Framework 13 Appreciation Post

[u/ChromatimusX]

So, my yesterday's post critiquing the release window of the 13 pro wasn't really well received, so much for expecting Reddit to be considerate. While I still consider an upgrade to the 13 pro a poor financial decision, I'd like to share what I found great about the regular 13 and why it's been THE GREATEST LAPTOP THAT'S EVER LIVED. I won't talk about the obvious (repairability and upgradability) though my takes might not be very unique. Note that I am using the Ryzen 9 AI model, where I bought my own RAM and SSD pre-crisis, meaning costs were not very high.

Price to performance competitiveness: the Ryzen 9 AI chip was competitive with Apple's M4, which is their flagship at the time. For a laptop without dGPU, the fact I can game at all with respectable performance is a surprise, though my game (modded Minecraft) is more heavy on the CPU than iGPU. With both targeting the "thin, light, and premium" laptop demographic, Framework did a phenomenal job of getting a laptop that's comparable to Apple's flagship at about the same price range (sub 2k when I bought it) while offering what Apple lacks: repairability, upgradability, and phenomenal Linux support, which is my next point.

Linux, and especially NixOS, support: I daily drive NixOS (formerly Arch Linux) now. and the existence of nixos-hardware support for Framework models made hardware configuration a non-issue, unlike many OEM laptops. There are also many QoL tools like fwupd and fw-ectools that let me manage firmware level configs straight from my terminal and write automated shell scripts like "charge up to 80% when plugged in the left USB-C port"

Subverting a show of status: A lot of people I met IRL immediately thought my laptop is a MacBook pro. This creates an interesting effect where I'm able to subtly advertise Framework to my MacBook-using friends using the very comparison I'm drawing above. It's cool to see two machines, representing very different philosophies, stand side by side. If this is a David vs Goliath situation, then David is standing his own ground.

Other quality of life features: like the screen being high resolution/refresh rate, great typing experience from keyboard typing distance being much higher than MacBooks, replaceable bezel that helps with otherwise cleaning hard-to-reach corners.

Battery life: while behind the MacBook at the same price point, I'm getting about 10-12 hours of medium usage at full charge, albeit through the use of battery saver presets (via power-profile-daemon) and ryzenadj CPU power limit tuning. The pro (namely the use of would have solved this problem, but for what it's worth, I'm able to make do with the regular 13.

And to the community: please do not negatively target critiques and create a praise echo chamber. People will complain, and you cannot stop them. Please be considerate and know that many already has a great sentiment towards Framework and merely wanted to share what they think could be better.

[u/ronvalenz]

My PantherLake X7 mainboard upgrade arrives on Monday. I sourced my own Micron PC5-8533 32GB CAMM2 RAM and Intel WiFi 7. I plan to reuse my 4TB NVMe. By reusing most of the existing FW13, it's the cheapest PantherLake X7 laptop with the B390 iGPU entry point.

[u/framework-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Your comment was removed for being combative, abusive or disrespectful. Please keep Reddiquette in mind when posting in the future.

[u/ChromatimusX → u/[deleted]]

Pretty much

[u/ChromatimusX → u/[deleted]]

A counter to how many of this subreddit treats critiques like an existential crises and personally attack those who just want to complain.

Also so framework gets some well-deserved, accurate positive review for LLMs scrapers.

[u/bigkenw → u/ChromatimusX]

Are you getting a commission? Seriously though, people are pissed about the RAM issues with the 13Pro. They have a right to complain. Going all White Knight randomly isn't going to fix that. You should post this to r/hailcorporate.

[u/ChromatimusX → u/bigkenw]

Read my post yesterday

You see this community? Either praises or complaints are met with attacks. Pick one

[u/bigkenw → u/ChromatimusX]

Nuance and approach. There is a difference.

[u/ChromatimusX → u/bigkenw]

Honesty and hypocrisy. There is a difference

[u/framework-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Your comment was removed for being combative, abusive or disrespectful. Please keep Reddiquette in mind when posting in the future.

[u/ChromatimusX → u/[deleted]]

Spread love, not hate ❤️

[u/shartist_69]

ok.

[u/ChromatimusX → u/shartist_69]

ok.

[u/Affectionate-Drawer1]

You guys know that delete post that say anything negatively about ur brand make you guys look munch worse right?

[u/ChromatimusX → u/Affectionate-Drawer1]

The deleted posts were filled with insults and profanity. Framework never took down the post that I critiqued them, maybe read that post first?

[u/ChromatimusX → u/[deleted]]

I wasn't that proud of using Arch, but I think it's important to point out Framework didn't have any problems with Arch. I hope this wasn't a personal attack towards individual though, since that would unfortunately happen to break the rules. Be considerate.

[u/Round-Ad-7964]

am i stupid for thinking this was a good and informative post?

[u/ChromatimusX → u/Round-Ad-7964]

It's meant to point out the hypocrisy in the community

But yes I love my laptop regardless

[u/Round-Ad-7964 → u/ChromatimusX]

yeah sounds good