I contemplated about that…and if everything goes to plan, then it’s around the same amount as what I’ve thrown at the Framework’s 11th gen mainboard:
Assuming I can sell the MSI for $1200 CAD after 6 months.
The 11th gen mainboard as it stands is useless to me, as it’s just gathering dust.
I’ll need to sell the 11th gen mainboard, and purchase the next gen mainboard from Framework, in order to make use of the ‘platform’. (1. It’s not clear if the existing 11th gen mainboard issues can be addressed via software. 2. 11th gen is now n-1)
If the next mainboard is another dud (for my use cases…and I understand that I’m not very forgiving when it comes to functional compromises), then the Framework ‘platform’ will continue to be a paperweight on the shelf.
In short, I need to spend some dough anyway in order to get a reliable daily driver at this point in time. (with or without Framework) For reference, my Framework unit came to $2700 CAD+. So, around $800 to save my sanity and excessive cursing for the next 6 months. (The 1185G7 mainboard is currently priced at $1039 CAD + tax…even after discount)
I jumped on the train back in September when reviews started popping up on Youtube.
At first I was quite skeptical since most DYI laptop were/are… not like this one let’s just say.
I was bummed that it was only available in North America but I’m used to it and I planned to get one anyway for Christmas since my laptop was (still is) literally broken.
It fell down while is was setting up a rack and the screw hold that kept together the bezel and the back of the screen broke off.
I kept using it (since the company I worked for had a BYOD philosophy) and then the hinge snapped in half, so now I have to open it carefully not to break my screen in half (or the bezel).
Was it a Framework™ I could have easily repaired it, I even searched for parts but found only the hinge. So I could have replaced the hinge and patched it up with some tape/screw (not the best but functional).
By Christmas I was waiting on the announcement from Framework to open shop in Europe.
Which they did, but only in the northern part.
So either I can wait or as you say, buy a temporary laptop and make the switch later.
My main problems are:
I could buy from a supported European country and then ship it but I have this same guy problem;
I would reeeeeally love to have an Ethernet port*;
I’d prefer an AMD CPU since it’s really energy efficient but I understand the problem with the thunderbolt ports;
I cannot buy the keyboard I need since EU Marketplace is still unavailable (I have to use Windows for work but it does not support the keyboard layout that could solve the problem like Linux).
I like the company and their plans and general ideas but I still have my problems to look for first.
So for now I think I’ll stick with my HAL-9000 and wait and see in order to avoid buying a product that I’ll post on Ebay later.
*The whole point of the expansion cards is “dongle-free workflow”, the majority of people interested in a device like this are going to be tinkerers/IT guys but you don’t publish an Ethernet card… it just feel strange.
I know a lot of the community and framework engineers are working on it but it seems impossible to make it fit and I don’t know why it wasn’t thought before… which is just my uninformed opinion and to honest a dongle is really not the end of the world
I’m a month into my usage and I love it. It’s replacing an older refurbished Thinkpad T430, and apart from the future-shock (USB-C! Thunderbolt! Bluetooth that isn’t garbage! Integrated graphics that can DO THINGS!), it’s still held up to my abuse.
It’s comforting to realize that I have full control over my machine, that it’s easy to repair, and that I can source parts reliably. Thanks Framework, you have a happy user.
…I won’t be buying a vPro wireless module again, though…
Framework Laptop with a current battery drain or battery life can be okay with a case of using at home or a predicable low risk travel such as that you buy a flight return ticket and book hotels in advance.
But it’s not okay for me to do a risky travel such as that you continue to buy one way flight ticket from point A to point B each time immediately before flying to another country or city or go to a small city or a developing country where a public transport or electricity is poor, and accidentally you may have to walk 10 km from now as you can not find a vehicle, or may have to live over a night without accommodation. In that cases, a battery life of the laptop affects literally own life, right? Let’s say, you survived one night without accommodation, then you try to book today’s accommodation or ask someone for help by using Framework Laptop, then you notice a battery life of the laptop is zero due to a battery drain. This is a bad scenario. That’s why I am still waiting a improved battery drain, and battery life to be used as a dairy driver.
I want a Framework since the very beginning, but like many others I’m still waiting for it to sell in my country so I’m keeping an eye from time to time on eBay for a deal, and most of the time, there are 1 our 2 for sale, then I noticed an increase on eBay lately witch got me curious.
