What's your use case for the FW12?

[Susan_Sons]

We did a use case thread for the 16, so I thought it might be interesting to open the same discussion for the 12.

For me, the FW12 is mostly a toy. It looks like the computer I wish I’d had when I was 6 or so…if we imagine that wifi and SSDs had been invented then, and that USB was a thing, and that touch screens weren’t terrible, and Linux existed, and…well, you get the idea. I’m old.

I’m going to try it out as a machine I use on short trips when either I take my work laptop as my primary and don’t really want to carry my FW16 as well, or when I would normally take my Android tablet with me. It could end up displacing the tablet in my workflow, or perhaps get handed down to one of the kids in the family if I tire of it. Who knows!

[BigT]

I’ve been “daily driving” a Framework 13 for years. I use it for…pretty much everything except video editing. Youtube, podcasts, audiobooks, music, email, online everything (bills, research, shopping, etc,) some VERY light gaming, transferring and occasionally previewing pictures and videos that I’m organizing to later edit, some light photo editing, writing (word processing/typing, not handwriting), and more.

Recently, I got a cheap, 11" chromebook to test out, hoping to find a recommendation for some family members for a cheap, entry-level computer. I ended up liking and using the thing a LOT, just for normal daily stuff. It’s nice having a slightly lighter, smaller, plastic laptop that feels a bit more durable and “chuckable.” Something that I felt like I could toss on a couch, deck, kitchen counter, table, workbench, car hood, etc., and not have to worry too much about. The weak performance didn’t hold me up as much as I expected, though the limitations of Chrome OS take some getting used to, and the smaller, 16x9 display just feels a tiny bit too small once in a while. So even though I use the Chromebook a lot, I still use my FW 13 a lot too, and I don’t think the Chromebook could ever fully replace a slightly more capable machine for me. So I figured I’d just go back to using only the FW 13 once I was done “playing” with the Chromebook, lol. At that point, I’d pass the Chromebook on to someone in my family.

For me, the FW 12 might be a good middle ground. A little bit smaller, and it’s plastic for just a little bit more “rough and tumble” kind of vibe. But also with a slightly larger, taller aspect ratio screen than the Chromebook, and fast enough that I probably won’t feel held back for the fast majority of my daily uses.

So, for me, I’m kinda hoping it will become my daily use machine that will offer some conveniences for my use case over the 13, while offering more performance and a much better display than the Chromebook.

[lbkNhubert]

I am a little embarrassed to admit this, but I mostly got it for fun. Also to have my child who currently is using a MacBook 12" (the infamous butterfly keyboard one) to try out, and if they like it and would use it, then I may get another for their use.

I have used linux, macs, windows, and Chromebooks, and like the possibility of using this on the fly to take notes. I have used Google keep with handwriting recognition and it has worked well. I hear that notability on the iPad is impressive, but not sure what the closest thing to that would be on Linux.

I also just like to tinker so I am excited to have a full blown tablet linux computer. I have other convertibles running Linux but they are bigger and less portable.

[Cole]

I have a dinosaur of a laptop currently. 15 years old, 17-inch screen (before laptops were super thin, so it’s heavy), and the battery only lasts about half an hour unplugged. I installed Linux on it, which helped, but it’s still slow and clunky.

I mostly use it for writing, sometimes drawing (with a cheap tablet plugged in), and occasionally playing low-intensity games. I rarely open the browser because it takes forever to load. I’d like something faster with a better form factor and more portability that I can use for most of the things I use my current laptop for.

Currently when I want to write outdoors, I have to do it on my phone, which is as painful as it sounds. I love sitting outside and writing, except for the experience of trying to type on a phone, so I’m also looking forward to something I can take outside.

The only thing my old laptop has on the FW 12 is a built-in optical drive. I do occasionally watch movies on my laptop, but I’ll probably buy an external optical drive at some point or just use my old laptop for movies.

