware advantages and nil price advantages.
I still think they’re a great idea, but I don’t see any practical benefit over a sensible alternative.
Genuine question… Have I missed anything?
Well, framework has one cool side-effect of their repair-friendly approach: their laptop mainboard can be used as an SBC. I’ve seen a few projects use it in this way, and I believe they even sell an official plastic case for it. It’s a well-documented piece of computer hardware that is regularly refreshed and can be fitted easily into slim chassis.
Oh, and another cool thing is that their screens have magnetic bezels. ThinkPads are a PITA to fix if you just want to replace an LCD panel; framework makes it trivial to keep the upper chassis and only replace the part that’s actually broken. That’s the real pitch with Framework: replace anything easily and upgrade your computer for only the cost of the mainboard or socketable component. Some of their newer devices have a socketable PCIe expansion bay, which could be used for things like socketable GPU upgrades.
I just had a look at their motherboards, nearly AUD$1000 shipped for the cheapest available 12th gen board… board only.
Just bought a ThinkPad with 16gb dual channel and 1TB nvme for $60 less than this and it has an on-site warranty.
I love the idea but the pricing is insane.
Just pricing the minimum possible 16" machine came to AUD$2400 with no ram, no SSD, no OS, no numpad and no charger.
Add all this things, even self bought your looking at over $3k or even $4k if you want the GPU
I wish them luck… They’re going to need it.
I just got a pre-order for one of the Framework 16’s. The issue Framework has at the moment is scale. Lenovo has the size and customer base to produce an absolute insane number of laptops compared to Frameworks operation. So cost is going to be 30, 50 or even 100% more than the big boys like Asus, Lenovo or HP. They won’t ever get that scale unless people believe in it and buy one.
However, there’s one other thing which I justified my purchase with. I could buy a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme with the i7-2700H, 32gb of ram and a RTX 3050ti for $AUD4,929. Or I could buy the Framework 16 with Ryzen 7840HS, 32GB ram, Radeon 7700s for $AUD3,916. Both of these processors and GPUs are similarly speced, in fact I believe the benchmarks had the Framework slightly ahead, but the framework comes out over $AUD1000 cheaper. Yes the Thinkpad X1 Extreme is their uber premium model, but just as you pay a premium for Lenovo’s business grade hardware, you pay a premium for Frameworks repairability.
Just popped that Lenovo into my small business cart and got $1000 under what you’ve mentioned (assumed you went with upgraded screen, the 60hz 300nits screen is a piece of crap and shouldn’t exist in a machine of that calibre), but even at that price the framework does seem more attractive.
No doubt if you take money out of the equation it’s a good option, but if you’re on a budget you could hunt down a similar specced Lenovo Legion or something for a bit less.
I believe the price difference came from you being part of the Lenovo business store, I didn’t use that the last time and just used the standard consumer store.
I just re-entered the specs on the consumer store for the X1 Extreme Gen 5 16" and got 5,214 Australian Dollars. Otherwise it might be if you aren’t in Australia, did you get the local dollar amount and convert to AUD or did you use the Australian store directly?
Anyway, doesn’t change the main point as you say that if you are bargain hunting, the Framework 16 isn’t the way to go but it’s still a good laptop from what we can see. I don’t mind spending more for the framework since I believe in what it stands for. Plus who knows what might come with upgrades down the line.
I actually have no idea what Framework is.
Check it out! It’s a great, modular, and repairable laptop with comparable prices for the specs in regards to mainstream laptops.
You can even upgrade the motherboard, which means as long as the company doesnt go under you can just infinitely reuse and upgrade it kinda like a tower PC.
and you keep the company from going under by buying their products so buy it next time if you need a new laptop and can afford it =) and make sure to upgrade whenever you need it =)