For me I got the FW16 as a desktop replacement device planning on using my FW13 for mobile use.
Didn’t end up working out like that due to desk space constrainst so my FW13 ended up taking the duty of the desktop replacement combined with a USB-4 dock and the FW16 has been a kick-posterior mobile laptop and mobile gaming beast.
not what i planned on using it for, but 10/10 would recommend to a friend (and have!)
I bought the Framework 16 (and gave away my FW13 to a family member) because I needed a portable workstation laptop I could use for field work. I really liked the space for two drives as this allows for easy dual booting to separate my work and personal data (Windows 11 for work, Fedora KDE for personal). I also needed as much GPU as I could get for my forensic photogrammetry work in Agisoft Metashape Professional and other scientific photography work in Darktable and GIMP.
What was most attractive for me was the possibility of upgrading the GPU as time went on. Having more GPU power shortens the rendering process and allows me to give my clients faster turnaround time. As new versions of software release and as new scanning equipment is developed, having a computer that could grow alongside the other technology was something I really valued.
I wish the battery life optimization was better for light workloads, and I wish the firmware support was more frequent and consistent. But other than that, I like my Framework 16 for what it can do and how easy it is to service in the field.
What were the key decision-making points for you?
My list:
That’s it. That’s the entire list for decision making between FW13 (FW12) and FW16.
15" is my personal minimum for usability. 17.5" is the maximum for reasonable portability.
For me, the FW13 was dimissed out-of-hand due to screen size. FW16 was an insta pre-order because of screen size.
I didn’t, but I plan to.
so, I became aware that framework was a thing that existed last summer or so, when frustration over a fairly minor part failing and killing yet another laptop, with repairs proving impossible because no replacement parts exist, led me to look for something more durable/reliable, and I found a review of the AMD FW13, further research led to the FW16, which I initially settled on, planning to order in november to take advantage of black friday sales…I aware framework doesn’t believe in sales, but wasn’t at the time, and still saved a few hundred because I got the ram and SSD from places that do 
…which I mostly put into getting more ram and a bigger SSD
somewhere between the summer and actually ordering, I decided to go with the FW13 instead, because the configuration I wanted was about $1000 cheaper, and performance was still good enough for at least a few years even without the possibility of upgrades, and my finances worked better…also, not one, but two of my gaming laptops got repaired in the meantime…
so, the plan was, and remains, get the FW13, (done) pay off the bill(in progress), save up and buy a FW16 when the aforementioned zombie gaming laptops die for real (also in progress) with slight expansion of both the plan and the timescale due to the fact that the FW12 was announced halfway through, and clearly that’s required.
I have a brother that’s planning to get a FW16 to replace his laptop once it dies, size and performance make it the only real option for him. (the dude is huge, he’s four years older than me and probably as much bigger than I am proportionally now as he was when I was born…and I’m average sized )
my sister got a refirb AMD FW13 when they came back in stock to replace her laptop that refused to charge while she was waiting for the computer shop to get back to her about the old one…(when they did, they told her, ‘USB C port is fried, new one will require a new motherboard, just use the other USB C’ …which never worked until the other one quit…fn’ gremlins I tell you…)
so, since she had been considering a second laptop anyway, she just kept both of them, and when it dies again, she’ll probably replace it with a FW12 to go with her FW13
also more or less have my best friend planning a FW13 when her laptop dies.
so, the tally:
current,
2 FW13s
pre-ordered,
1 FW12
pending death of their predecessors: (and the budget to pay for them )
2 FW16
1 FW13
1 FW12
seven laptops for four people, and three of them are for me!
I hadn’t planned on getting the FW13 simply because I wanted a laptop with a dGPU for gaming while out of town. The FW13 didn’t provide that but I loved the idea of having a repairable and upgradeable laptop. I was hoping for Framework to come out with a laptop that had a dGPU. Cue FW16 being announced! I was excited! But didn’t really want to spend money on a new laptop since the now previous one was still working fine… until the power brick frayed and I wasn’t able to charge it. Decided to get the FW16 since it would be a decent upgrade from my previous laptop, it was able to charge via USB-C (so I wouldn’t end up in that situation again), and would hopefully be a replacement for my desktop. I ended up in batch 13. I had to replace the power cable for my old laptop while I waited for the FW16, but I switched over to the FW16 after it came in.
I was worried about the dGPU in the FW16 not being as powerful enough to be a desktop replacement and it performs about on par with my aging GTX 1080 desktop GPU. It has, however, mostly replaced my desktop simply due to the convenience of portability (I can be in bed and play games) as well as how fast it is to boot. I do still use my desktop for VR and storage backup though. I’m really hoping for a new GPU for my FW16 so it will finally replace my desktop.
Because it was a desktop replacement, hopefully a new mainboard is in it’s near future. I have to use a macbook pro for my AI dev work, but I would like to use Linux on the FW16. Now I use it as my work computer running windows.
I chose the FW16 over the 13 for comfort, it’s modular design, and the fact that I was buying into a future of possibilities and wonders.
The 13, initially had all of my attention because of it’s repairability, but my hate for Intel was greater than any righteous convictions I had. Then the 16 stole the show as soon as it was announced. It had AMD, it had a kick-ass panel, a never before seen input module top and butt, etc, etc. So I put my money where my mouth is even though I didn’t need a new laptop.
Additional context:
I bought a Flow x13 2 years prior as I was really curious about 2-in-1 and the wait for an AMD option was killing me. The heat, the noise & the lies on the quality of their “PANTONE calibrated” panel was enough to give me PTSD from high performance small form factor laptops.
I had also been thinking about the most cost effective way of upgrading my server stack. I wasted months of my life looking at used & new options, comparing the costs and power consumption, etc. Then it hit me… 
FW16 motherboards! 
I’ll be stuck with those as I upgrade to each new gen anyway! So then I really, really, REALLY wanted the FW16, and now I really, really, REALLY want an upgrade! 
PS. My FW16 has been a blast to use from day one! Thank you.
PPS. Where… is… my… RGB NUMPAD!!!
I switched from a separate Laptop for travel, and a classic desktop for home use almost ten years ago. Even so, since then I’ve been spending around $2,000 every three or four years to upgrade out of date systems. While I’ve been able to budget for that, it’s still a significant cash outlay. Plus there has been an ongoing e-waste problem: what to do with the old systems?
So switching to a Framework 16 was a natural choice. Initial purchase was in the usual $2,000 range, but that should now be a one time deal. I’ll wait my conventional three or four years, and see what motherboards are available, which should cost a lot less than $2,000. I should be able to transplant the SSDs, although I’ll almost certainly need to buy new memory. Fit it into the current case, and I just got a laptop upgrade for maybe half the cost of a brand new one.
What else I like about Framework is that it’s an open ecosystem. Data are made available for us to build custom expansion cards and “back slot” modules. And the whole modular expansion slot system means I can get a laptop configured with the ports I want, not what some system designer thinks is good for me. Hot-swapping them is just icing on the cake.
This topic was automatically closed 180 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.