Framework Laptop USB-C concept is so simple and brilliant that it makes us wonder why bigger OEMs haven't thought of it yet

[Redaktion]

Tired of having manufacturers decide for you what ports you want or don't want? The Framework Laptop lets you choose exactly what you want and how many you want with you at up to four individual ports.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Framework-Laptop-USB-C-concept-is-so-simple-and-brilliant-that-it-makes-us-wonder-why-bigger-OEMs-haven-t-thought-of-it-yet.552116.0.html

[Wereweeb]

Because dongles cost more so there's more profit in that.

And Framework claims that third parties will be able to make and sell compatible adapters through a "Framework Marketplace". Hopefully they're an open standard so any good eletronics engineer can try their hand at it.

[Hunter2020]

Are you kidding me?  For each extra connection to the mobo, there's an extra thing that can possibly go wrong.

Anyone's who has ever backed up anything to external USB will know, too many times the copy got corrupted (I only backup archives and check each archive afterward to make sure of no error).  BUT if I copy things over from one internal drive to another internal drive via SATA, can guarantee there's never an error.

Which means to say, frameworks are unreliable, which is why no OEM wants to touch them.  It's bad enough we have to put up with external USB devices and have to recheck our copies for errors every time DATA is transferred thru those ports.

[jeremy]

These are just proprietary dongles.

[kek]

Are you kidding me?  For each extra connection to the mobo, there's an extra thing that can possibly go wrong.

Anyone's who has ever backed up anything to external USB will know, too many times the copy got corrupted (I only backup archives and check each archive afterward to make sure of no error).  BUT if I copy things over from one internal drive to another internal drive via SATA, can guarantee there's never an error.

Which means to say, frameworks are unreliable, which is why no OEM wants to touch them.  It's bad enough we have to put up with external USB devices and have to recheck our copies for errors every time DATA is transferred thru those ports.

Better repair that USB port, because I have used tons of ports in my life, and I have never experienced corruption as you have stated. It's either the port, the cable or a combination of both that's failing there.

[fishstik]

The expansion cards are open-source. Anyone with the skills and knowledge can design and manufacture/3D-print one: https://github.com/FrameworkComputer/ExpansionCards

[anon]

I would love for a "recessed USB type-A" adapter. I keep my Logitech lightspeed 2.4GHz transceiver always plugged in--one big reason I could not accept a laptop without at least one type-A port.

I can only think of two or three laptops that have had recessed type-A ports for always-present wireless dongles.

[WillM]

The idea is neat, but the implementation is failed IMO.

It's just way too flimsy, possibly prone to failures after prolonged use when materials start to deteriorate. There'll be lots of wobbling in that case in a few months or years of intensive use.

The whole concept of bridged ports is nothing new. Lately, it's used a lot in Raspberry Pi cases. But they should've implemented it differently. Probably it would be better to offer daughter-boards that internally connect and are properly fixed in place (with screws).

[Mike not ike]

Better idea... Why not just manufacture peripherals that connect via USB type-c and get rid of the other ports? Wasn't that the whole idea behind the standardization?

[PaulM]

Ethernet?

[mixedfish]

Crazy how people are trying to reinvent the wheel just to have a selection of ports. It was only 5-6 years ago that you had laptop with a full suite of USB-A,C, Ethernet, HDMI, headphone jack and power point.

But now these days laptops have a few USB-C ports at best

[Bancho525]

I like this idea very much, but the size of the module seems to big. Even with an HDMI you have so much Module left over.

[_MT_]

Seriously? We know it's possible to manufacture pretty thin laptops with a full suite of ports. Even without this funny modular system. We know because they were made. Clearly, most customers don't care enough.

And I think you, journalists, are at least partly at fault. Aren't you always complaining at the lack of change? The problem is that innovation is really difficult beyond a certain point. Which you'd have known had you ever designed anything. Ultimately, what you get is change for the sake of change. Some reinvention of the wheel, you know. Perhaps making it square for a change; why has nobody thought of that before? Problem being that you will rather quickly run out of good ways of doing something. Leaving you with a choice between not changing and doing it worse than before. Try designing something of your own. You'll see.

[Dorby]

I wish they would have added some good usability feature when making something like this. Of course the Framework team's motivations are understandable, but I don't see my family who use the M1 MacBook Air with a side-mountable USB-C hub attached switching over to this laptop for the user-serviceability factor alone. At this point it needs a bit more incentive than that, something unique and practical, maybe like the Dual-screens of Asus Duo laptops. Something big that can really take advantage of the modularity part, to transform an ordinary Windows Ultrabook into a machine that people can really see as an indispensable feature.

I just don't see many people beyond the tech enthusiast community ordering this, and even among those only out of curiosity or out of principle to what they see as "the cause".

[vertigo]

I would love for a "recessed USB type-A" adapter. I keep my Logitech lightspeed 2.4GHz transceiver always plugged in--one big reason I could not accept a laptop without at least one type-A port.

I can only think of two or three laptops that have had recessed type-A ports for always-present wireless dongles.

This is a great idea. I have a headset dongle I keep plugged in most of the time, and it would be nice to not have it sticking out, at least so far. A recessed port would be nice, though even better if it could be adjusted between recessed and flush.

As for these modules, one thing I would change is to have the male connector between the module and the computer on the computer side, then put a corresponding female connector on each side of the module and offset it to one side, then place a different port next to it, with a different port on each side. So you could unplug it and rotate it to change from USB-A to USB-C to HDMI to DP. Then you wouldn't need as many overall modules and you wouldn't have to carry as many, if any, with you, vs the current setup which requires keeping several in a bag to allow changing on the go.