I don’t know if this will be useful to anyone, but I thought I would give a very quick recap of my experience as a customer so far. IMO, feedback never really hurts. For context, I’m a US-based customer.
BUYING THE LAPTOP
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I thought the store experience was pretty great. I never ran into any issues, and I really appreciated the documentation related to M.2 and RAM compatibility. I wound up buying the exact same components that Framework uses, I just got better Black Friday / Cyber Monday deals getting them a la carte elsewhere. Framework already earning goodwill with that approach!
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Communication and updates were clear and timely. Honestly, this part of the experience went incredibly smoothly for me, and my compliments to the folks who designed it.
SHIPPING AND DELIVERY
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I ordered on 27NOV, it shipped on 7DEC, and it arrived on 13DEC. Absolutely no complaints, and FWIW, FedEx has handled packages better for me this year than other vendors, and the tracking and updates from their side worked just fine.
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Exterior packaging was in good condition; interior packaging was in great condition.
DIY EDITION ASSEMBLY
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Overall, everything went pretty smoothly. There might be a trick to getting the backplate off that I’m not aware of: one of my corners is very “grabby” and I had to probe a bit with the spudging tool. Side note: thanks for the spudging tool! Side-side note: I also appreciate the retention screws staying with the backplate and not flying around my kitchen.
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M.2 and RAM installed as easily as you’d expect. I know that’s basically adult LEGO, but it made me smile.
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FIRST moment of frustration: getting that wireless card, particularly the leads attached was an absolute pain in the neck. I got through it ok, but it involved four hands, the spudging tool, a pair of tweezers, and about five tries. There was a hilarious / terrifying moment where the speaker magnet “stole” the tweezers. Again, all’s well that ends well, but if you ever want to find a way to improve this part of the experience, it might be worth a look.
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SECOND moment of frustration: three of the four expansion card slots fit perfectly; one required persuasion. Also, removing ANY of them requires applying a surprising amount of force. From what I’ve seen on the forums, having one slightly uncooperative slot seems to currently be a bit of a thing. Just FYI.
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Also, the DIY guide was honestly among the best I’d ever seen. Again, my compliments to your documentation person(s). There was an issue where the guides were unavailable for some weird HTTPS reason on the night of 16DEC, but that seems to have been resolved.
OS INSTALLATION / FIRST BOOT
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As mentioned above, at this point the guide was playing hard-to-get and I was flying a bit blind, but I got through it ok. I already had my thumb drives with the Win10 media and the latest Framework drivers. I was also genuinely shocked (in a good way) by how “clean” of an install this was. You guys haven’t sold out in terms of bundling unnecessary software, and that makes me extra-happy to give you my money.
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When the guide was back online this morning, I noticed that there was a note about updating the firmware on the SN850, which I wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. Again: I appreciate you guide-writer!
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THIRD moment of frustration: I spent longer than I care to admit looking through the packaging and checking every sticking inside the laptop before I realized the Win10 key is on my account, and not enclosed or attached. Again, all’s well that end’s well, but you might want to check with your support folks and see if they get a lot of calls like that. It could also be just me.
FINAL THOUGHTS / ISSUES
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My camera switch clicks solidly and has resistance; my microphone switch has almost no click and no resistance. I’ll probably reach out to your support folks later and see what can be done about that.
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I see that your developers and engineers are active on the forum: please never change. There were several moments in my early research where that input gave me the confidence to pull the trigger on the laptop.
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Overall, so far I’m very impressed with everything about this experience. Not sure if this write-up will help anyone seeing as you’re already into your sixth or seventh wave of delivery, but here it is regardless. And if it helps even one other person who can’t find their Win10 key inside the box, it’ll be worth it.
