Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition reviews are live!

Framework Team Blog
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You may be wondering, does a high-performance, upgradeable Chromebook make sense? The first reviews of the Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition are in, and so far the answer is yes!

Over the last few weeks, we sent systems and Upgrade Kits to journalists across the tech industry, and they have started sharing their reviews. We’re thrilled to see the feedback on the improvements we’ve made along with the overall philosophy of being able to fully upgrade a thin and light notebook, module by module. Check out some of the highlights below, and we will continue to post on our social media channels as more go live.

“I can’t express how impressed I am with the overall feel and build quality of a device that is primarily made to be easily taken apart.”

– Robby Payne, ChromeUnboxed

“The good news is that even though the Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition is going to be drawing tons of power to offer such high-end performance for a Chromebook, battery life is fantastic.”

– Matthew Sholtz, Android Police

"I love the Framework Chromebook. It’s one of the few tech products that I’ve reviewed this year that truly feels like a consumer-first gadget and is made by a company that truly cares about the environment."

– June Wan, ZDNet

We’re thrilled with the feedback we’ve received highlighting the high-performance, repairable, upgradeable and customizable nature of this Chromebook, combining the best of ChromeOS and the Framework Laptop ecosystem. Reviewers loved that this is both the fastest Chromebook available and the most power-efficient Framework Laptop yet. Check out some of the highlights, and we will continue to post on our social media channels as more reviews go live.

We partnered with Google to create the Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition to expand our mission into new categories. We believe everyone should have products designed to last.

Pre-orders begin shipping to the US and Canada next week. We don’t have plans to bring the Chromebook Edition to additional countries yet, but you can register your interest to help us prioritize future expansion. If the Chromebook Edition isn’t for you or you need a laptop right away, the Framework Laptop (12th Gen Intel Core) compatible with Windows and Linux is now in stock and shipping in US, Canada, Germany, UK, France, Ireland, Austria, Netherlands, and Australia.

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I have to admit I bought a high end Dell Chromebook back in 2016. It had a core i3, 4GB of ram and carbon case etc. etc. Very high spec for a Chromebook back then. It was a gorgeous machine. Cost me like £650 back then (£800 today).

But due to the nature of ChromeOS it was really no more or less functional than the 11" 2GB ARM CPU £200 Samsung Chromebook I bought in 2012.

Be careful with this as all that extra power…may never be utilised if you are using ChromeOS.

If you have never used a Chromebook before, best borrow or buy a cheap one first to see if it does what you need.

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@Jason_Dagless - for most “normal” use cases you are correct, and I agree with the advice to test things out initially on a cheap or borrowed machine. However, if a user is running a number of android apps and/or crostini (the linux environment) then higher specs (CPU, RAM, SSD) are beneficial.

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Oh indeed, just as the owner of three Chromebooks in the past, the idea is often better than the reality. You may find you’ve bought a Ferrari and then remember you live on the island of Jersey and not the Isle of Man. :rofl:

Especially if you just plan to use it as a ordinary web based day to day laptop. But if a power developer on the platform, have at it.

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Hi, will there be an AMD version of Chromebook?

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I came here to ask the same question - and in general, I am curious to hear from the @Framework team about the Chromebook update plans. I absolutely adore my Framework Chromebook - it’s fast, repairable, has security-focused firmware and coreboot, and with 64GB of ram it runs Crostini linux containers fabulously, in addition to Borealis Steam games :slightly_smiling_face:. And full system updates complete in 10s or so, something I’ve not experienced with any other platform.

I really hope the Framework team feels the same way and is planning to continue supporting its Chromebook line of products, including perhaps a 16" version, which I am also very interested in. I love the plans for modular GPUs, and I may get one to run Linux straight on the hardware, but it would be great to have Chromebook options as well, and assurances that 13" Chromebook hardware updates are also planned.

All that said, I know Framework is a young company and must carefully focus its resources and efforts. Any hints on intentions with respect to the uniquely wonderful Framework Chromebook would be greatly appreciated. Kudos to the team :pray:

Micha

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