You must log in or # to comment.
Actually rational take?? Holy hell
they gotta start selling the framework with that Thinkpad clit, that thing gave me all the skills I needed to make a woman happy
This was me, basically.
I had a Thinkpad X1 Carbon Gen 10 that, by the books, should have been a beast with good Linux support to boot. I tried for so long, but ended up replacing it with a Framework.
The thermal management on the Thinkpad is awful, under Linux at least but by all accounts attributable to the EC itself. Running the most basic workload would cause the CPU to spike for about one second before it would throttle all cores back to 400 MHz where they would stay locked for the next few minutes despite the CPU temps remaining at 50-60°C the entire time.
And it wasn’t just me, numerous reports from all over. This made the system nearly useless. I shared pages of diagnostic info with them and they just seemed completely uninterested in trying to do anything about it.
Spec’d out equivalently, the Framework 16 (without GPU) is no more expensive than the X1 Carbon but with even better Linux support and unsurpassable upgradeability. I’m glad my company was onboard for me to switch.
This is the first time I’m hearing about Framework. Is it worth it? I’m looking for a new laptop anyway
I guess it depends what you value. I have a Framework 13, first generation. I run Linux on it and really enjoyed putting it together myself (I ordered the DIY option).
I absolutely love their ports. You swap in the ports you want. I normally run a USB C on either side (so I can charge from either side) plus a USB A on each side (the Framework 13 has two slots each side, I think the 16 might have 3 each side?). But I also have HDMI, Display Port, and micro SD in case I need them. I can hot swap them in.
Their guides are awesome. I broke a screen and was able to order another and replace it myself following their guide. When the time comes (probably in the next year or so) I’m planning on upgrading. A bit like a desktop, since it’s been a few years it means replacing the motherboard (what they call the mainboard) and RAM since technology moves on. I"m pretty sure like all laptops the CPU is fixed to the mainboard, but you can upgrade RAM or storage without replacing the whole guts (assuming same slot type). In fact you can buy without some pieces and reuse stuff you have or buy from elsewhere to save some money.
When I eventually do it I’m planning on strapping the old mainboard to the back of my TV as a HTPC (replacing the old dying laptop currently there).
There are plenty of downsides. No touchscreen. I wish the screen was a little brighter, it’s not bad but could be better (might be better with later models?). I replaced the hinges with their more resistant ones but the screen still moves if I carry it around with the screen open (not sure if it’s still an issue on newer models).
I really value the idea of repairability and upgradeability. When I was younger you could swap a bigger harddrive or RAM into a laptop if you had a screwdriver (and sometimes even without), and repairing other parts was also possible. These days you’re more likely to find the whole thing glued together. Framework lets you do your own repairs, and has guides to walk you through every step.
There are probably more downsides, but I do love it and would buy another in a heartbeat. But if there are special things you need then carefully check. For example last I checked they did not have a full size SD card reader module available (though of course you can use a regular external one if you really need to).
Ok fuck it.
Tell me why i shouldn’t go for this as my next daily driver after one MBP after another for over 15 yrs. I’m serious.
You shouldn’t buy a framework because you will be robbing yourself of the joy of a brand new laptop every 3 to 5 years because the battery is not replaceable or the WiFi chip went bad and it is soldered in. Think of all the innovations you will be missing out on because you are just swapping parts out like some kind of animal.
Do you think this is some kind of investment or something? Computers are just disposable things that everyone can afford. Why bother fixing things? I just have my butler go grab me a new one whenever I accidentally drop it in the pool while browsing on my floating inflatable chair.
lol. Look at the current state and trend of tech and tell me with a straight face that it’s you who will be getting the innovation. What amazing feature was introduced in the last 10 years you couldn’t live without? How much garbage was introduced just because companies could get away with it because the average consumers PC is powerful enough to not notice the spyware/adware/bloatware running in the background?
Yes, buy the new thing. Consume. Trash. Buy new.
I don’t even value repairability to save a buck long term. I value it because I know I can get my system up and running again ways before I finish setup on a new device.
There have been a ton of innovative hardware and software features. Such as ADs in the start menu, firmware locked parts to the system, always on facial recognition cameras, soldered on ssd storage, windows recall, AI processors, planned obsolescence.
So much innovation in such little time.
What are you going to use 64GB of RAM for?
Futureproofing it for the next N years? Playing some mad games? Honestly no idea I just thought to take the current top tier benchmark and one-up it.
Edit: on reflection I generally max out my MBPs out of habit to get the longest shelf life possible. Perhaps it’s just habit.
Edit2: if it helps I tend to get a new laptop every 5/6 years. The aim here would be to happily bespoke the hell out of a system and get more than 6 years out of it.
I’m with you on this, especially with regards to RAM. Take whatever seems a bit overkill today, double it, and you have what passes as functional in five years (assuming you keep software updated).
Going overboard on RAM is likely the cheapest future-proofing you can do on a machine when you buy it.
Is the youtuber Investor Linus (tech tips)? If so, what are his controversial politics?
Calling adblockers piracy is one i remember
I don’t support ltt but that’s the weakest (most cope least knowledgeable) argument there is honestly
like that makes sense because by adblocking you are basically receiving “paid” content for “free” (i put quotes bc the site isn’t getting paid unless you click but whatever)
he elaborates to say that he isn’t criticising it, just drawing an analogue, and that he uses one himself iirc
ublock origin+sponsorblock <3 btw
btw my reason for not liking ltt is just that i don’t like the consolidation of media and info sources, and that there’s just higher quality content to watch
I wish more places had the resources to make an equivalent to ltt labs. There’s still rtings which is pretty darn good though.
He also said that he would consider Linus Media Group unionizing a “personal failure,” which is about as good as you could typically expect from a business owner but still not great.
Giving him the benefit of the doubt, he probably meant that if a business owner treats his employees well, there shouldnt be a need to unionize. But that would mean he fundamentally misunderstands what a union is and why you want one. I dont know which is worse.
Your benefit of the doubt assumption is correct. He has explained it in detail a couple of times. Like you I find it unfortunate and frustrating.
Still, based on some of the numbers they have talked about their employee retention is very good and considering how talented many of the people who work for him are, if it were a shitty place to work that could likely easily find work elsewhere. I have a number of criticisms of Linus and his ADHD snap judgments or out of touch privileged takes, but he still strikes me as someone that does genuinely want to do the right thing that got insanely lucky and had to adapt to a crazy situation no random person off thee street would ever be that prepared before.
I guess the generous amount of coverage and media attention Framework gets from their videos
Well they do disclose their investment but I dont think it is what they were referencing. It makes sense for them to cover as they have a stake in the company doing well.