On one hand there is new hardware out there and some ppl just can’t wait to get it, on the other hand, owning a Framework looks like a way of life, why getting anything else when u can just upgrade it down the road, I guess those who don’t want to keep a framework couldn’t make it work for their needs.
I’m still using a Thinkpad T430 and as Desktop a HP Z420 workstation (10+ year tech), upgraded with everything that could be done to keep then usable.
Nothing in the market checks all the boxes I’m looking for, but Framework is close, I just need some more iGPU power for light gaming, I guess by the time it gets to my country, AMD will be available as an option
Because I am lazy to shut down. Sleep is convenient to continue to work even in a short down (spare) times. I want to keep opening terminals and browsers related to developing, reading or writing work. I find down time, then work on it. I find another down time, then work on it again. The down times are such as ones for waiting a food in a restaurant or a cafe, or waiting or getting on a train or airplane.
Or even at home, I start to use a laptop, then I stop a laptop, then start to read a book, then start to use a laptop again, then stop a laptop and start to eat something… Sleep is good.
Will be keeping forever - I currently have an old Thinkpad I use only for banking / mortgage so when this thing is no longer relevant for daily driver at work I have a really good option for a spare machine for that use case.
I have had my framework (diy) for just over 2 months and am very pleased with it, I have had a problem with the camera module but that was quickly resolved by support. So yes I will be keeping my framework laptop for a long time.
Keeping mine. No issues as I’m using Windows and I don’t bother with ‘power saving’ features as I feel they are obsolete in the age of super fast NVMe storage.
The only ‘annoyance’ I have is that Framework could have mentioned to European buyers that they should buy all the expansion cards they need with the initial order as buying any more will be 6+ months away.
I do admit however, it doesn’t feel as ‘throw-about’ as my old Dell Lattitude, but what does?
I’m returning mine, as it has proven unusable because it constantly freezes even when using components that are officially listed as compatible. Very disappointing experience.
Definitely keeping mine. I’ve been running pretty smoothly with Arch Linux and Windows on an expansion card, and I look forward to being able to upgrade parts in the future. I’m especially excited for the possibility of coreboot on the horizon – tinkering with the firmware would be an exciting opportunity!
Thought I’d do an update: I managed to narrow down the freezing problem on my own to some issue with the video (loading the Intel driver would reliably cause the computer to freeze within a few minutes, but passing nomodeset to the kernel avoided this problem). After some correspondence with the Framework support team, they shipped me a replacement mainboard, which I swapped in for the one I originally had. The freezing problem is gone and everything is running quite smoothly on Fedora 36, so I thought it might be worthwhile to say that I’m not going to be returning the laptop after all. I appreciate the helpfulness of the support team; I can only assume that I was unlucky enough to get a bad board in my original order.
@Jerry_Vinokurov
Thanks for sharing your experience!
Im also using fedora and have to switch the Mainboard and already got a new one from support.
Did you have to do a clean install of fedora after the Mainboard Switch or did it just work with the new mainboard? My fedora installation is LUks encrypted and Secure Boot is on.
I bought the Framework to support them and the direction they are representing and will be keeping the laptop but I’m not 100% satisfied. I feel like this is generation 1 life and I’m OK with that as long as most significant problems can be fixed and future versions ship without them.
Main issues for me are:
Battery drain issues:
A significant shortcoming of a portable machine and limits it flexibility as a laptop.
Speakers:
Downward firing muddy and muffled. They are a real weak point if you use them.
Ports:
Four ports is a bit limiting, if the dual ports per card come to fruition that would be great.
Overall I think Framework are doing a good job but there are some teething issue I’m hopeful will be fixed. Mostly I am really excited and impressed with the community around the laptop, the benefits of a knowledgeable community of users with a laptop like ours is amazing for everyone involved.
@t6rwowWK No, I didn’t do a clean reinstall. I just popped in the new board and it booted up without any problems. Not sure if SecureBoot would change this, I had it turned off.
This is what has royally *cked Purism. This is why Framework gets my money and why Purism doesn’t. Go have a look at their forums, see how many threads on Reddit and on their forums are devoted to finding out when and if customers will get their orders.
