So I am an avid gamer/student that has no real experience building or assembling PC’s and laptops, but is looking to branch into them regardless. I found this laptop to sufficient enough to peak my interest, but have several question regarding both the process of assembling itself and what I need to do in order to have a smooth start.
What would I need to get if I order a DIY kit in terms of parts? I saw several people talk about what else you would need to get but some clarification would be nice.
I understand the Framework would probably not be the best choice out there for gaming, but understand the AMD version is better than Intel and as such would like to know what would be the best upgrades in order to make it as smooth as possible(i.e the parts that I would replace in the computer itself.
Finally, how long should these generally last for? One of their marketing ideas is that the changeability makes it last much longer than your average PC, but just how much of a difference in durability should I expect?
Thank you for your time and hopefully I can understand this awesome laptop along with community soon.
For a DIY Framework laptop, you can technically get everything you need from Framework when you go through the configuration process. However, you can also choose to leave out the RAM, SSD, and operating system, if you want to get those yourself separately.
For gaming, the 16" would be a better buy as it is available with a dedicated, AMD GPU, but it is quite a bit more expensive. The AMD 13" or the 16" without the dedicated GPU will use the integrated GPU in the AMD chip and it’s pretty good for gaming, as far as integrated graphics go. But the dedicated GPU in the 16" would be a better way to go for gaming. Just be aware, the 7700s GPU currently available for the 16" is a low to mid-tier graphics processor, estimated to be roughly equivalent to the RX 7600 desktop GPU that AMD recently released. It’s quite a bit faster than an integrated GPU, but it’s not going to match a mid to high-end desktop graphics card.
These are all offered to you as you check out, but you can get them separately.
You should get:
M.2 solid state drive (SSD). You can decide on the size, for gaming I would recommend a minimum of 1 TB, more might be even better (game files are big!). This must be an “NVMe” SSD, PCIe 3.0 would be cheaper and slower, PCIe 4.0 would be faster and may not be that much more expensive if you find the right model.
Memory: DDR4-3200 SODIMM. For gaming, go with a minimum of 16GB, get it in pairs, say 8GB X 2. More is better but above 32GB is probably wasted.
Charger/power supply: If you don’t go with Framework’s very nice 65W charger, get a 65W - 100W USB PD charger with a USB-C cable rated for that power.
Post your intended components here, I’m sure people will respond.
You could wait for the AMD DIY versions to come out towards the end of the year. You could have an Intel 13th gen in your hands within 5 days or so if you want it right now. When the AMD mainboard is available, it can be swapped in and you could sell your Intel 13th gen mainboard or put it in a cool Cooler Master case and install it on the back of a monitor - add a USB keyboard and mouse and away you go.
If you upgrade to AMD you will have to replace the memory with DDR5 as well as the wireless networking card. Framework has an upgrade kit.
The laptop will easily last 10 years+, maybe even 20, but what’s more important is how long the hardware will be relevant to you and the games you want to play. All you have to do is replace the mainboard though and you’ll be fully current.
Depending how you treat it, the battery may last 5 years or so, but it’s easy to replace, and higher capacity batteries are already available (61Wh vs. 55Wh)
I won’t re-invent the wheel here as the commentors above have touched on your main asks.
Wanted to bring a few items to your attention though.
There is an old thread with a lot of benchmarks from the intel 11th gen processors (1st gen Framework), the systems have gotten better and more powerful since then. Gamework (community benchmarks) - #32 by Allenx51
I have to refresh my understanding of the ports on the AMD board, but for the Intel board at least each port is capable of thunderbolt, and can be utilized for a thunderbolt eGPU/eGPU enclosure. So in theory you could have a thin and light to take with you, and a gpu back at home with additional ports, and storage to get heavier gaming in. There is are plenty of threads out and about that touch upon the performance to be expected and setups that have worked for others. For instance, I recall seeing a thread where someone was using a relatively lightweight (think it was a GTX1060) eGPU to play Cyberpunk 2077 with decent results.
As others said. Everything you need is an option in the order config process.
Opt for 16gb of ram. Stretch goal, 32gb. Take the GPU. I would expect it to run 1080p gaming quite competently on most titles; you check out some reviews of the desktop 7600 online and figure on it landing about there for performance.
2.1 - if you absolutely want to go a lot further, and are prepared to spend $2000usd or more in the process, external graphics cards can permit it. There’s a thread in these forums of people developing a particularly fast bay & dock for taking desktop GPUs. Alternatively, you could forget graphics cards entirely and pay per month to use Nvidia cloud if your internet connection is pretty fast - 100mbps or better, say. People forget that’s an option. I’ve tried it. It’s not bad, and it’s very simple to set up an account and try it out with whatever you have now.
Like a car, this laptop will last as long as a supply of spare parts does. Expect your first spare parts requirement to come up around 3-5 years (that is normal with consumer electronics, especially battery powered). Framework, so far, has fullfilled their promise of continued supply of not only spare parts but upgrades. If the company succeeds and remains true to that core promise, your framework will last many years - a bit like an axe that’s had 5 heads and 3 handles, if you know what we mean.
None of the individual parts should be expected to last any longer than other brands. It’s just you can get them and fit them more easily, and when they discontinue one (indeed, periodically) a compatible upgrade is offered. That’s the awesome part.
I can gauge by your name that you’re from Lithuania. They don’t support Lithuania and they don’t plan to do it any time soon. I wanted to order a laptop to here but there is no good way to do it.
And if you’d have a way to get it to Germany you’d have to get a German banking card with German payment address and with German shipping address.
Here is a list of countries that they work with right now: What countries and regions do you ship to?
And if you’ll ask about forwarding or circumventing this then support will shut down your questions. I tried.
@Martynas thank you for your concern and glad to see a fellow Lithuanian on here! However, I currently reside within the US so shipping is not an issue. Hope you can get a framework soon.
Thank you everyone for your help! I just booked an order so I will make sure to put you advice into use. I really do appreciate the time you guys took to answer and will hopefully update soon on how it went.
