Still about 500 euro more expensive than similar Slimbook but at least not 2x as expensive as it used to be. At this point paying more for upgradable laptop makes sense. I will definitely consider it when I need a new one.
this post was submitted on 21 Apr 2026
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I have Tuxedo laptop (they get them the same ODMs as Slimbook) and love it but if it ever drops on the floor with significant imparct I no longer have a laptop. All I could do is send it back for official repair to Germany and prey, while if I got Framework I could buy parts myself.
I have 16 inch framework. I bought it fairly stripped down, only getting the parts I really needed for basic function as a laptop. I then bought additional parts as I had money for them and slotted them in. Made it a much more affordable purchase over all.
And… then I spilled water on the keyboard. Shut it down, pulled it apart a little, dried next to a fan for a bit. Water hadn’t gotten past the keyboard luckily, but the keyboard was only partly functional. I just got a new keyboard module, put it in my self, good as new. No sending out the whole computer, no getting told by the rep that the whole machine was broken and I had to buy a new one.
Payed for its self immediately that day as far as I’m concerned.
Totally but year or two ago you had to pay ~2.5k for a Framework and ~1.3k for a similar Slimbook. That meant that even if you dropped your Slimbook you could just buy a new one and it would still cost the same as the Framework. The selling point for Framework was that you could upgrade it but why spend more money to upgrade a laptop when you can just a Slimbook and buy completely new Slimbook couple years later for the price of one Framework? Now that the difference is about 500 euros it makes sense.
Because that’s wasteful
The Thinkpad T460 i bought 9 years ago was passed on to a family member after a couple years and is still in use. I don't know how that's wasteful.
If I had bought a Framework I would have bought a new mainboard and I can't pass a mainboard on, I can't use it as a cheap home server. The old mainboard would have been electronic waste.
Wait, why wouldn't you 3D print (or order) the official mainboard enclosure and use it as a cheap home server? You could at least sell it or pass it along to someone else who would.
i don't have a 3D printer. granted there's a cooler master mainboard case but it's 45€ and i would still have to add at least four expansion cards for 85€ (ethernet, 2x usb-c, hdmi) a power adapter for 120€ and mass storage (maybe even some ram modules if i can reuse the old ones). at that point i'm running a bill for turning that mainboard into a server where i could just buy a new dedicated one.
The XPS 13 I bought like eight years ago will eventually turn to dust just... Watching YouTube videos on my desk.
The battery died five years back so I replaced it.
Dell emailed me to tell me that Windows 10 was out of support, I've had Linux on it for years now.
I also have an EeePC.
There's limit to what I'm willing to pay extra to be more green.
In the long run it is also more expensive.
This looks great!
I’ve been using Linux on desktop for about 8 months now and I’m enjoying it a lot. I could see myself buying a Linux laptop with this battery life.
It’s super cool that you can just buy the parts and upgrade your old laptop with this!
On Netflix 4k streaming for example, we’re getting over 20 hours of battery life
that's pretty sick
Painfully expensive, like all computer hardware these days.
Either skip upgrading, buy used, wait for prices to drop, or start saving.
I have a used machine, until I can afford to get something new. Maybe in a little while I’ll get a framework. (I think that if the 16” gets a pro model I’d definitely get one.)
Yeah I don't really do new technology any more. I'm more into keeping the old machines running as long as possible.
Honestly, that's why the last laptop I bought (over a year ago, now) was a Framework that I put Linux on. I haven't had to change anything out yet, but I like that it'll be easier when I do.
Ooh big bad gov mafia is soo mad you aren't being subscribed to death.
I'm not trying to screw the government or anything. I'm just trying to spend less money and throw fewer things in the landfill. The government part is just a nice perk.
800 pounds for 64gb ddr5, what a time to be alive. Could get something a bit cheaper but it's still crazy prices.
I'll probably breakdown and finally get one
Did they say what is the battery life for AMD version? I see the 20h is for Intel.
I haven't seen that yet
If I understand the specs correctly, this should be almost fully compatible with existing 13 hardware.
Tempted to just get the black chassis once they release it, and put my current FW13 mainboard in it
The new bottom cover requires the new battery, new speakers and new audio board, as well as the new input cover (graphite or silver). So you are limited to either getting a new input cover or getting the entire bottom kit.
They did a video where they swapped parts from a first generation FW13 with a FW13Pro. There were only two caveats: one, if you want the Pro battery on your older laptop, you have to buy a new bottom panel too because they made the battery bigger for a longer life and it won't fit in the old cover. And two, depending on your architecture, the Wi-Fi modules might not be interchangeable due to some vendor chipset thing, I think?
Everything else was able to be swapped, though, it seemed.
Edit: oh wait, I take it back, the speaker modules. I think they might technically be compatible, but since they're side-firing on the Pro instead of down-firing, you'd need a new bottom chassis if you didn't want them to sound awful.
They also said you need the new touchpad and top plate to have enough clearance for the battery
Bottom panel, input panel, battery, and speakers have to be all pro together
You can put the new input panel on the old bottom panel, though
No, I don't think it was bigger on the top, I think it was bigger on the bottom. I'm pretty sure you just needed the bottom cover.
They explicitly state the top input module has to be changed to support the new battery in the video here
https://frame.work/ca/en/laptop13pro?tab=upgrade-to-pro
Unless you can put the old battery in the new bottom panel, you have to upgrade all 4 at once if you upgrade the bottom
Yeah, the black chassis looks fucking awesome
I'm having a Framework 16 and during work in a warehouse I produced a major scratch on it.
Would love to either do a cover up "tattoo" (like laser engraving) or just switch to a black chassis, if it becomes available for the F16
Either way, those things fucking rock
My little brother has an old ThinkPad, which I regard as good.
But the keyboard starts to die and he bought a new keyboard to replace.
You need to disassemble the complete laptop, just to change the keyboard - and there are a fuckload of screws and flimsy connectors.
Because of that age, I also guess, that those flimsy plastic brackets, holding the flat rippon cables, while easily break - at least that happend to me, when I tried to repair an really old piece of hardware
The idea of Framework is absolutely great
The only thing, that worries me, is the massive use of magnets, because working in a dirty industrial environment, it sucks up all the little metal pieces - and that killed the speakers of my last laptops at least, and brought that shit into PCB environment
Still, at its so easy to disassemble, I can just pull out the modules, even while the laptop is running, clean them up and put them back.
Fucking love this thing!
Ok, only wanted to say something about this nice black chassis and got carried off...
Looks great, I was never a framework believer because it was so overpriced (to an extent it still is), but this sounds way better and might actually be a good deal. Aside from the specs bump, they fixed almost all of the issues with the older frameworks (CEO talks more about it in this video).
Better build quality and less flex, better screen, better speakers, and a better touchpad. The biggest issue I heard about it was that it felt a bit cheap and wobbly because of all the moving parts, but if they manage to fix that, I might actually get it some day.
It is expensive to “get in” but once you’re in you don’t have to buy a new laptop, you can just replace chassis/mainboards as you go.
I would love one but I'm a track point person and that pretty much leaves me with one option.
Almost makes me regret having bought a maxed out version about a year ago. Just kidding, I'll probably upgrade the trackpad, but apart from that it's the best laptop I ever owned. Sad that you have to swap the whole input cover but it makes the swap easier, it's just 5 screws.
I will buy that machine though when ARM takes off. Until that, battery improvements from introducing even lower power cores and bigger batteries does just seem like a quick fix to keep x86 alive.