My Thoughts on the Framework Laptop
I’ve had my Framework laptop since November 2025, and I’ve been using it daily, but a lot of the reviews I encountered before buying it didn’t really seem to address the stuff that gets a little annoying, most of which wouldn’t have been a deal breaker, but there are a few things that really make me shake my fist angrily.
My setup
I use Ubuntu Linux exclusively on my laptops. At this point in its evolution it just works on pretty much any computer I’ve installed it on and the Framework is no exception. They’ve got solid support for it and it shouldn’t be an issue for anyone to set it up as long as they’re OK with installing it themselves instead of getting a laptop with an operating system already installed.
Requirements and Budget
My use cases are fairly limited to writing, browsing the internet, occasional coding (nothing graphic intensive), and running local LLMs. In an emergency, I also need to be able to do my coding for work on it. I’m definitely not doing anything that would require a dedicated graphics card, like gaming or video editing. Local LLMs run well enough as long as they aren’t too big and as long as you configure your machine with enough RAM, so you don’t need a graphics card even if you want to do something computationally expensive like that.
Given that, I thought 32gm of RAM would be more than enough, but I really wanted to have the option to upgrade in the future.
I wanted about 1TB of storage because of the LLMs and because I sometimes download the photos and videos from my camera while I’m on vacation. Storage was still cheap, so that didn’t break the bank.
My last laptop had a battery that swelled up, which was the impetus for the new computer, but it was an old Macbook Pro from 2016 and I would’ve had to get the Apple store to replace it at a likely cost of several hundred dollars, which I didn’t want to spend on a computer that was already 9 years old. I really wanted to be able to replace the battery myself in the next laptop so I could keep it for longer.
Budget: $1000.
The competition
Lenovo had some good sales for computers around $1000, but they usually had 16gb of RAM, occasionally 32gb, but they almost always had 256gb/512gb of storage. And never in a configuration in which it was 32gb RAM + 512gb storage, and definitely NEVER in a configuration where the RAM wasn’t soldered down (meaning I couldn’t upgrade it).
Lenovo’s configurations were cheaper than Dell’s and HP’s, but even Lenovo’s refurb site didn’t have anything that fit both my specs and my budget.
Framework’s 13” laptop was a decent price, but a little above my range at ~$1100, even for the DIY version (once expansion cards, storage, RAM, and charger are factored in). However, I didn’t want to spend $1000 on a laptop that didn’t have the specs I wanted because I would’ve been really salty about it.
After a little browsing, I determined that getting a DIY Framework laptop would be slightly cheaper than getting a Lenovo with my desired configuration, plus I waited until I could get the RAM and storage on sale, so I went with that. Unfortunately, the cheaper AMD Ryzen 7040 series processors were out of stock, so I got an AI 300 series processor, which bugged me, but oh well.
A note about Windows vs Linux: Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to pay for Windows. You can download it and use it for free (legitimately!), but you won’t be able to customize things like screensavers and desktop backgrounds and stuff unless you buy a key (~$25 on Kinguin). Plus it puts a watermark on the lower right hand side of your desktop. If you want to save money and you still want Windows, just go for that. It makes the Windows vs Linux decision much less of a cost issue.
The Good and The Mediocre
Assembly was a breeze. The instructions were easy to understand and my 4-year-old helped me set it up. The only thing you need is a screwdriver and it’s included!
The chassis isn’t as sturdy as a Macbook’s, but it’s fine. It feels a little plastic-y and less rigid than a Macbook Pro. I don’t travel with it often, so it mostly lives on my desk and I carry it around the house. Not a rugged laptop, but it’s not super delicate either.
The fan doesn’t spin up often for my use cases except when I run local LLMs, so it’s not usually noisy, but when the fans run they aren’t much louder than my work M1 MBP’s.
The default 2.2k matte display is great. I hate high resolutions screens because I do not have the eyes of a falcon or the eyes of an 18-year-old. 2.2k resolution is as high def as I can go on a screen that small without scaling, and even then I have to squint occasionally. I really don’t see a world in which I would want a 2.8k display, even if it’s 120Hz.
The speakers are tinny, and I’m sure they’re not nearly as good as an up-to-date Macbook Pro’s, but they’re better than the ones on my iPhone 13 mini and much better than the ones on my old laptop. It’s a step forward for me.
The camera is fairly crappy even though the resolution is higher than what I get on my Apple M1 MBP work laptop, but I really don’t mind. It’s good enough and I don’t use it often. I love that I can disconnect the microphone and camera with a flick of a switch. It scratches a privacy-obsessed itch of mine.
The battery life is lower than average, I think, but sufficient for me. Like I said, it lives at home so it’s always near a plug, but I can easily get 6 - 8 hours of normal office productivity work out of it. I’ve never run it fully down, so I don’t know for sure about that number, but I’ve never had a problem. It’s not a computer you’d want to rely on if you really need solid battery life.
The Infuriating
My biggest pet peeve is the fact that the USB-A port on the front left side is buggy. It doesn’t detect my devices unless I restart the computer or reseat the expansion port. It’s a well-known problem that still doesn’t have a fix, even though it seems to have been around for years. I’m not sure why Framework haven’t fixed it yet. This is the kind of thing that should count as baseline functionality, especially since swapping ports around is one of the Framework laptop’s value propositions. It’s not like USB-A is a rare thing either!
The four expansion ports are not all created equal. They have different capabilities, so you have to choose where you install each card depending on what cards you buy and what you want to do with them. According to the graphic on that link the left front port is one of the ones that should be perfect for USB-A!
This is the kind of thing I hope they can fix in a firmware update.
I’m not sure if this would’ve been a deal breaker for me. By now it’s a foregone conclusion since I was past the return date by the time I discovered it. I’m fortunate enough to have a dongle I can use if I really need to plug in a thumb drive, but it’s super annoying to have to do that if I don’t want to wait for a restart.
A little pricey, but decent
I’d buy the Framework again if I could. I’m pretty used to fixing things on my own if I need to, so the flexibility gives me a little peace of mind. I’m going to run this thing for 10+ years if I can swing it, then I’ll replace the battery and hope to get 10 more if the company’s still around by then.
It would be a good computer if it had a USB-A port that just worked no matter where I plugged it in. I haven’t had any other issues or complaints aside from that, but it’s definitely an expensive computer for what I use it for. Value-wise, not amazing, but not terrible either. The performance for the money is fine. Maybe not the best out there, but it’s good enough that I don’t feel ripped off.
Ultimately, you pay a premium for the repairability aspect because the company is so young and maybe doesn’t have the economies of scale that larger manufacturers have. It’s an investment in their philosophy with the hopes that it’ll pay off down the line as a cheaper upgrade or repair. That feels worth the money to me.
I hope this helps someone in their laptop-buying decision process!