I don’t know for certain, but I’m guessing that it’s actually a physical tolerance issue rather than an electrical limitation. Just messing around with mine the right pull tab on the keyboard starts to interfere with the actual trackpad of the trackpad module. In theory, if one removed that pull tab on the keyboard, I’m assuming the trackpad would work just fine (could in theory experiment by remove the trackpad and it’s connector from the assembly)
yeah, i’m sure there’s very real reasons, it’s just personally disappointing to me to see “oh you can totally move it around, but not in the specific way you’ve always wanted”
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I don’t like the spacers. One of mine arrived a little wonky and didn’t form flat enough with the touch pad and have this lip digging into my palm. I would rather just want one long touch pad than these spacers.
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I also think the spacers look pretty ugly and don’t feel great. I’d happily buy a full-width trackpad or a double-width spacer.
Sorry if this has been mentioned before but this thread is TLDR. The spacers and touch-pad are made of some aluminum alloy and are soft enough to be gently flexed. I had one gap that wasn’t perfectly aligned, so I popped it out gave it a little flex and popped it back on. Nice and smooth now.
Not to poo-poo anyone’s grievances, but it’s modular, it going to have some gap. At least on the unit I received the tolerances are perfectly acceptable save for that very slight misalignment that I corrected. It feels good to type on and it looks like it did in the pictures. Given that this is the only modular deck I’ve ever seen, I can’t really critique the fit and finish beyond that. Be fair, I’ve never been one to care too much about the aesthetics of my laptop. I bought this for the modularity. So I got what I wanted. Maybe other people here just wanted a repairable macbook?
Since I’m also a maker/tinkerer, I’ve already contemplated making possible replacements just for fun.
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To rehash my previous review:
I ran into some trouble when I first installed the spacers. The spacers as shipped had a bit of an upward curve towards the keyboard end which lead to them not latching in and securing properly. I was able to bend them into a position where they fit but the spacers now have a slight deformation which is quite visible under certain lighting conditions.
Given that there are only three touchpad orientations available (left/center/right), I would suggest making three “unibody” touchpads to cover each orientation.
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First, I have no qualms with anyone who is bothered by the spacer gaps. Yes, a smooth, continuous surface would look nicer.
Second, I voted No in the poll about being bothered. I appreciate the design and engineering far too much to be bothered by what I consider to be a minor aesthetic issue.
In fact, the gaps are, in a way, beautiful to my eyes. They remind me of all the FW team had to accomplish to give me what they promised and what I coveted, namely elegant modularity. For myself, objecting to the resulting fit and finish of the FW 16 would be like purchasing a convertible hard-top car for its on-off flexibility, and then complaining that the contours of the roof lines are not as smooth as those of a fixed hard-top version.
Again, no issues with those who feel differently. Perhaps in the future, FW could satisfy everyone by offering multiple versions of a seamless palm-rest piece, with trackpad left, center, or right. In the meantime, feel free to insert (rightfully) the old engineering joke here at my expense, in which I ensure my own beheading. 
Edits: typos, spelling, wording
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I somehow keep getting hair/skin stuck in the gaps, not a fan.
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My suggestion: one (1) unibody centered touchpad. Available as a separate “accessory” purchase. Pleasing everyone is not realistic.
Feedback is one thing, complaining about a feature not being perfect is another. You want to see an example of some bad fit and finish from a product that is orders of magnitude more expensive?
Look up the “Cybertruck Owners Forum” That is millions of dollars R&D/management poor decision making. At least you can return your FW16…
I don’t think anyone is returning their 16 over this, but I don’t think it’s at all unreasonable to complain about this. I think what we’re seeing here is the breadth of the variability of the input deck tolerances.
The alignment on mine is so bad that if I’m not careful, it will actually draw blood. It’s not even a flatness issue, though there is also definitely that. My touchpad doesn’t push in as far as the spacers, leaving the right corner exposed to punish my wrist should it dare to take a rest while typing. I’ve also caught one or two of the fine hairs on the underside of my arm in that gap.
I know there are many different design philosophies when it comes to laptops, but I’m pretty sure they all subscribe to the idea of not lacerating users. This is a design flaw, one that Framework really must address if they want this product to be taken seriously. We as enthusiasts will put up with this, but the general public will not.
I personally am going to live with it for now and see if they come up with any solutions within the next year or so. If I start getting asked questions about self-harm, I may mod it myself, probably by taking it to a fine sanding belt, but I’d rather not cuz I’ll have to remove so much material that it’ll undoubtedly look like ass, which would be a shame because the rest of it looks so good. I personally would not buy a full-width touchpad module. I want maximum flexibility no matter what I have to endure to get it, so I hope they’re able to simply improve the touchpad and spacer designs.
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Dude, there is no need to be hostile over this.
If they are going to sell centered touchpads without need of spacers, then let them decide which category they go in and what price they aiming for.
