New Top Cover?

Framework Laptop 13
1

Does anyone have any pictures of this new top cover?

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2

Itā€™s exactly the same with new internal structural elements. You cant see anything on the outside.

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3

Ok, so itā€™s just stronger? Got it.

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4

You can see part of it in the marketplace images, which doesnā€™t show much more than the 12th gen announcement.

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5

I thought they are going to introduce a touchscreen model :confused:
The new one seem to have some reinforcement lugs sticking out. Not sure how effective it is.

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6

The fact that they designed and QCā€™d a mainboard so fast probably means that any frequently requested ā€˜upgradeā€™ is probably in the pipeline or on the drawing board.

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7

It could also be that the 12th gen is close to a drop-in replacement or that they have been working on it since even before the release of the first board.

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8

Yeah could be, Iā€™m just gonna be optimistic and guess (hope) that a touchscreen is around the corner. If not iā€™ll try to source one myself. Thatā€™d be a fun project to write the firmware.

9

It could be that they are going to introduce a new touch screen. After all why did they do the work of building a new stronger top panel. Perhaps they expect peopleā€™s fingers to be hitting the screen in front of it and their testing revealed that the top panel needed to be stronger.

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10

I believe this is more caused by several customers breaking the display when transporting it in a backpack or putting heavy stuff on top of it and the Framework team being generally not satisfied with the stiffness of the top panel.

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11

People were careless with their laptops. Isnā€™t that a normal thing? Were there a lot of reports of broken screens or purchases of new screens?

12

I know @CJ_Elevated said in his 6-month review he was unhappy with the hinges and flex in the display so it may have just been a QOL improvement rather than fixing something that broke excessively

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13

Iā€™ve had one since batch 3 of preorders and I really welcome the new top cover. It has the most flex of any current/retired 13" laptop in my household. To me, the ā€œwobblyā€ hinges is really a wobbly top cover issue. From closed to 135Ā° it feels normal, but past that point it feels as if the leverage/flex from the top feels flimsy.

14

We started scoping the 12th Gen Intel Core based Mainboard before we started shipping the original 11th Gen one due to how long the development cycles are for products this complex. Similarly, weā€™ve actually been investigating CNC processes for the Top Cover since 2020, but were able to land it with our 12th Gen product now.

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15

This is my number 2 upgrade. Iā€™ve have very bad luck with my screen getting cracked (2 times now) while my laptop is closed and in my bad. Something hits it just right or with enough pressure and cracked screen. Iā€™d love a touch screen too, but Iā€™m sure Iā€™m not the only one who has had problems with the strength of the shell, especially considering thatā€™s what they are advertising

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16

@Josh_Bernard

I get ya. I took my Surface Pro to my job and somehow some little hard thing got in between the type cover and the screen and made a massive scratch in the middle of the display while in my bag.

No matter how careful you are with your stuff somehow itā€™ll get scratched or the display will break or something. Itā€™s just life.

17

Itā€™s hard to measure, but I wonder how much stronger the new CNC cover will be? This is my #1 upgrade. I use my laptop very carefully, so hadnā€™t had any real problems like screen breaking due to the cover flexibility. But I still really want it to be much more rigid.

I get used to macbook covers, which you can tilt / close holding by one corner. With Framework, if I do the same the whole screen noticeably bends, which is scary. So I started closing it holding the center of the cover :slight_smile:

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18

I must say the screen is the one thing I fear about the laptop. Itā€™s not chuckable like my old Dell was. If I can buy a whole new tougher top plate and screen assembly I may upgrade.

19

you really only need the top cover (plate) as the display is non-fused (a.k.a. not glued to the top cover like on other laptops), meaning that removing the screen is not difficult, just a bit more time-consuming.
A (not obvious) downside to a un-fused top cover is added weight and more flex, both of which is reflected in this thread.

20

I was under the impression there are adhesive pads holding the screen in? Most laptops I work on are just screwed in screens and easy to remove. Not a fan of trying to remove fragile screens from mastic pads myself.

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