I have a framework, pretty happy with it - Arch installed without any hitches and runs well. Only downside is how long it took to go from deposit to actually paying/shipping.
I've been wanting a Framework so bad. When I start working again (which should be soon), I'm going to save up for one.
The modularity, repairability, and price for specs are what attracts me compared to the other companies mentioned in this post.
I love my Framework. It may not feel as polished physically as the XPS. If you can find one in the wild to touch and try, I would recommend doing so.
They're unfortunately harder to find in the wild than pokemons 😂 Have you experienced long delivery time as mentioned above?
How long have you been waiting? Was it during the pandemic (when everyone was using this as an excuse)? Do you know if it seems to be a current issue?
Ordered on August 2nd, Shipped November 17th of 2023
I currently have a System76 laptop, and sincerely regret my purchase. When I purchased it, the Framework was not out yet - I wanted to support a company that supports right-to-repair, and figured since they controlled the hardware, firmware, and software (Pop!_OS), it would be a good, stable experience. It has not been, and support has generally been poor. I know other people have had better experiences than I have, but personally, I won't be buying from them again.
I haven't personally used Purism, but former co-workers spoke really poorly of them. They were trying to buy a big batch for work, and said the build quality was awful. Additionally: https://youtu.be/wKegmu0V75s
I have one problem with my s76, the usb c port rly sucks. Other than that the laptop runs very well but something so simple shouldnt be an issue imo there are some build quality issues going on..
My usb-c ports can be a little touchy, too. The SD card slot is also really bad - the card has to be positioned perfectly to slide in, or it jams. I'm also upset that the usb-c port can only be used for charging after a full boot. It cannot be used to perform firmware updates, or even to do a ram test. This means day-to-day, usb-c can be used, but I have to keep track of the barrel charger, just in case. This, of course, was not specified on the product details page (nor, I think, that only one of the two usb-c ports could be used for charging - it's possible I overlooked that, but still frustrating on an expensive laptop that lists usb-c charging as a feature).
Thanks very much for this important feedback. Framework is definitely taking the lead in responses to this post.
Framework
Any more details? ;)
Since it was not mentioned yet: https://www.tuxedocomputers.com/en
If I would not get so many old computing devices that fulfill my needs (I don’t game on PC/Linux) I guess I’d buy one of those. I live in Switzerland and having a german company for support would be superior to me. And I heard that build quality should be great 😇 😂I guess I’d really like to have one, but as I said, for my needs, my macbookpro5,3 running arch does the job.
can confirm that tuxedo is great if you are in Europe. It has been my daily driver for 3 years with debian sid and it's great!
Framework. I've run Debian, Fedora and for a while now NixOS, all of which have worked flawlessly.
I did have to replace the heatsink/fan part on mine because the fan bearing started clicking, but I'm sure that was just a first generation product issue (I was one of the first batches). I was glad to be able to do the replacement myself at relatively low cost and the process couldn't have been easier (took about 30 minutes).
My previous machine was a 2013-ish ThinkPad X series and the Framework absolutely blows it out of the water. I'm looking forward to upgrading mine to a Ryzen motherboard sometime in the not so distant future.
I have a framework laptop and endeavour os with gnome de. I've had no problems with it. I mainly use it for dev work and web browsing. I enabled gnome muli-gesture (basically the same gestures on a Mac trackpad). I've had no problems with that either.
I'd recommend it.
I'm a fan of refurbished ThinkPads myself, but that is mostly for money reasons. If I had money to blow, I would probably also buy a Framework
Framework also has an outlet, just in case you want to take a look ;)
I had a System76 10 years ago. The customer service was excellent (several months after receiving my laptop, they sent me a replacement keyboard, because they didn't like the one it shipped with). The build quality was meh, it was a plastic body and didn't hold up well to wear and tear, but it's in my closet and still works. I haven't tried their aluminum bodies.
I now have a Framework. It arrived with trackpad issues, and one of the HDMI adapters didn't work at all. They shipped me replacements for both at no cost to me (except time). It's been nice knowing that any other issues I do have can be replaced piecewise. Also I like that the webcam/mic have physical kill switches.
Very nice to read this feedback. I'm very sold to Framework after all the great things posted here. An impeccable customer support like the one you describe means a lot about a company.
While I'm yet to do it myself, I would suggest getting a Thinkpad T480 and upgrading its RAM. The reason you want a T480 is because it was the last Thinkpad to have user removable parts. One tip: when using eBay, make sure you filter out the T480s. The T480s is not the same as the T480 since it doesn't have user removable parts.
Second the T480, it's a great Linux laptop and very upgradable. If possible try to make sure it already has an NVMe or SATA M.2 in the main drive bay. Switching from a 2.5 requires an adapter board and different cables.
Thanks for the tip. I know a lot of people are going for Thinkpads and you're specific recommendation may seem interesting but I'd like to support other companies like the ones I bought from so far (Toshiba, Lenovo, Dell, Vaio, Acer, PB, Razer) and I'd also like to build my own laptop from the start.
