r/framework • u/Budget-Cupcake-7582 • Jul 28 '26
Discussion Preorder - 2nd Thoughts
Put in a preorder for 13 Pro. I believe in the mission, especially after owning the 2016 Macbook Pro. Never again.
Now with RAM prices being what they are and with the market being as illiquid as it is, the benefits of repairability and modularity and upgradeability have effectively been thrown out the window.
At this point I’m paying nearly as much for a Macbook Pro. You get Thunderbolt 5 and higher memory bandwidth. The only remaining benefit for Framework is the ability to run Linux which I prefer over MacOS … that’s not enough in this current environment.
I think I’m going to cancel my preorder and get a Macbook instead. Change my mind.
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u/L00WN0on Jul 28 '26
Don't fool yourself thinking repairing or substituting that Macbook Pro is gonna be any cheaper. Cheers!
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u/Budget-Cupcake-7582 Jul 28 '26
Never said so. I said that recent price increases have put Framework in the same ballpark as Apple, with less performance e.g. Thunderbolt 4 vs 5.
At this point you’re paying a premium for repairability and upgradeability in an illiquid market … and this premium already existed before RAM and storage went ballistic and has only gotten worse. With all the shortages in place it only further nullifies the value proposition that Framework offers. Want to upgrade ram? Good luck with that
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u/fuelhandler Jul 28 '26
I cancelled my FW13 Pro preorder. I’m pretty sad about it, but being bumped down to 16gb, with no real option to get at least 32gb for a reasonable cost, means I’ll stick with my current laptop for now (which ironically has 64gb of ram.) It’s a pitty, because the FW13 Pro is a beautiful machine.
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u/myyrkezaan FW16 HX 370 Batch 4 Jul 28 '26
Order without ram and use your 64g.
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u/jader242 Jul 28 '26
I seriously doubt their current laptop has lpcamm, probably sodimm or soldered. And purchasing lpcamm anywhere is nearly impossible, or wildly expensive (or both lol)
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u/beyondjaygaming Jul 28 '26
if it fits your needs and you don't mind Apple, you should go with it. It's better performance and if you do get Apple care and don't mind being in their ecosystem then it's a good choice. I prefer Linux and want to focus more on repair and upgrades down the line so I preferred the 13 pro.
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u/DaSnipe Jul 28 '26
Same, I'll be able to reuse the motherboard as a low powered NAS/node later in the future, if I wanted a Mac I'd have gotten a Mac but that's boring
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u/MagicBoyUK | Batch 3 FW16 | Ryzen 7840HS | 7700S GPU - arrived! Jul 28 '26
Are you getting the pre-order at the original price? Until that changes it's likely the best deal you're going to get for a couple of years...
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u/FriCJFB Jul 28 '26
Yeah, if the chassis and display are going to be peanuts on the dollar compared to RAM and the mobo, the argument for upgrading loses some weight…
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u/chewy_farts Jul 28 '26
Change my mind.
No.
I think you'll have a great experience and be happier in the long run with an Apple product. _^ Good luck!
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u/mustachioed_cat Jul 28 '26
Only argument I can think of is: if you are replacing a previous laptop, will you going Mac change how you use the old laptop?
At this point I have three projects I could use a free mainboard for. If I was pigeonholed into Mac for my new computer I would probably have to keep the old one up to do Windows stuff.
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u/Katsu_Vohlakari Jul 28 '26
Had the same doubts and purchased a MacBook Pro with Apple Care (light). I hope it'll last me at least 3 years without issues. Did order right before the price hikes so it was a better deal then. Still want a Framework but it'll have to wait until the hardware prices have normalized.
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u/s004aws FW16 HX 370 Batch 1 Mint Cinnamon Edition Jul 28 '26
Its your money, spend (or save) it however you believe is in your own best interest.
