I’m enjoying my FW12 batch 05 but the discouraging hardware issue is chipping nails over stuck expansion cards. It’s like winning the lotto when I can change my expansion card(s).
Things I’ve tried
Brute force
Plastic blade/edge from a cell phone display stand as a pusher tool
Once a small gap is created, a plastic shim - old credit card (I didn’t want to chance a metal screwdriver lest marring the card
Pulling up on the card, pushing down on the card whilst pushing to unseat.
Things that work
Brute force
Luck
It takes much force against the small ledge to dislodge the card and my working hypothesis is that the card is getting locked regardless of toggling the lock tab in on or off positions. Both lock tabs are affected and thus all 4 cards are stuck. It’s really exasperating
Googling and the FW forum only shows tips for the FW13 with eject buttons involving a two handed maneuver.
Toggling the lock tab does not do anything and the travel is minimal where the ledge chips nails. At first I thought the tiny holes near the side of each of the pairs of slots was a relief mechanism in case the lock tabs get stuck, but trying to probe the hole does not reveal much.
When I’ve gotten lucky and with much force, I was able to change the cards a total of 3 times which defeats the purpose of exchange utility so now I stick with 2 USB C, 1 USB A and the 250 GB card. I’d like to swap my Micro SD and HDMI but I don’t want to chance ripping off my nail or breaking the cheap plastic.
I’m just hoping over time as the plastic deforms with repeated heat and cooling that card slot management becomes easier.
Any advice, tips, tricks appreciated!
Note to Frame.work: please review and consider a redesign for the slots or some foolproof escape mechanism for expansion card ejection.
Mine are quite snug, but not that bad. With the switch unlocked (in the red position. Your picture shows the cards locked), I use a sort of squeezing grip. With the palm of my hand resting against the side of the laptop, I hook two fingers on the card and sort of squeeze and the card pops free pretty easily. Like I said, they are definitely pretty snug, but not so much that I would break a nail or anything trying to get them out. Maybe there’s something screwy with your locking mechanisms?
In the picture, your latch is in the “locked” position. Unlocked is when it’s slid towards the edge of the laptop and showing red instead of the normal body color.
When unlocked it still takes a fair amount of force to remove the cards. I use two thumbnails at once. They do get a bit easier after the first couple cycles, but still somewhat difficult to remove.
But with the locks engaged it feels like it would take a significantly larger amount of force. I haven’t forced them out that way; I’m worried about breaking something. So I can understand why you’d be chipping nails if your latches aren’t working.
Edit: Sometimes the latch doesn’t fully “lock” on a card, especially if it’s not pushed in 100% of the way. Cycling the latch from locked to unlocked and back to locked also sometimes seems to release a card. At that point it will pull out with the “unlocked” amount of force. Alternatively if I press the card in it moves a fraction of a millimeter and the latch audibly clicks back to fully locked. This seems to happen more frequently with my HDMI card, and less frequently with the USB-C cards. Anyway, that inconsistency might explain some of the randomness you’re experiencing.
Thank you both, leaving the tab in the red unlocked position permanently is definitely waay easier! I double checked: my user error mistake Framework Laptop 12 (13th Gen Intel® Core™) DIY Edition Quick Start Guide - Framework Guides and despite toggling the lock tab back and forth; unlocked red position is easier now, still tight but now not permanently so. Onward with learning Linux!
