Framework Laptop 13.5 Review: If Microsoft Made A Repairable Surface Laptop, This Would Be It

[Redaktion]

Big manufacturers like Microsoft ought to start taking notes. A thin-and-light laptop that is also easy to upgrade and repair can actually work proving that not every component needs to be soldered or integrated.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Framework-Laptop-13-5-Review-If-Microsoft-Made-A-Repairable-Surface-Laptop-This-Would-Be-It.551850.0.html

[Wereweeb]

They allow third parties to design expansion modules, and will allow them to sell modules in their marketplace. The main feature here is that they promise motherboard upgradeability.

It's a shame that the chassis isn't as perfect as it could be, but they could always release a revision that changes only the hinges and the display chassis.

[duzenko]

We need a 17' model

[Levi Zebadiah Crandall]

Great concept. Great execution. #RightToRepair has been priming the market for a product of this caliber. Frame.work is the future!

[olee22]

I am so happy for this concept laptop.

It feels a bit first generation, but for the second I will give it a try!

I hope they iron out the small issues for the next.

Is it possible to order with a keyboard with L shaped enter key? Or only US layout? That would be a deal-breaker for me.

All laptops should be similarly repairable.

[mixedfish]

Fantastic laptop, especially how thunderbolt is compatible.

My personal preference would be a choice of OLED panel and a touch panel. Hope these guys find success and we'll come back for a gen 2.

[Wilbur]

I went to their website and it is BADLY broken. Simple clicks send me to an polite error page or worse, to a 503 server error. It is impossible to order a laptop, impossible to sign up for their forum. And I have tried emailing them a few times now going back a couple months but I have yet to receive a reply! That is worrisome. I hope this is a real product and I hope this is not another aloof tech company that is entirely unreachable.

[Jose Fernandez]

You might wanna partly blame Linus from LTT about that. I heard they hugged the website to death, with some commenting that they now have a backlog of orders to fulfill because of the amount of pre-orders.

At least, that's what the comment section says in Linus' review video on the product.

[CrusadeAgainstGlossiness]

These expansion slots are an amazing idea, furthering user customization abilities. However, offering only a single display model is actually a step backwards in that regard, as the business offerings from the big companies generally have options to choose from. Sure, I get it's difficult for a startup to offer a diverse range of product options, as it adds a lot of risk of not getting the stuff sold. But in that case, why choose a GLOSSY display, instead of a normal, proper display that people can actually use? Offer the glossy s**t as option if you want, but your default offering has to be a solid one.

I am normally not an early adopter, but was really considering it in this instance... but they lost me with the display. A real shame... I hope enough people buy this thing (although I couldn't understand why they would), so that they get a shot at a 2nd gen device, then hopefully a useable one.

[fishstik]

Allen, is there a reason why you tested with single-channel memory? You should have received the unit it with multiple RAM sticks. Would love to see the gaming and GPU benchmarks redone with 2x8 or 2x16 if possible.  ;D

[katulasi]

About the fan noise: They have different Power Plans, would be great to test these.

https://community.frame.work/t/silence-model/219/2

[Jarrod]

I'm writing this comment on mine and I have to say it is a phenomenal machine. It is fast and fluid and the keyboard is among the best I've ever used. Trackpad is amazing and the 2K display looks great and is bright and vibrant.

[kek]

I seriously wanna buy one of these, but I wanna wait in case the company goes down or some factory mistakea creeps up.

That aside, I'm glad they have a lot of preorders. I really wish they start having success.

I'm tired of both Lenovo/Dell trying to play tricks with us by soldering stuff on devices where that practice is unaceptable (Latitude/Thinkpad).

[vertigo]

I agree with others that this is great, and I'm interested, but not until v2 or 3, and not until a matte display option and either a keyboard choice or at least doing away with the stupid cramped up/down arrows. And a TrackPoint, as always, would go a long way toward enticing me.

One big suggestion I would make for improvement is regarding the interchangeable port modules, which it's about time someone did that. What 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.

[YUKI93]

I definitely love this whole modular repairability a lot. This is the laptop world of Fairphone. But as much as I love this laptop, I'll wait for the official Thunderbolt 4 certification and also a Surface Book-inspired detachable screen form option. That would be epic!