[Adeline05]

I currently use a Surface Pro 6 as my only computer. I loved handwriting notes on it when I was a student, but I don’t use it for school anymore and it’s aged really poorly. The keyboard cover broke so I use a wireless keyboard/ mouse when I need to, it’s super laggy, heats up like crazy, the pen has stopped working, battery only lasts maybe 2 hours unplugged, and I’ve had to replace the charger like 3 times. My FW Laptop 12 is going to replace this as my personal/ work computer. I’ll be using it at home for browsing, watching YouTube, typing, marking up PDFs, using productivity apps, and video editing (maybe using OBS if I’m feeling brave, but my current computer kind of ruined that experience for me). I’m also hoping to bring it with me out in the community for work, so I can connect to a Remote Desktop and take handwritten notes in tablet mode/ use the internet while I’m on the go. That’s something I haven’t even tried doing yet (see above battery and pen issues), I hope it will be feasible/ not too cumbersome if I use a hotspot, but ultimately if that fails I’ll just stick to using it around the house or other places with wifi. Part of me is also picturing getting a paper-feel screen protector and writing outside with it to replace physical journaling, but that might be overkill lol, if I’m gonna be outdoors I might as well ditch the screens altogether

[jlnr]

I feel homesick for the EeePC that I never had, I just want a tiny laptop for smaller tasks. I often ride shared bicycles and my 16" Mac is too large to chuck in the basket when I visit a coffeeshop to answer some mails.

But while it will be a secondary/toy computer for me, it could very quickly become a primary computer for the kids. Let’s see if our 5 y/o is already receptive to Scratch etc.

[Nathan_Alan_Hansen]

Illustrating and light 2D animation.

It’s my job and the type of art I produce doesn’t demand a lot in terms of performance, I’m also a very busy person and I would like something more flexible than my current setup which ties me to my desk.

Also, I want to be able to play the steam version of Balatro but on a touch screen in bed! >:D

[Patrick_Giam]

I plan to use it as a daily carry. I have a desktop and a 16inch with discrete graphics for photo/video editing and gaming. The FW12 specs will be more than enough for all my basic needs, and far easier to lug around than my hefty 16in (which I’ll only take when I know I’ll need it, e.g. on photo gigs)

I also like the tablet form factor for consuming media but tablet OSs have been holding me back from getting a new one.

Also a good chance to try daily driving linux (I have to use Windows on my other devices for certain software).

Of course I’ll have to see if it delivers on its promises, but if so, and especially for this price point, it ticks every box for what I was wanting in a 2-1.

[p2502]

I’m planning for it to be my new main computer, replacing my aging Thinkpad X230. They’re about the same size and weight but the Framework 12 should be significantly faster (i5-3320M → i5-1334u) with more memory and much nicer screen. And I’m hoping a modern CPU will be able to last longer on battery even though I’ll be downgrading from 70Wh to 50Wh battery capacity.

I use my computer for everything, Rust and Nix dev work and also entertainment like watching videos and playing games. Ironically the main activity that’s pushing me to upgrade is web browsing as modern web apps like discord and youtube are so heavy my current laptop is struggling, otherwise the i5-3320M is still fine for programming and the games I like to play (for example Stardew Valley, Celeste or TrackMania).

I was thinking about maybe getting a Framework 13 for a while but when the 12 was announced it fit me much better, it’s smaller (more similar to the size I’m used to), seems to be a lot more rugged, looks nicer (I’ve preordered the Lavender color, hope it looks as pretty IRL as it looks in pictures), is a little cheaper and the touchscreen is a nice bonus too.

[Delemus]

it’ll be my second main laptop, it’ll win when I need small and portable or the touchscreen, the FW13 will win when I need more power…they’ll both lose to my HP oman or my Asus f15, when I want to do more intense tasks(gaming) and they’ll all lose to my Panasonic CF-53 when I need to beat someone black and blue, then wipe off the blood and poke the internet for the rest of the day…or until my arms fall off from carrying it, whichever comes first (seriously, I’m pretty sure I could use the stupid thing as a hammer)

[jchase]

The company I work for has a “bring your own device” policy, so I keep two working laptops at a time to never be stuck without a dev environment. Either one can also be used as my “personal” laptop, so while one is my work machine the other is my personal. I try not to store anything locally and use dev containers so I can swap out which laptop I’m working on at almost any time, I just need to git push whatever I’m working on. My biggest requirement is 32GB of ram or more, almost any CPU will be sufficient.

Current setup is a framework13 and a Dell XPS 13, the framework12 will be replacing the Dell XPS.

[Martin_Burgess]

I’m getting one just for fun and I’m not at all embarrassed, you shouldn’t be either.
I’ll probably try out a few different linux distros before settling on one.
My main computer is a FW16, I also have a four year old Dell which won’t see much use after my FW12 arrives.
The FW16 never leaves home, the FW12 will travel when I want a computer on a trip.

