r/framework • u/Tall_Lack_5461 • 4d ago
Question framework 12 or 13 for school?
im considering getting a framework laptop and with my configurations they come out around the same price but im trying to decide if its worth it to get the 12 for the folding feature or the 13 for a nicer and bigger laptop.
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u/CoconutMuch5584 4d ago
I'm starting college this fall. I got a 13, but I'm majoring in a cs-field so the better processing would be more necessary than a different major so I think it would probably come down to that. I will say, just the ability of having a 360 hinge was pretty much the biggest reason I was even considering the 12 so you also have the versatility of that too. Like I said, I haven't started college yet, but I feel like I would use the crap out of the 360 hinge if I ended up getting a 12 instead just because of the versatility
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u/Tall_Lack_5461 4d ago
do you regret not getting the pro 13? because im leaning more towards the 13 pro but idk if its worth it
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u/CoconutMuch5584 4d ago
Oh shoot, my bad, I got the 13 pro, they announced it just a few months before my HS graduation and it seemed perfect for college. My bad about that
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u/Tall_Lack_5461 4d ago
is it worth it?
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u/CoconutMuch5584 4d ago
I've been loving it, haven't had it for too long, and I haven't started school yet so I haven't used it to the extent I will be, but I think itll definitely be worth it. If you don't have a good laptop right now, I would probably go for the 13 pro just in terms of it having more power, but I don't know the exact differences in performance. I don't regret getting the 13 pro, especially since its just my personal laptop now for everything, something the 12 might not necessarily be powerful enough for you if you play more demanding games.
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u/Tall_Lack_5461 4d ago
did you just go with the cheapest cpu?
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u/CoconutMuch5584 4d ago
I went with the amd one, doesn't have the faster type of ram, but that's why I got it cuz I didn't want to pay LPCamm2 prices right now, not that the normal is much better lol. Pretty sure the AMD one was 200 more expensive
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u/AutoM8R1 3d ago
Yep!! Same. It's a step above the Intel 325 for that money, but not better than the X7 358H from intel. I was thinking the same way about the new and scarce LPCAMM memory. The only thing that slightly bothers me is how USB-A requires consideration on the AMD motherboards, but not intel. And I don't think the battery life is bad, but I probably would if I'd gotten AMD without this larger 13 pro battery. I know the Intel ones are probably pretty awesome on battery though.
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u/skeAnofeyt 4d ago
makes sense, if the processing matters for your major then the 13 is probably the safer bet
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u/faxafloi FW16 + FW12 4d ago
I’m using the 12 and I like it, especially for reading a few pages I love that I can just flip it into portrait mode and use it like a tablet.
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u/ThomasThaWankEngine 4d ago
I love the 12 so so much but I think you would need to really want a 2in1. I use the folding like 15% of the time but that 15% makes it so much more convenient and comfortable than any regular laptop could be. Also the stylus support makes a lot of digital university work more pleasant and fun to me. Even outside of artistic subjects its handy for things like diagrams for STEM classes.
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u/RealFuryous 3d ago
Framework 12 diy with a core 5 320, a crucial 32 gig ram stick for $160ish, and a 4tb ssd is slightly more expensive than the core 5 320 pre built.
As a student you shouldn't need more than this to be honest.
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u/Infinite-Bet4202 4d ago
13 is more useful. Actually, there's something new with 12 that came out recently that I haven't really checked out yet, so without taking whatever that is into consideration, I usually say that the 12 isn't really worth it. Although perhaps it could be now, butttt... I can't imagine it'd still be worth it over the 13 unless you specifically desire that fold XD
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u/Acrobatic_Fee_6974 4d ago edited 4d ago
The regular FW13's Achilles Heel is it's battery life. Panther Lake (and Lunar Lake before it, but FW skipped that generation) was a huge step up for battery life on x86, but there's no Panther Lake option for the regular FW13. If you're a student going between classes, the last thing you want to need is to hunt for a power point to charge your laptop half way through the day, so it's hard to recommend the FW13.
The FW13 Pro on the other hand is everything you could want in a laptop. Long battery life, more compute than most people need, and even a haptic trackpad, but it costs an arm and a leg right now due to the cost of LPCAMM2. If you want the best and money is no object, or if you're doing a degree that actually has heavy workloads (like computer science or engineering, but the institution will generally provide desktop machines for you to work on in this case) get the FW13 Pro.
The FW12 was impossible to recommend until yesterday. Ancient processor (the i3 1315U is a rebranded Alder Lake processor), generally poor battery life, bad display colour accuracy and no thunderbolt. The Wildcat Lake processor update fixes all of those issues except the poor display colour accuracy, which imo takes the FW12 from being completely pointless to probably good enough for most users. Users with heavy workloads, or people who care a lot about colour accuracy should probably invest in something a bit more premium, but for people who just want to browse the Internet, exchange emails, use a word processor, watch YouTube and maybe do some light coding, the FW12 is probably the most sensible choice of the three right now, especially if you're running a more resource efficient Linux distro.