Well, FW already has a proof of concept PC design for the expansion bay that will take two M.2 drives, so it seems to me that would the place to insert your oculink board.
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Indeed, could be a good solution as well. This, however, would depend on the type of oculink connector available, ideally in a way that keeps the oculink connection accessible towards the back of the laptop. I also hope that signal integrity should not be compromised with good egpus even when adding another connection.
PS: So yes, we still have some options out there. But this would also require buying another expansion bay. And who knows when this expansion bay comes out…
In an ideal world, Framework would offer an oculink connector at least as an option with this ssd expansion bay. Should not be too difficult to produce (perhaps similar to the one offered here: Minisforum UM780 XTX Mini PC Ryzen 7 7840HS processor). Hope is up ;). All this of course only if there is no community solution which I would always prefer.
I believe there is a removable piece on the expansion bay to allow people to fit experimental new items in there and bring connectors out without needing to cut and hack the cover. haven’t seen one myself yet, but it was mentioned somewhere on the forum.
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@Seneral I am certainly not in a position to “ask” anyone to do anything here, but as we have for long not heard from anyone else, I just wanted to say, please let us know if you decide to go ahead with any design for the basic expansion bay with an empty space in the middle. For my personal use, I would need pcie 4 speeds, but any update on any solution is always interesting for the community. Thanks!
I think EGPUs like one dock v2 can handle quite a lot in terms of signal integrity, so even a more “straightforward” design would be very valuable for a lot of people.
OcuLink PCBs arrived, going to send one of them to someone to test, if the test works I’ll start selling them. If you want to buy one right now, let me know.
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JOSH IS ALIVE! It’s partey time.
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@Josh_Cook Bought!!! ;). Thank you and I have to admit, you made my day. Hastily getting on the forum to confirm the buy… XD. But to be honest, I am really happy as the community here is working. This notebook is going to be one of the best in the market.
@Christian_Elsner XD. It’s party time indeed! ;). Let’s GO!
PS: this made one year on this forum worth it in the end.
I’ll post a payment link tomorrow so I can gauge my first batch size and you guys can pre-order one, as a quick guess it will be between 30-50USD for the PCB + the door for the expansion bay shell including shipping.
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Just a question also as a community disclaimer, what did you opt for in the end? 4i oculink and ssd, or full oculink speed? I assume you are going to explain a bit more tomorrow, but just to ask (I don’t care, I will buy anything XD).
PS: also a shoutout to @Seneral for his support on this of course!
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US only or worldwide?
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/patientbear
Worldwide, as I’m in Australia via FedEx International Priority
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Payment link has been setup.
This item includes the OcuLink Expansion bay module, with a DisplayPort input, USB-A 2.0 output, SFF-6811 8x OcuLink connector and a 3D printed back piece. Do note that if you only purchased a Expansion bay Shell with your Framework Laptop 16 you will need to purchase a Graphics Module interposer here: Framework which should be available soon. Shipping timeframe is between 30-60 days and updates will be provided to orderers weekly. If you want to subscribe to my own newsletter that I’m going to make updating people about new products, you can do so directly in the checkout. I’ve set my price at 45USD including shipping.
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I just realised that I have OcuLink 4x connectors and M key m.2 receptacles, so if people want I might setup another payment link for a 4x and M.2 Expansion bay module
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I’m interested, but not necessarily now. I suppose there is a risk that this a “now or never” kind of deal? Like if I try to buy one in 6 months you won’t have any left, and not enough demand to make a new batch?
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Buy when you want, as long as I’m still active here I’d be happy to produce one.
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@Josh_Cook Do you have photos or CAD that we could see? I have been following this for awhile, and I would love to see the finished product!!
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I don’t have any physical photos, but I’m finishing off the updated PCB design now so I’ll send some CAD renders soon.
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I’m currently selling 8x Oculink, but I’ll be selling 4x + an M.2 one soon
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dumb question: what is the available bandwidth of the 8x version and then what is the bandwidth of the 4x version that you expect to sell?
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