[Hamza]

I want to replace my current setup framework 13 + pen display.
My use case drawing, rough 2D animation and sculpting in Blender. The cpu is a downgrade from the 7840u but having touch and stylus options is important for me.

[naxan]

Just as my travelling laptop. It should be able to do some web browsing, document work and compile some code with reasonable battery life. I tried a lot of small size laptops like Thinkpad T480 and rog zephyrus g14, but their size and weight still feel a bit higher than I really want. Thinkpad T480 has good battery life as I can always replace battery and there are more battery choices with higher capacity but there’s throttling problem with Linux so not ideal for the performance it should have.

FW12 is my first Framework and convertible laptop. And the demonstration video of how modular and sturdy it is also impressed me. Hopefully it would meet my expectations.

[Jeff_the_man]

+1 for fun and as an accompanyment to a Framework 16. I’m interested to see how rugged the chassis is.

[wolfie]

Primarily plan on using it as travel laptop. Might have the potential to replace my pretty new ASUS ZenBook S 13 OLED - Core Ultra 7 155U.

Sounds silly, but a few years ago I switched to 100% home office where my main machine is a desktop PC. Laptop is mostly for presentations when visiting customers (rarely anymore) or for emergencies and light work (server infrastructure, web dev) when travelling. Looking forward to see how the i3 handles my work requirements. But I have strong suspicion it will be just fine.

Pros of the Asus:

• stunning OLED screen
• backlit keyboard
• good battery life
• lighter (1 kg)
• moder energy efficient CPU that can handle bigger workloads too

Went through multiple laptops the last couple of years (Framework 13 i7 11th gen, Tuxedo Infinitybook, GPD Win Max 2, now the Zenbook) - searching for a proper replacement that matches my absolutely dream laptop for travel of the past: Lenovo 11e Yoga Gen 6.

The FW12 has a very similar form factor. The 11e Yoga was even smaller, fanless (passively cooled), but the old i3 was not cutting it anymore.

Curious to see screen quality and battery lifetime of the FW12. I think I could live without OLED and Ultra CPU if FW12 performs halfway decent. No backlit keyboard is the biggest bummer so far, but hoping for a future upgrade option.

New motherboard + screen options in a few years also very welcome.

[Scrubz]

I’m hoping to get this primarily to replace my current work laptop. I work at a data center; mainly doing IT work. Surprisingly, the only tech laptop we have is a heavy 17" beast with a weak CPU and ~1 hour of battery life. We’ve needed a tech laptop ever since I started working there, and the Framework 12 would be perfect for this! The modular ports would be especially useful.

[Karthogan]

I got no laptop currently (haven’t had one for years), but I have a homelab and a beefy desktop, and I can remote access everything from my phone. Which works, and as it’s a Pixel I can even hook up extermal displays and kb+mouse to it, but it’s not comfortable at all.

I want a FW12 for a reliable and repairable remote access PC, with only the lightest local workloads. The rugged shell and the 360° hinge are my main selling points, as I can fold it into a tent for watching movies or playing with a controller in bed, and still use the touchscreen to navigate. I could get a convertible with ancient hardware for way cheaper, but I hope this one will be far more reliable than a refurbished celeron with an emmc, and it got modern wifi.

[Destroya]

Work

I still love my 16 but honestly, it’s not the best option to carry around. 12 fits inside a regular tote bag, not really heavy and powerful enough for my daily work. I love it!

[Echoe]

I’ve got a surface laptop I use a ton, but am getting the fw12 to see if i can use it as a full-time laptop instead. this is, to be honest, mostly because I change laptops just kind of randomly. the closest thing I have to a rational reason is that I want to actually move to linux full-time, and there really aren’t arm linux laptops that work, and my current laptops that run linux [thinkpads] have terrible screens. And … I want to support Framework’s mission, but couldn’t deal with the heat of the 13 when I had it. I’m hoping the 13th gen U processors specifically will be more dependable and quieter - I don’t need a ton of performance, but fan noise just irritates me a lot.

I also just prefer the feel of plastic over metal when it comes to computers, and really love the styling of the 12. Like … I’ve wanted one of the old plastic macbooks for a long time and it’s really cool to have a computer in roughly the same form factor with similar aesthetics [though I think the FW actually looks better ].