I glanced at my closed Framework laptop yesterday and noticed what appears to be very subtle yet intentional curve in the shape of the lid. Can anyone from Framework confirm this is by design? I’m pulling my hair out trying to determine if this is a functional choice or if the lid is slowly bending over time.
No, I’m just asking about the curvature of the lid. I’m not experiencing any issues with deck flex or popping. All of my photos were taken of the opposite side of the laptop from where the WiFi card is found.
Hmm, okay. I’m out of ideas then (I’m batch 5, so I don’t even have my laptop yet…I just remembered I saw (what I thought was) a similar thread earlier, so I thought I’d link to it).
Purely by chance, I was watching Level1Techs’ video on the Framework laptop just now. I paused it near the end and couldn’t help but notice that it demonstrated this curve perfectly (at least I think it does).
Mine is also like this. If I had to guess I would say that it is intentionally designed to be a little bit concave, so that when the lid is closed the corners sit perfectly flush. I would imaging it is nearly impossible to actually manufacture such a thing (at production scale) to be perfectly flat.
I’m sure that Framework folks are busy (and I refuse to ping nrp out of respect for his time) but it’s frustrating that none of them have popped in here to give a conclusive answer (after 2.5 weeks and counting).
I’m on Batch 5, so cannot confirm yet, but my guess is that it isn’t by design. It’s just so thin, the lid aluminium enclosure is so thin and the whole lid is so flexible (based on the review videos), that it’s too easy to bend it a little bit either during normal usage, or during transportation, or even during assembly.
Anyway, looking forward to get any official comment on this matter
What follows is just my opinion. I’m a Batch 6 owner and retired mechanical engineer. Most of my 35 year career was in manufacturing.
After examining the surfaces of my Framework’s case using a straightedge (yes, a good, straight ruler), my conclusion is that the curves are an intentional part of the design. The bottom of the case is dead flat. The lid is slightly convex on the sides and top edge while essentially flat at the hinge edge. The keyboard / trackpad deck is also slightly convex along the sides and front edge while essentially flat at the hinge edge. It matches the lid very well.
I’d be surprised if the Framework folks reveal any tolerances to us. Tolerances are pretty standard (within a range) across casting and machining processes, but many companies still consider them proprietary.