If you didn’t get the email, here it is (part 1 of 2)
Update on Framework Laptop 16 shipment timing
Based on the remaining engineering validation we need to complete and open issues that we are in the process of resolving, we have high risk on our first shipment timing (currently targeting mid-December) and on starting mass production early enough to get a substantial number of Q4-batch units out before the end of the year. We have dedicated engineering teams across Framework, AMD, our main manufacturing partner Compal, and our key module manufacturers working daily on closing the remaining open items, which we have more detail on below. We’re committed to transparency, and we’ll continue to keep you up to date with regular emails as we complete validation, start manufacturing ramp, and fulfill batches.
Note that we’ve fully built up factory capacity, so once we start mass production of Framework Laptop 16, we’ll be able to make our way through batches quickly like we have recently on Framework Laptop 13. We’ll also likely be fully through production of the pre-order backlog on Framework Laptop 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 Series) before we start ramping Framework Laptop 16, so we’ll have minimal contention for our manufacturing lines and fulfillment capacity.
We know this delay is disappointing, but we prioritize building products for longevity, stability and quality. To paraphrase the saying in the video game industry, delayed hardware is eventually good, but rushed hardware is forever bad (even when it’s repairable and upgradeable). This is especially true for Framework Laptop 16, where we’re locking in a first design and architecture now that we’ll carry forward over multiple generations of updates. We understand if the product timing no longer meets your requirements, and you can follow the instructions in the Knowledge Base article here to cancel and refund your pre-order if necessary. If you have an urgent need for a laptop and don’t have a strong screen size preference, Framework Laptop 13 is also in stock now for Intel configs and is about a month away from being in stock for AMD.
Details on remaining opens and validation items
We don’t want to provide messaging around delay risk without giving transparency on where the risk comes from. This is part of our core philosophy of showing you what goes into building consumer electronics products. For context on the list below, these are what we consider the most critical open items out of a longer list of engineering and operations tasks that are in progress. While there are smaller issues that we would potentially defer into a firmware update if needed, these are ones that pass the threshold to hold production for. For more context, this is also not an atypical list to have for a complex hardware product late in its DVT2 development phase. We were tracking a similarly critical (though slightly smaller) list in the weeks prior to Framework Laptop 13 (AMD Ryzen 7040 Series) mass production.