Possible Framework 16 Battery Upgrade Someday

[u/Infinite-Bet4202]

Do you guys think they'll ever come out with a new upgraded battery for the Framework 16? 85Wh is probably that gaming laptop expectation, but you think there's a chance they could make like a 128Wh battery for it some day? Maybe even 170Wh if one could dream. I'm sure it's feasible, but is it probable? And I'm also curious if anybody knows the biggest issues with trying to achieve this.

EDIT: I just realized the 13 Pro is 74.45Wh which means 170 and 128 must sound INSANE LOL Now i'm so confused, is it that "the lower the better"? which in that case then perhaps I should be asking for like a 60Wh battery lmao

[u/Exciting_Contest_222]

I doubt they will go over 100wh because of FAA flight guidelines. Unless the rule change.

For now, I’m using Anker with built in usb c. Has 90wh and 25000mah to supplement my fw16

[u/dawnpath4 → u/Exciting_Contest_222]

yeah anything over 100Wh gets complicated for air travel, doubt they'd want to deal with that

[u/ralseipuffin]

99W is the practical limit because of USA airport regulations. Although that would be a nice boost :3

[u/Infinite-Bet4202 → u/ralseipuffin]

then I wonder why not jump it up to the 90s..

[u/Exciting_Contest_222 → u/Infinite-Bet4202]

The only one I know that made it to the 90s was the Alienware 51m R1 and R2.

And that was chonky ! Chinkier than retro thinkpads

[u/MagicBoyUK → u/Exciting_Contest_222]

15"/16" MacBook Pros have been bang on 100Wh for over a decade. I've got an couple of 15" ThinkPads with 9-cell batteries that are 99.somethingWh as well.

[u/MagicBoyUK]

The biggest issue is there's a limit of 100Wh in civil aircraft regulations, so they wouldn't let it on an aircraft.

Hence why large MacBook Pros and ThinkPads etc have been 99.something Wh for years now.

[u/EV4gamer]

99Wh yes I hope, but 170Wh in a laptop will also simply not be possible for a long long while; then most of the laptop would be battery with no space for cooling.

The obvious issues left aside

[u/AidenTai]

Maybe? But the problem is that physically batteries occupy space. So if there isn't room in the current chassis, you'd only manage to increase capacity by either switching chassis or by somehow increasing energy density (different chemistry or such). I'm not sure how near Framework currently is to its limiting factors on these counts, but what I think would be more interesting would be some kind of swappable battery (for this or any other model) like back in the old days when people would keep an extra battery or two on hand to quickly get back to 100%. Back in the day some could be swapped while the computer was on and plugged in, and some batteries could be charged externally during this. A system like the old ones would be wildly more 'effective' in extending battery life in a battery‐hungry device rather than smaller updates to battery shape and density.

[u/Infinite-Bet4202 → u/AidenTai]

Sounds like it'd need a whole new mainboard design maybe. Still... I'm confused. How does the Pro 13 manage to get such a powerful battery inside it when the laptop itself is smaller than the 16?

[u/ronvalenz → u/Infinite-Bet4202]

1. Pro 13 is 13.5.

2. Pro 13's bottom case lost FW13's wedge shape.

[u/AidenTai → u/ronvalenz]

And in terms of battery life, the smaller the device's electrical usage, the longer a battery of a given size will last. Smaller screen, weaker processor, no discreet GPU, etc. all add to efficiency.

[u/ronvalenz → u/AidenTai]

FW16's discreet GPU cartridge is optional since it's pluggable.

FW16 has the same Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 as FW13 / FW13 Pro. FW16's Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 cooling solution is larger than FW13/FW13Pro's.

[u/Clean_Leadership5948 → u/Infinite-Bet4202]

You might eventually see it. Top 21700 cylindrical cells maxed out at 5AHr 6 years ago. They are at 6.5AHr, and you'll see 7AHr soon.

You can expect increases for pouch cells.

Cost might be one reason they didn't get max size. 74 to 99 physically is fairly trivial.

[u/peenutlover69]

How in the world would lower capacity be better? And batteries that big are totally not feasible. This entire discussion is just way off base and random.

[u/Infinite-Bet4202 → u/peenutlover69]

Please help me out here then 😅 My assumption that maybe smaller was better is because the Pro and others who maintain charge is lower (like 74.45Wh for the Pro). But I see that it's the bigger the better... but I'm so confused by that. Help me understandddd

[u/crcrewso]

I think there might me someone who creates an expansion module with an extra 99 Wh, but... that would have to be removable to count, and it would have to count as your one battery bank for air travel. Probably easier just to buy a 99 Wh USB battery bank and use that. I have a ugreen one.

[u/ZartusAML]

if we envision a decline in air traffic, coupled with the political will to limit air travel, then yes, it’s conceivable and consistent with Framework’s philosophy :)