Of course. Just remember this when buying a laptop (and by extension a printer): FUCK HP!
I hate Lenovo and I have a Lenovo laptop. The company is shit but the laptops are great. I justify it by buying used.
What parts other than one stick of RAM aren't upgradeable on the t480s? The processor? I've seen screen swaps, touchpad swaps, keyboard, just about everything. I got one back in the summer, added a stick of RAM to get up to 16gb, it's running at 3200mhz like the other one, and swapped in a new OEM battery. It's been great. I also recently bought a e495 for around 60 bucks, it's thicker and plastic-ey, but also a solid Linux machine running an AMD CPU. Are the newer t14s really that crippled in repairability?
I've had a framework for 2 years now. It's run fedora, manjaro (arch based) and Debian with no major issues. Manjaro had some problems with KDE and the high DPI screen. Sometimes the scaling was inconsistent between apps. Fedora just works.
Only hardware issue is the battery life is just not that great. And the trackpad doesn't always work property, but I think that was a first generation issue that's been resolved since.
I would try to avoid any kind of brand-loyalty.
Find something that meets your specifications and try it out for yourself. If it works, keep it. If it doesn't, return it.
Just about every retailer has guaranteed returns for 30 days on computers.
Check out https://old.reddit.com/r/LaptopDeals/ daily until you find something that meets your needs and budget.
They're all aight, but avoid asus like the plague, they don't last very long and have tons of incompatibilities with linux. I've only had mine for 3 years and it already needs a new mobo as the pci lanes for wifi and bluetooth suddenly died
Framework and ThinkPad have both been a really positive experience.
Personally I'm holding out for a laptop based on the snapdragon elite X arm chips coming out later this year. Should be great for battery life (like 28 hours) and very fast. We'll see how the linux support turns out. And also which manufacturers pick it up - would like framework but haven't heard anything about that from them. Lenovo already released a system based on the old snapdragon chip so seems likely they'll release one based on the elite X too.
Got this one. I like it but support is really rough. Not officially supported but they are helping somewhat the motivated guys getting it upstream. Was advertised with 28 hour battery life as well. You can get 12 hours in linux, less in windows.
Peformancewise it is flawless. The weight is awesome. Very comfy on the lap. But its almost two years and very much is missing.
If the new generation doesn't have official linux compatibility I would not recommend buying it on release.
Anyone have some experience with StarLabs?
Ordered a StarFighter like more than half a year ago and am losing confidence in the company...
Can you expand on that?
Well, the Laptop is still not released. Not sure what I can say more about it :-\
Novacustom or System76, they actually use open Firmware.
Novacustom... Never heard of it. The almost insignificant disadvantage I can see so far for Framework is that they don't use open-source boot. Everyone so far stand behind Framework. How would you sell me on System76 or Novacustom?
Framework tried Coreboot, has problems and gave up. When buying a Laptop with coreboot you support open Firmware Development for all CPUs, many board generations etc.
Just look at 3mdeb's Dasharo guide. Its nearly as secure as Heads, on a modern Laptop!
Not true, firstly 'framework' never tried Coreboot they have provided boards to coreboot devs however, who've had issues including accidentally bricking the board. New boards have been shipped, and the origional fixed. They haven't given up though completely and the work is still being done. There was a recent talk that had to be canceled due to the speaker getting sick on this subject. Work is likely still being done, but is slow, and will continue to be so.
Still though, there's no evidence that framework has ever had or ever will have the intention of including core-boot by default. They're simply supporting coreboot devs to make it compatable
The reasoning for why the others have it is likely due to system76 and nova customs using mostly generic parts like the shell and motherboard along with being around longer. It's great to support a company that's ensuring coreboot works on their system however and pushing towards a non-proprietary future
Framework
If you're willing to import, tuxedo computers is another great choice. I can personally vouch for framework but I'd caution if you're looking for the 16, it'll be a bit before they're available. 13ish batches pre-ordered, with batch one shipping in a few weeks, it may take quite a bit to get. The 13 though is in stock and shouldn't take too long to recieve
Edit: oh sorry, 13 inch is your preference. I'd strongly vouch for framework. I'd also say stay away from purism due to their scummy history on the phone if you care about that.
Another happy Framework user here. I have 2 first gens in my immediate family and 2 second gens among my friends. All run Ubuntu LTS. No one is complaining. I've already replaced my bottom chassis because I destroyed it during a bad mishap. Ordering was easy, the part was inexpensive, the replacement was straightforward. A Dell XPS perhaps feels a bit better made, but then it doesn't say Made in Taiwan on the bottom so there's that. 😅
On the other hand System76 is building a new open source desktop environment in a sane programming language... 🤔 If COSMIC desktop turns out great and I end up using it, I'll probably throw a couple of hundred their way in lieu of buy their laptop.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0