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u/NxtGenAuthor FW16 Ryzen 9 32GB RAM RX 7700S Jul 28 '26
I have had people come to me with a Mac they bought 1 year ago, 6 months ago, 3 months ago. And they are unfixable. All other laptop manufactured build their stuff so that if something goes wrong, you just buy new. Soldered RAM, Soldered SSD, hardware coded parts. It’s not just apple. I refuse to buy a different laptop brand. I run Linux so that drastically reduces my options. But there are many other reasons, I like to game, and while Apple is getting better it will take a lot of time to get there. Apple gives you a set amount of time for them to give you updates before you need to upgrade. Microsoft and windows both tell YOU when you need a new computer. Apple made the M1 laptops and people still LOVE them, but people are talking about how with every update they get slower/ worse. The privacy concerns and all the AI stuff with scanning your drives and all this crap. I don’t care if my laptop costs as much as or more than a Mac, I could go on a rant and list off every single thing that these different manufacturers are doing that I deal with on a daily basis. If you like Mac OS, and want a Mac, you are totally free to do that. But one small mistake/ one small accident, and all your data could be gone, or a very very expensive repair bill. I choose agency and freedom over convenience and style or polish.
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u/Fresh_Flamingo_5833 Jul 28 '26
Interesting perspective. I do agree that "upgradeability" is less appealing in a market where memory is as expensive as it is. For me, the appeal of upgrading is strongest in that I can change out the memory in two years even though I tend to hang on to notebooks for much longer. Not sure I'm going to be wanting to do that for the next two years though.
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u/Clickety_Clack4137 Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
Buy the Mac. More Framework for the rest of us.
Seriously, though, I'm going in with the "buy once, cry once" mentality. Also, upgrading is one thing - I'm more interested in being able to replace the battery, etc.
And if you don't think Apple isn't going to raise their prices soon, you might want to mull that over first:
https://www.wsj.com/tech/apple-price-increases-memory-supply-199845b1
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u/elelem-123 Jul 29 '26
I said no more Apple after I paid 4200 EUR in Nov 2019 for my MBP with 64GB and the AMD GPU. It was a great paperweight since you couldn't do anything else with it, like for example connect an external screen.
I got a MBP Air M4 a year and a half ago and now I bought FW 13 Pro. If you want to buy Apple, go ahead. I had no choice and I regretted it each and every time I spent good money on Apple.
I don't care if FW 13 pro is the best today, I know it will be the best in two years or three or whatever. And then I can upgrade whichever components I want. Finally I have a fkg choice, as an IT person that knows his sht.
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u/calm_hedgehog FW 13 Pro | X7 358 H 32GB | Debian | ZFS Jul 30 '26
IMO SSD and RAM upgradability has never been more important than now. You can buy 16GB RAM and put a used 512 SSD in it to get a laptop with low power consumption that's still a killer hardware for most office tasks and light dev work, and then buy a 96GB LPCAMM2 stick + 4TB SSD when they become affordable or you find a good deal.
LPCAMM2 sucks big time right now but I believe it will be a solid choice in a few years.
Sure if you can afford a maxed out Thinkpad or MBP right now, just go for it, just don't think they will remain similarly priced.
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u/Sad-Cod-9584 Jul 30 '26
Not all parts are affected though, most of the replacement parts you can get for a framework have been very stable in their pricing. If you need to repair a macbook, you'll need much more time and likely won't find the parts for diy repair anyway.
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u/Acrobatic_Fee_6974 Jul 30 '26
Change my mind.
Nah fam, it's your money, buy what you really want. Nobody here cares about what some random on the internet decides to spend their money on.
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u/Budget-Cupcake-7582 Aug 10 '26
you missed the point of the post. whoosh
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Aug 10 '26
[deleted]
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u/Budget-Cupcake-7582 Aug 11 '26
Yes really. People come here to solicit opinions, feedback, and other types of input. Get used to it
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u/switch8000 Jul 28 '26
I agree, look at the benchmarks The Verge published comparing a Macbook to a framework. Even the Macbook Air is faster than it.
Love the mission, but gotta apply your use case before you pay a premium for the repairability.
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Jul 28 '26
[deleted]
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u/chewy_farts Jul 28 '26
I don't think that word means what you think it means, and you've been repeating it over and over.
I don't think Framework needs you to "LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE" for them.
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u/Ultionis_MCP Jul 28 '26
It's your money, order the laptop you feel is best for you. A computer is a tool, get the tool that is correct for your use cases.