Refurbished Framework laptops

[FINate]

For those in the market for a laptop, I just want to point out that Framework has refurbished laptops for sale on their marketplace. This is a great way to save a few hundred bucks while supporting a company dedicated to reducing e-waste.

I'm not affiliated with Framework, just a happy user of their laptop over the past ~2 years. It has held up very well and does everything I want. The expansion card concept makes a ton on sense. I love what they're doing with their marketplace and how every part can be replaced and/or upgraded. The one thing I don't particularly like about my first gen laptop is how floppy the screen is, so I recently ordered the updated aluminum Top Cover part which is more rigid, hope to get this installed later this week. And they've followed through on their commitment to provide an upgrade path for the mainboard. Not sure how many CPU generations they will end up supporting, but it's nice to know that there are options going forward.

ETA: FYI, the refurbished units are bring your own storage/memory/OS, so factor that in.

[RWD]

That's really neat, I'll have to keep that in mind whenever I need to replace my current laptop. A refurbished Framework has a lot more value than a traditional manufacturer's refurbished laptop because you can literally replace (and upgrade!) anything on it yourself.

[BC_Goldman]

I was disappointed to see that all you get is the case, power supply, and CPU. All the ports, memory, and storage are extra. Seems like it might be a decent deal if you're replacing an existing one so you already have the other parts.

I really like the concept of replaceable parts. I had heard of them a couple years ago and happy to see they are still in business.

[dandarc]

Doesn't seem like that great of a value proposition? I just bought an Alienware laptop from Dell that specs out better across the board, including a larger screen and it was cheaper than what's on offer from framework. For a major sound-system / multi-platform system upgrade at church.

Do like the idea that we should be able to easily work on the machine / replace parts of course. Just I like it better at a maybe 20% lower price.

[FINate]

I was disappointed to see that all you get is the case, power supply, and CPU. All the ports, memory, and storage are extra. Seems like it might be a decent deal if you're replacing an existing one so you already have the other parts.

I really like the concept of replaceable parts. I had heard of them a couple years ago and happy to see they are still in business.

Yeah, I think the idea is you may already have some of these parts. But if you don't, they're relatively inexpensive, can all be purchased for under $200 at reasonable specs. The mid-level 12th gen Intel version sells new for $1500, whereas the refurbished is $900. Add $200 in parts and it's still well under the new price.

[FINate]

Doesn't seem like that great of a value proposition? I just bought an Alienware laptop from Dell that specs out better across the board, including a larger screen and it was cheaper than what's on offer from framework. For a major sound-system / multi-platform system upgrade at church.

Do like the idea that we should be able to easily work on the machine / replace parts of course. Just I like it better at a maybe 20% lower price.

For sure it's not a gaming laptop, more for general productivity/coding. And the price is higher because making everything modular and repairable/upgradable is more expensive than soldering and gluing everything together.

If you're looking for the most performance for the lowest price this isn't it. This is for people who are sick of throwing out hardware because something simple breaks, or they can't upgrade as needs change. Hinge fails? Replace the part. Need more storage or memory? Easy to swap out just those parts. USB port wears out? Replace the $9 expansion card. Coffee spill ruins the keyboard? Replace the keyboard. It's about sustainability and lower long term total cost of ownership.

[dandarc]

Doesn't seem like that great of a value proposition? I just bought an Alienware laptop from Dell that specs out better across the board, including a larger screen and it was cheaper than what's on offer from framework. For a major sound-system / multi-platform system upgrade at church.

Do like the idea that we should be able to easily work on the machine / replace parts of course. Just I like it better at a maybe 20% lower price.

For sure it's not a gaming laptop, more for general productivity/coding. And the price is higher because making everything modular and repairable/upgradable is more expensive than soldering and gluing everything together.

If you're looking for the most performance for the lowest price this isn't it. This is for people who are sick of throwing out hardware because something simple breaks, or they can't upgrade as needs change. Hinge fails? Replace the part. Need more storage or memory? Easy to swap out just those parts. USB port wears out? Replace the $9 expansion card. Coffee spill ruins the keyboard? Replace the keyboard. It's about sustainability and lower long term total cost of ownership.

