There are two diffetent problems with repairability - one is making it easy for a dilebtante to replace parts.
The other, is making parts and schematics avaliable so that a specialist can repair it. You don't actually have to change the design. This is what Luis Rossman is talking about
> Dedicated GPU
Yeah I only buy laptops with GPUs. Honestly laptops outside power user/gaming niche rarely need things replaced
I disagree. There's value in a laptop that can be easily repaired/upgraded for non tech people. And I mean that. People that will only use their laptops for zoom, lightweight internet browsing and stuff like that.
Because, they will fucking break something and better to have it easily repaired than having to go a specialized center.
Keep in mind I'm not talking about people that can afford new iphone every year but people that can afford a mid-budget Android phone every two-four years.
> Generally you start deep in the niche and move mass-market as you expand.
Isn't that how you piss away your niche market?
Then you get to the fact that this machine is incredibly poorly sold if that is your market. The pre-configured options are almost insane. $1050 for a machine with 8GB ram..or $400 more to get 16GB because they paired it with CPU and Storage upgrades? Of course you can go DIY but keep in mind this is for lightly-technical users. Then a user needs to pick their port loadout.
It is overload and a lot of money for anyone who isn't technical...but if you ARE technical...this thing is basically a bad ultrabook in use. You can get a like-spec (1240p, 8gb, 256) Asus Zenbook 14 OLED...for $500 dollars less!
That's my gripe. I love the repair angle. The expansion cards are downright silly for most users. The money is basically nuts for prebuilt. And, ultimately they made a non-touch Surface Book 3..rather than a Macbook Pro.
> Isn't that how you piss away your niche market?
Well yeah. It's also how you continue to exist outside a niche. Some companies manage to do both. I would argue that the current top-end Macbook Pro is a downright niche product compared to the rest of their lineup. See also: The Mazda Miata. Niche, well loved, technical, co-existing.
And 8gb is all you will ever have on the Asus, since it's soldered to the board.
So the comparison between the two is completely dishonest because the Framework is an upgradable computer that can be used for decades, and the Asus is a toy which will be rusting in some 3rd world landfill in two years.
Personally, the idea is all pretty oversold. If the motherboard was standardized and had a swappable CPU..maybe..but this is just a laptop with marketing. The Dell XPS 15 has the exact same upgrade path as the Framework..but also a 15 inch display and dedicated graphics. Any number of MSI laptops support upgrading ram. The idea is nobel...but not novel.
There are still people using the thinkpad x61 (2007) today. It came with 512MB-2GB ram, but you can put up to 8GB in it. 8GB and a SSD is enough to comfortably run the latest Linux and Chrome and is pretty decent on such a little computer.
If it had a soldered 1GB it would be junk.
8GB soldered ram will make your Asus junk in 2039 (2023 + 16 years), but 64GB in the Framework has a much better chance of being usable.
Laptop manufacturers (and clueless crony reviewers) say that the ram is soldered to make the laptop smaller, but units like the Framework clearly show this is bullshit. They're just doing it to stop you from extending the life is old hardware.
Totally! Also for on die/soldering being allegedly the only way around hardware issues "requiring" the RAM to be physically as close to the CPU as possible, Dell CAMM standard shows that there are other way!
FWIW these are the things that I need to upgrade the most frequently with computers I've owned in the past. My desktop has gone through 5 storage drives (500GB spinning disk, 2TB spinning disk, small crappy 2.5 inch SSD, bigger slightly faster 2.5 inch SSD, and finally an M.2 drive) and 3 RAM iterations (2 sticks DDR3, 4 sticks DD3, 2 sticks DDR5). I only recently got to the point where I needed to upgrade the CPU for the first time.
How does the price of a Framework today plus upgrade modules in three years compare to a cheap laptop now and a new cheap laptop in three years? Obviously the former is better for the environment, but if you don't break even on your investment in a Framework laptop by the first upgrade then it's going to be a very, very hard sell for most consumers.
Does Framework even need embedded speakers? Why not just rely on external wired or Bluetooth speakers, or headphones, instead, and use the space for a larger battery.
I think I'd be very happy with 2 expansion card slots and 3 hardwired USB C ports that can be upgraded with mainboard revisions to support newer USB standards.
https://images.idgesg.net/images/article/2021/07/framework_5...
Note how remarkably large the speakers are, how much structure is around the battery, and how much the logic board is pushed down. We all hate the reduction in reparability in modern macbooks but look at the outcome: https://images.macrumors.com/article-new/2021/10/macbook-pro...
This is a 14 inch Macbook Pro. It fills every last inch with equipment that, each on their own, are best in class. The battery is 30% bigger. The Speakers are louder and have more bass, the system is designed to handle far more wattage from the SOC.
The Framework laptop is a great first attempt, but I'm not really convinced they are quite there yet. They really need to drop the Macbook Air design and go for boxy here to maximise volume. It absolutely needs a dedicated GPU option.
Having a laptop a lightly technically minded person can repair easily makes little sense if it isn't targeted at their niche. Generally you start deep in the niche and move mass-market as you expand.