Those who are thinking of getting the FL16, what other systems are you considering?

The only other laptop I’m considering is the Tuxedo Stellaris 16, but that has an ISO layout (I really don’t want an ISO layout) and no Type-C charging. But it’s the only Linux laptop that fits my needs with a 16:10 screen and I don’t want 16:9…

I do want a AMD Ryzen 7040/7045 CPU, but that seems like it’s going to be tough…

Probably something from System76 but FW16 is still the top contender

@Y11, I think I found the U.S. equivalent on Lenovo’s site, and I finally found a video about the U.S. version with the screen in the palm rest.

Lenovo has so many different models it is impossible to keep up, and then each model has what feels like an infinite number of configurations. Just go to the support site where they give specs for old models and you’ll see countless entries, all with slightly different specs.

I know this because while I wait to see the specs on this FL16, I’ve been toying with the idea of a used ThinkPad. That started with the idea that maybe one of the workstation models would be fun because they’re just beasts, but they have all sorts of slots for hard drives and you can add RAM, and some have powerful GPUs. I’ve since learned that they even have models that use Nvidia’s gaming GPUs, which would be nice. But it makes my head spin.

Given the GPU poll for the FL16, I’m thinking that FW will probably only be able to offer one GPU. Two seems like it might be one SKU too many. If it is only one, I’m guessing that AMD won the poll and that’s fine by me. I just hope we get some specs soon because I’m really wanting to scratch this itch and hope that this will be the one for me.

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Unfortunately, it’d probably be the better business option to go with nvidia, since their GPUs are more popular for applications across the board. The vocal minority of based AMDchads likely aren’t representative (but maybe it’s different for the Framework customer base!). Which poll do you speak of? I hope I didn’t miss a chance to vote against nvidia on something D:

@Matthew_Elmer just scroll up. FW created a poll asking about CPU/GPU combinations. I think AMD/AMD came out on top, followed by AMD/Nvidia, and then Intel/Nvidia. Some anarchists also voted for AMD/Intel.

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This wasn’t in this particular thread (these posts may have been moved?) either way, here’s the link to the poll you can still participate in [Poll] CPU and GPU combinations

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The Starlabs Starfighter is one I am also considering.
Another 16:10 16" notebook that’s Linux friendly: StarFighter 16-inch – Star Labs®
Unfortunately one has to wait for a collection of 1000 systems to be ordered at a time, which takes ~4 months on average.

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System76 is working on their in house built laptop, it won’t have the GPU expansion “slot” like the FL16 but it will be upgradable. I’m leaning towards the FL16 due to the GPU “slot” as I need to game with my son and want something upgradable.

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I don’t think the Starlabs Starfighter has a dGPU.

No, it does not.

Asus flow x16 was the other option. Or one of the Lenovo Legion laptops with a stellar display. But framework is the winner on customisation and upgrading over both of those. Long term its cheaper. And more repairable.

Honestly, none. I’ve been using my ASUS G752VT since late high School. It’s been though a lot, (Now its a 752VY) and its not even the same system since every part has been replaced once. My requirements are simple:

  • Thunderbolt support for eGPUs (even if its an unofficial support)
  • All AMD system, I no longer support Nvidia and intel sucks right now.
  • Laptop must work with Linux, preferably Mint, but I’m not married.
  • Laptop must have a reasonable ability to be repaired.
  • 4K Screen. (Hopefully HDR10)
  • No parts that inhibit my ability to upgrade components. (soldered RAM, Storage, WLAN, etc. exculding CPU.
  • Nvme storage preferably with 2.5 SATA option.

Unfortunately most laptops don’t even meet the All-AMD with eGPU support. and the few that do fail the further checks. I would have a framework 13, but when i saw the framework 16 announcement I decided the 16 was a better fit. So until the 16 comes out my poor skylake system will will keep marching on.

On a different note, can we just appreciate that ASUS made a laptop so good and packed with features, that the only thing making it tap-out is me asking it to encode AV1 and upscale with Topaz Video AI? (and a few games) Even then, an eGPU like the 7900xtx might be able to help, even if the CPU would not know what to do with itself. The storage, 8GB 980m, and 64GB RAM are all still well enough to keep going.

Looking forward to breaking the record with a full decade on a framework 16.

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I decided I’ll just limp along until Framework releases their 16 inch laptop. I really need a new laptop with a dGPU, however, nothing on the market meets my needs:

  • Nvidia RTX 4080 or 4090 GPU.
  • 16 : 10 high refresh rate screen.
  • ANSI keyboard layout.
  • Good Linux support.

Nothing meets those requirements; System76 lacks any laptops with a screen aspect ratio other than 16 : 9, Tuxedo isn’t really an option where I live, and the Windows laptops I’ve tried have dealbreakers in Linux (like the speakers not working or working very poorly).

And still, I’m going to just keep waiting. Why should I buy two laptops if I can just wait it out (I can’t, but I must).

I would only consider something that is highly repairable (and the company supports your right to repair) and has very good Linux support. Tuxedo comes to mind.

so you want a Nvidia GPU AND Linux support ? Is that not a contradiction?

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Sadly, NVENC & CUDA are things…

I would have gotten a Dell XPS 17 which straight up beats the FW16 in terms of screen-to-body ratio - so an option for ultimately portability compared to screen real estate.

In general, I was a fan of Razer before discovering the FW16 - which made framework my favourite laptop company in a single step.

Finally, given the Fractal Terra case, I was also considering a Desktop. But for now I will wait for more details on FW16.

I consider whether I should keep my current Tuxedocomputers (Schenker, Tongfang) Stellaris Gen3 with AMD 5900HX and Nvidia 3070 and maximum 64GB of RAM. Screen ratio is 16:9 and battery is 93Wh. And there is no optimus chip so I can’t shut down the GPU when I don’t use it.

(The keyboard is ISO (and they said they can’t change it to ANSI and it’s very bad. Also support was bad overall.) and its half-baked mechanical switches suck. Also speakers are weak, audiojack isn’t responding immediately upon plug-in, webcam quality is sub-par, mic quality isn’t good, two ports feel loose even when I didn’t use them a lot)
(BUT I can open it and have two sticks of RAM and have two SSDs, it has built-in LAN port)

All ports that I have: Big SD card, 3xUSB-A, 1xUSB-C, LAN, Power cord, Microphone, Audio jack. So in total it’s 9 ports and FW16 will offer 6 ports.
My current power brick is very large and it says it does 230W but FW16 will be 180W out of the box.

Basically it’s quite tough to beat my laptop on performance but it’s easier on IO.
But with 6 ports vs 9 ports… that’s somewhat a downgrade. Though my current one doesn’t have swappable adapters so FW16 somewhat alleviates this as not all ports are plugged-in all the time.

Also my screen has some changing burn-in and I hate it. It would better not be 2K@165Hz but it would be better to not have this burn-in that changes from time to time.

Also regarding GPU – if I’ll take a GPU then I’ll take one with more VRAM than my current one (8GB).

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Lenovo Legion Pro 7 with intel CPU and 4090 GPU if Framework doesn’t begin to ship to MALAYSIA.

The Legion series is definitely up there for me in terms of features for the price point. Unfortunately, I find the RGB-gaming-brick design and weight hard to swallow.