Bluetooth, camera, parts, DYI, etc. - random questions

Framework Laptop 13
1

I will start off by saying I am not a tech enthusiast, so much as I am just a cheapskate. I like the idea of a framework laptop because it appeals to my desire to buy a thing once and fix and upgrade it for many years.

That said, I have some questions. They’re probably dumb ones, so please humor me.

  1. Is there Bluetooth support in any of these configurations? I didn’t see it mentioned, but maybe I’m missing something.
  2. Does the camera support Windows Hello?
  3. If the company dies a swift death, i.e., before I find myself updating or replacing any parts, would I still be able to find replacements elsewhere? I understand I could find hard drives or RAM, but what about the motherboard, display, and battery? Probably not?
  4. Why are the DIY kits more expensive than the corresponding pre-built options? Assembling sounds fun, but not several hundred dollars fun! Aren’t I saving the company money by assembling it myself, and if so, why the mark-up?
2

  1. Yes, the supplied wifi card supports Bluetooth 5.2

  2. Probably will, it would be stupid not to.

  3. Hopefully that won’t happen, otherwise we’ll all be out of luck

  4. I think I’ve seen an answer to that question somewhere in the community posts. Part of it is more expensive to ship, since the box will be bigger. Maybe a little more effort to select specific components and verify what’s in the box.
    The DIY gives you higher end choices than the standard configurations.

3

For Windows Hello, we have a fingerprint reader built into the power button. We didn’t use a camera-based solution, as it usually means significant sacrifices to image quality (having the camera sensitive to IR and visible).

The pricing between equivalent DIY and pre-built configurations is fairly close. If you bring your own OS like a Linux distribution, the price is somewhat lower. If you choose a retail Windows license, the price is somewhat higher.

2 Likes
4

Thank you for the clarification on number 2. I am so used to fingerprint sensors, I don’t think of cameras, which was the original question.

5

I kind of have to disagree here. For example according to my math if I configured the bare minimum of a DIY i5/8GB/250 Storage with power adapter and 4 USB-C that’s 966 USD. The equivalent in pre-built is only 33 USD more at 999 USD and I get a Windows 10 Home license. If I threw a Windows license on the DIY then it jumps to 1105 USD! I wouldn’t call 106 USD fairly close.