My First Week With the Framework 13
I've had my Framework 13 for a week now. There have been some challenges along the way, but for the most part, I'm happy with my purchase.
I posted some initial thoughts the day I took delivery of the Framework, but I've since got to know the device a little better, so thought I'd share some updated thoughts.
Hardware
It feels like a quality piece of kit. It's made of aluminium, but does feel a bit plasticy. The screen has a tonne of flex when it's upright compared to my MacBook M1 Air, like a worrying amount, but maybe I'm just so use to the MacBook's exceptional build quality.
I like the keyboard. There's lots of travel on it, more than on the MacBook, but it feels nice to type on. I don't think it's quite as good as Apple's offering, but it's very good. The trackpad is great - just as good as the Mac's, only with better scrolling. Lots of the same gestures work too.
Generally speaking the 2800x1920 screen is brilliant. Everything is super crisp. However, I did notice an issue with the screen a couple of days ago. Part of the top layer of "film" seems to be separating from the rest of the screen:
To be fair to Framework, I got straight on to them and a replacement is already in the post. Having said that, it does make me worry about the longevity of this machine.
While I'm talking about the screen - I think I made a mistake with the orange bezel. It's a bit too much for me, and I find it distracting, so I'll probably switch to a black bezel at some point.
A few people have asked about the specs I went for on my Framework. Here's what it has:
- AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (up to 5.1GHz, 8-core/16-thread)
- 2800x1920 display
- 64GB 5600 DDR 5 RAM (2x 32GB sticks)
- WD Black SN850X 2TB NVMe
- Orange bezel
- 2x orange USB C expansion cards
- 1x silver USB C expansion card
- 1x silver USB A expansion card
I'm not really a gamer. The only game I play is Minecraft occasionally with the kids. On there, I get well over 60 FPS at all times, so I'm happy. I'm sure it would cope just fine with most other games, except for the bleeding edge stuff. If you're a casual gamer that likes to play things like Minecraft, CS:GO etc. I'm sure performance would be fine.
Final thing I want to mention is the hardware switches on the webcam and mic - these are a great addition. I'm one of those people who generally has a privacy switch over their webcam, so having a proper hardware switch is a welcome surprise.
Size
The size is great, and I became use to the 3:2 screen ration very quickly. It's actually helpful when it comes to things like coding as I have more vertical space.
Overall the Framework is a similar size and weight to my MacBook - there's really no discernable difference in weight. The Framework is definitely thicker when compared side-by-side, but it's not something you notice when using the Framework. It's not you hold it and think "boy this thing is chunky". Which, considering it's so repairable, is fantastic.
Operating System
I started out with Fedora 42 on the Framework, and although there were some initial hurdles to get over, the experience was generally good. That was until I docked the Framework with my 38" LG Ultrawide monitor and it wouldn't work.
Some research showed that this was an AMD driver issue, so it's not something that was going to be fixed quickly. I decided to cut my loses and switched to Windows 11. Unfortunately, Win 11 has been frustrating to say the least.
There's lots of little bugs in there that are annoying the shit out of me. For example, copy paste just doesn't work round 50% of the time. I've since bought a 4k dock to go in-between the laptop and the screen, so I'm planning to go back to Fedora (or maybe Ubuntu) over the next few days.
Battery life
When I'm at home, my laptop is never unplugged for long periods. That's because I'm generally docked to my desk in my office. However, when I'm at work, I have my personal laptop sat on my desk, running on battery power, so I've given it a couple of good runs.
The Mac is spectacular when it comes to battery life, and I knew the Framework wouldn't get near it, but I can use the Framework for an entire work day without needing to charge it. Having said that, it's not being used constantly when I'm in the office, so if you're going to be bashing on the keyboard constantly, I'd estimate a good 6 hours of use. Which is fine for my needs.
Overall thoughts so far
The switch from Mac to Framework has generally been a smooth one, albeit frustrating at times. The only app I've had to find a replacement for was Apple Notes (I went with Joplin). I don't use much of Apple's offerings, which definitely helped with the transition.
The most difficult thing has been having to re-learn a lot of the keyboard shortcuts from Mac to Windows. I'm still slipping up on the regular, but it's getting easier.
We will see how the switch back to Linux goes over the next few days - I'm cautiously optimistic that I'll be able to make Fedora work for me, which would be great.
Overall I'm happy with my purchase - I hope the issue with the screen was a one off. If it is, I've ended up with an extremely powerful machine, that I can repair for years to come, for the price of a low-mid range MacBook Pro.
Want more?
So you've read this post and you're still not satisfied? Ok then, here's some other stuff for you to do: