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+++ title = "Framework 13 Thoughts" date = 2024-10-15 +++
{% warning() %} Update 01/2025 - Some Stuff(tm) has happened, and I have some New Thoughts(tm) I'll get around to updating this post at some point. {% end %}
The internet does not need another "framework laptop cool" post.
Unfortunately, I don't care what the internet wants or needs.
6 Months
I've been using my Framework 13 (Ryzen 7040 edition) for around 6 months now, and I have some thoughts. This post is mainly to organize them all in one place - I may or may not randomly update this when I have New Thoughts, we'll see.
Performance
I don't have any real performance benchmarks. If you want those, go find some Actual Review Company that does Actual Product Reviews.
In the things I normally do (web browsing, programming, some gaming) performance has never been an issue. I have the model with the 7840U (8 cores), and for a laptop chip it's pretty great. My only real complaint would be the graphics performance, but being an integrated GPU (Radeon 780M) it's totally fine for what it is. It wasn't designed to play Satisfactory or Baldur's Gate 3, and it handles both of those playably, which is probably more than I should have expected.
Battery Life
Battery life hasn't been a problem. I can get through a school day with more than half of the battery left, and that's all that really matters to me. It dies quickly if you try to game on it, but that's to be expected.
Speakers
They... exist. That's about all I can say.
They don't sound particularly great out of the box, and while it might be possible to tune them, I haven't bothered. I've never actually needed to use the speakers, so I haven't really cared to look into it.
Flex
I don't notice the keyboard flexing when I type on it, but it sometimes leaves marks on the screen. I have to clean the screen pretty often to not have a constant keyboard imprint on it.
Bezel
The magnetic bezel is entirely too fun to play with. I started fidgeting with it, and after a while the plastic started to crack. I can't blame this on the laptop, it's entirely my own doing, but still a little annoying.
I also just wish they came in more exciting colors. Where's blue? A dark purple? (Please, Framework, please...)
IO
I currently have:
- 2x USB-C
- 1x USB-A
- 1x HDMI
The HDMI expansion card in particular came in super useful. A friend of mine needed a USB-C to HDMI adapter, and I simply pulled it out of my laptop and gave it to him. It's kind of nice to just have that on hand, rather than carrying even more adapters in my backpack.
Conclusion
I like the laptop, it works for me, but I understand that it's by no means a perfect laptop for everyone. The value isn't great, and it's definitely not as polished a product as, say, a macbook. Despite that, I really like Framework's mission, and I don't regret buying it. It's been great for me overall.