I get that - when I'm not super constrained, business-oriented machines is always going to be my preference specifically for the better maintainability. I guess I'm having a recency / specificty bias thing here "has a small screen, and the fastest processor is 20% slower and by the time I add all the other stuff, it costs more than the machine I just bought, and does not have even an option for a graphics card that meets the requirements we were provided".

Actually - the low end of what they're doing here is pretty much exactly what I'd probably buy for myself, including price in that calculus. If I decide I can live with the small screen - I really prefer a 15" or larger laptop, but I do have some portable external monitors I could use when that's convenient I guess. Of course I don't need a computer, hopefully for a long time.

[HipGnosis]

Interesting, but.. 
I'm put off that they are selling them as "laptops", when they are not complete, functioning laptops.
On the other hand, Frameworks is getting good reviews on quite a few well known computer / elec's websites.
I did IT support for over 20 yrs, so I'm intrigued.

[bacchi]

Interesting, but.. 
I'm put off that they are selling them as "laptops", when they are not complete, functioning laptops.
On the other hand, Frameworks is getting good reviews on quite a few well known computer / elec's websites.
I did IT support for over 20 yrs, so I'm intrigued.

They are more marketed to DIY users. This isn't for someone that wants to unwrap the box and boot up.

Previous laptops of mine have died due to screen failure. If that happens, I can replace the screen instead of getting rid of the case and MB. That's awesome.

My only complaint is the battery. It's not the strongest battery but, again, I can pop it out and replace it if/when battery tech improves.

[dcheesi]

Interesting, but.. 
I'm put off that they are selling them as "laptops", when they are not complete, functioning laptops.
On the other hand, Frameworks is getting good reviews on quite a few well known computer / elec's websites.
I did IT support for over 20 yrs, so I'm intrigued.

They are more marketed to DIY users. This isn't for someone that wants to unwrap the box and boot up.

Previous laptops of mine have died due to screen failure. If that happens, I can replace the screen instead of getting rid of the case and MB. That's awesome.

My only complaint is the battery. It's not the strongest battery but, again, I can pop it out and replace it if/when battery tech improves.

And see, this is where I think they're losing people. In the PC world, there's a lot of overlap between DIYers and gamers (and other niche users). But their current offerings in the CPU/GPU space don't seem to serve that market very well. And meanwhile their pricing for a basic system is too high for the general-productivity crowd.

[bacchi]

Interesting, but.. 
I'm put off that they are selling them as "laptops", when they are not complete, functioning laptops.
On the other hand, Frameworks is getting good reviews on quite a few well known computer / elec's websites.
I did IT support for over 20 yrs, so I'm intrigued.

They are more marketed to DIY users. This isn't for someone that wants to unwrap the box and boot up.

Previous laptops of mine have died due to screen failure. If that happens, I can replace the screen instead of getting rid of the case and MB. That's awesome.

My only complaint is the battery. It's not the strongest battery but, again, I can pop it out and replace it if/when battery tech improves.

And see, this is where I think they're losing people. In the PC world, there's a lot of overlap between DIYers and gamers (and other niche users). But their current offerings in the CPU/GPU space don't seem to serve that market very well. And meanwhile their pricing for a basic system is too high for the general-productivity crowd.

Agreed. I would've bought a gaming mobo if they offered one, even if it came with a larger case and was heavier. I don't know if they've figured out drivers for an eGPU yet.

I assume the higher price is due to the engineering work required to make everything modular. That cost should decrease over time.

[FINate]

Today I upgraded my first gen Framework's top cover with the newer, stiffer, CNC aluminium top cover. The entire process took about 30 minutes and required one tool, which came with the laptop. This involved 13 screws to remove the screen, webcam, and WiFi module. The repair guide was comprehensive, accurate, and easy to follow. Everything is so well thought out to make it easy to work on, from using screws and magnets instead of adhesives to how cables are attached and routed. More laptops should be built this way. Hoping they expand into larger, more powerful laptops with GPUs in the future.

[FINate]

Framework just announced a new higher end 16" laptop (https://frame.work/blog/introducing-the-framework-laptop-16) with upgradable GPU (via expansion bay system) and an input module system (see video: https://frame.work/laptop-16). No word on price yet