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
1 Like
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.
1 Like
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.
1 Like
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.
3 Likes
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?
3 Likes
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).
1 Like
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.
Unfortunately, if Framework doesn’t open pre-orders soon, I may just have to compromise with buying a System76 Bonobo 2023… I can’t keep waiting forever…
I think culturally we need to start focusing more on repairability and upgradeability, so I’m not actually looking at any other systems right now 
5 Likes
I think the point of time you really need is when they’ll be able to ship to you. Opening pre-orders doesn’t get you the product.
Ended up buying a HP Envy 16 because I wanted a new laptop sooner (I’m tired of replacing the duct tape that keeps my screen from literally falling to pieces…) and I imagine FrameWork will only ship to my country next year.
Sincerely regretting that decision. Laptop arrived, I installed a second SSD in the empty slot. Three weeks later the laptop is dead in the water. I call HP support and stupidly and innocently let them know that I installed an SSD… so of course, fuck you, your warranty is void and congratulations, you now have a $1100 brick.
So to those considering buying anything else but FrameWork… think again.
2 Likes
That’s terrible. I would try calling back, asking for an escalation, and seeing if you can get anywhere. Adding an SSD (presumably to a second SSD slot) ought not to void the warranty.
2 Likes