Yeah I may just end up building another PC. Speaking of which, does Framework plan to release the Framework desktop case standalone?
Thanks. My current 13 is all from Framework. Never had any hardware issues. I think I made the right choice again.
I mean if it doesn’t have to be a laptop you can get way better XD
Idk but with how low profile that is you would pretty much be limited to other “laptop on a stick” type boards. Then again there is a lot of those these days and a zen4 16core may be more useful than the strix halo in the actual fw desktop for some applications.
My current 13 is everything except the laptop itself not from framework and I also never had hardware issues XD
Noctua makes a pretty potent 37mm thin cooler for AM5. Paired with a 9700X it would work just fine.
US price is out due to tariff pauses and, in my opinion, a little ridiculous. DIY, lowest spec, 1TB, windows home, 16GB, all USBC (i.e., what I would buy for a high schooler), is just under $1000. That’s completely out of reach for high school students. Hopefully the fleet laptop pitch is attractive to schools so that these devices get into the hands of the students who need them.
Side note: the basic expansion cards are $15, I seem to remember them formerly being $9. That’s a small contributor to the overall price but still a steep increase (unfortunate). (also tariffs…)
The expansion cards are one of the few products produced in China. Those tariffs are still in place and are over 100% right now. So they’ve unfortunately had to increase the price of all the expansion cards.
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Considering the tarrifs on China (where they said the expansion cards are made) are 125%, I’d say you’re lucky they didn’t raise the prices further.
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I clocked in at 786 after tax - no os, ram, or ssd, which I will source elsewhere. I could have shaved roughly another 100 if I skipped the charger and only got four expansion cards. My opinion is that it’s not super-cheap but it’s not outrageous, either.
There’s definitely savings to be had for sourcing those independently (I did so for my Laptop 13 when I bought it; saved me about $300 US then), but you should price check what those savings are for the 12 so that that number reflects the total cost, not just what you buy from framework (since that 786 number will not get you a functional laptop, and also m.2 2230 storage is more expensive than standard m.2 2280).
Yep - to be clear I am not saying that your opinion is wrong. I am planning to upgrade the memory in my 16" and steal one of those dimms. The ram is ~41/78/102/157 for 16/32/48/64, while the ssd is 78/140 for 1tb/2tb. So add 300 for top end and around 130 for lower end - I didn’t check on smaller ssds, which would take it to around 916 or 1086. Again, not cheap, but not (imo) outrageous.
$750 out the door is the absolute premium top end of student devices, so I do think this is an outrageous price point for the target market. Some of it’s excusable for tariff reasons, but I think even accounting for that it would still be out of reach.
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You can get to 731 at 16/256, 4 cards, and a power adapter. I agree with you that this is at the very top end for a student machine, and arguably it’s above that level, both price and specs-wise.
In defense of the prices, especially for the i3 model: Most users will have an existing USB-C power adapter, even if it’s not the full 60W. It sounds trivial but makes a €49 difference.
And thinking about it, I could also have gotten away with a 256GB SSD (DYI) for my use case. Another ~50€ off.
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This is priced way beyond any normal student budget. $700 for just a case with i5 mainboard is too much. Then you still have to source ram, ssd, and expansion cards. Oh well.
And on top of that they are asking people to donate $250 additional for a “non-profit” to promote the Framework brand to unknowns. Back in the days, Apple didn’t ask their customers to pay for their school programs and advertising. Disappointing.
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Not sure if I understand this correctly.
Hack Club is a non-profit not a “non-profit”.
And this has nothing to do with promoting the brand. You can find the details here : Framework | HACK THE WORLD
Donation is completely optional, if you are not a fan of supporting non-profits, that is up to you.
And we are not Apple.
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Have to agree. I thought it was great to see framework promoting donating to a charity, and willing to give us a special earlier batch as thanks for doing so.
Though I wouldn’t have bothered posting except,
“non-profit” in scare quotes looks entirely unjustified. Perhaps I misunderstand, but I normally interpret scare quotes to mean that the writer believes something to be illegitimate. After a quick look, I see zero reason for that.
They are a 501(c)(3) registered nonprofit (EIN 81-2908499). And as such, donations are tax-deductible. They provide their IRS tax returns front & center for anyone to look over: hackclub.com/philanthropy. And of course the IRS non-profit search confirms their status, and also provides copies of tax returns and their Determination Letter: apps.irs.gov/app/eos/. They’re shown as registered and operating for 9 years, since 2016. The Charity Navigator watchdog, who grades charities based on their financial health and accountability, gives the foundation good grades across a variety of metrics that they track: charitynavigator.org/ein/812908499
Apologies if I’ve just misunderstood.
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