Just because you don’t agree, doesn’t mean you are entitled to decide for others. =/
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Now that I’ve got a Framework 16 in my hands, this is a little worse than I thought it would be.
I’m thrilled to have the computer, would have rather had it earlier with its fit and finish issues than later without them; but I don’t think I can recommend, in an unqualified way, the laptop to normal people in its current state.
I could show them mine, point out the flaws, and then recommend it. That’s different though.
Three issues:
One of my metal touchpad spacers is less flat than the other. Holding them up to each other, I can’t really perceive the difference, but the plastic clip, thing, underneath one does have a hairline gap between it and the metal on one side, and not on the other. The result is, while installed, the defective spacer is raised on the left. It’s not bad enough to cause real problems, but it is bad enough to catch your thumbnail if you drag it across the seam between the spacer and the touchpad assembly, and it looks noticeably worse than the other spacer in its place. It’s possible that I caused this issue while bending the spacer to not have the corner sticking up, which would have been an alternative problem, I guess… It didn’t fit quite right out of the box, either way, and I can’t find a way to bend it to lay flush, though I have tried.
Second issue, either of the plastic spacers, installed left of the keyboard, have enough play that you can tap them gently with your finger and get two plastic clicks, one down and one up. The rubber patch on the bottom doesn’t make contact with the middle plate all the way through. (I shimmed it with some folded paper, which is… fine)
The keyboard itself has a similar issue to the spacer on the upper left, so that typing is kind of distracting. It’s a gap between the middle plate and the keyboard. I shimmed that with paper the same way. (It got me thinking, that can’t possibly be intentional, but then, why does the mid plate have all those vent-looking holes?)
I also found that the middle plate is very sensitive to how it’s screwed down. They put those numbers on the screws for a reason, and it helps if you also use your non-screwing hand to “smooth out” the plate like it’s a piece of paper, around whichever screw you’re working on.
Without these minor fit and finish issues, there is an unrefined aesthetic quality to the seams between the various components. I do love the concept, though, so I’m not sure what to make of that. I could easily see it turning people off, on the one hand, but on the other, I’d rather keep it as-is myself, provided everything can be manufactured and shipped just-so. I’ll probably eventually be playing with the various swappable modules.
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Personally, after 3 weeks i really haven’t noticed the spaces being uneven at all. I regularly switch between an external mouse and the trackpad, and while i can sometimes notice that they are uneven, it is only when i am directly looking or thinking about the issue. The issue i have really had is that the trackpad is a touch shorter than i am used to, but i have already started building that muscle memory.
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I’m hoping the later batches are more refined on the spacers. I’m Batch 13 so I’ll probably have my laptop in about 3 weeks and I’ve been a little worried about the spacers. There seems to be quite a bit of variation between everyone who’s gotten theirs so far. I’m hoping mine ends up being fine and that I’m not bothered by it. Unfortunately I won’t know till I get it. But this sounds promising and I’m aware of one user who hasn’t had any issues with theirs (either a good set or preference isn’t bothered by it, IDK).
I keep seeing the unevenness all the time. The notebook is sitting besides my PC both at home and at my workplace. Right on the desk. Can’t unsee the spacers. Each time I lay my hands on them the bad spacer moves and creates an uneven edge. Looks totally amateurish. =(
I’m not sure, the section that prevents the trackpad from being one unit left of the keyboard seems like it wouldn’t exist if the left “ear” on the keyboard wasn’t double wide, and at least on the RGB US Keyboard I have it doesn’t look like that’d be entirely necessary, it perhaps made PCB layouts easier or has some other electrical benefits, but IMO it doesn’t appear to be physically necessary.
There are definitely issues that come up with trying to have the trackpad 2 units to either side, but feels like 1 unit left wasn’t really something they had to block (granted, this is just on my sample size of my 1 keyboard and lacking any sort of insights onto the challenges they had in designing and manufacturing the keyboards).
Since I got mine now, I can say, that the spacers and also the touchpad are indeed a bit bent. I don’t have issues with hairs being captured in the gaps nor does it hurt in one way or another, but it really doesn’t look good. I’ll try bending the spacers and touchpad a bit, should be doable.
So I got my FW16 earlier today and I’ve been getting it setup. I have to say that for my spacers I don’t really notice them. The right side is slightly bothersome but the left looks mostly fine to me. I would like to see these refined a bit but honestly so far it really doesn’t bother me. We’ll see when I get some more time to use it and really look at it.
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After using mine for about a week I can say I would really like a single spacer that is double sized. I moved my touchpad all the way to the left to be right under my keyboard and my two single size spacers to the right under my numpad. I keep getting my arm hair caught in the tiny gap between the two spacers. I would happily buy a single piece double sized spacer to prevent that from happening.
Otherwise I am loving this laptop and I am happy I purchased it.
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It’s really not the far left or right. You’re just moving the trackpad 34mm left or right of center (subject to the limitations as mentioned by @Semptum). Would have been nice if it could move further.