New mainboards only available as a bundle?

General Topics
1

“This item is currently only available as part of a pre-order bundle.”

This breaks the entire mission of Framework. You mean you’d prefer I buy a full new laptop and throw away my current laptop in the trash, instead of just upgrading my mainboard?

This is exactly the stuff I hoped I would never see from Framework. I hoped that I would always be able to buy individual parts.

I mean, if you’re doing this because you’re running short of funds, please just be transparent about that. It’s still a great laptop and I’d still chose it over a Thinkpad.

2

No it means that due to the size of Framework, they have to prioritize production of mainboards for pre-orders already made. Once those commitments have been met there will be surplus stock again which can be sold in the marketplace. This is kind of how it has been from the beginning.

Framework can’t command infinite lines of manufacturing and production for their products. Given their size, their ability to meet deadlines and quickly get products out the door should only be applauded. They are working their butts off.

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3

I understand how it can be unclear, though. There are a few places where the order system should be improved for better clarity. I believe Framework is aware of them, just hasn’t been able to improve the system yet.

4

Thank you for sharing your feedback. As 2disbetter has explained, this is only for the pre-order stage. This mainboard will be available for sale in the marketplace in the future.

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5

I’m collecting feedback from the community and sharing them with the team, unfortunately, making changes in the marketplace can take a bit of time. Please keep sharing the feedback as it is very helpful for the marketplace team!

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6

Ah, okay, thank you for the explanation. Look forward to upgrades being available as separate modules. I’m sitting on an 11th gen Intel and thinking about upgrading soon and was initially dismayed when I saw that. But thanks in advance and apologies for the tone.

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7

I guess another option could be making it possible to pre-order parts as well as whole laptops.
FW would then see what the demand is for parts in advance.

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8

I think is like the whole computer manufacturing process is streamlined than it’s parts, so it’s like introduction → preorder laptop & parts → order laptop but preorder parts → order laptop & parts, as time goes

9

No worries, I would also be angry if a company talked about upgradability but didn’t make the individual parts available. :wink:

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10

Maybe I’m missing something because I didn’t go through the whole ordering process, but if I click on the link for the bundle, and then say I’m bringing my own RAM and wifi, I can add just the main board to my cart for pre-order.

11

Yes, you are absolutely right! it’s possible to pre-order the bundle without the memory of the wifi, which is basically the mainboard part only.

Memory and wifi upgrade is needed if you are upgrading from an old mainboard (DDR4 vs DDR5) however it’s possible for you to purchase them separately.

12

So, yes. It’s possible to pre-order the Ultra Series 1 Mainboard right now as a part of the bundle and it should be available as a separate part (not as a part of the bundle) in the future. (practically the same thing but listed differently in the marketplace)

Hope this makes sense and sorry for the confusion.