We were skeptical at first, but Framework delivered on the promise of its original 13-inch laptop. After three generations of products, the company has created a worthy competitor for the Dell XPS 13 or MacBook Air, which can be repaired, modified and upgraded, and owners of the original laptop can easily significantly increase performance by upgrading to the new 13th generation. Boards based on 2nd generation Intel or AMD Ryzen processors, which the company announced today.
Now, Framework is looking to build on that track record with the all-new Framework 16 laptop. It’s a larger-screen model that can accommodate more powerful processors, dedicated GPUs, and a range of different keyboard modules, all equally repairable. and the upgradeability seen in the original Framework Laptop (now retroactively called the Framework Laptop 13).
The Framework doesn’t discuss many of the details yet; pre-orders won’t open until “this spring”and deliveries won’t start until “late 2023”.
The company today unveiled a preview of the laptop’s features, along with developer documentation, to encourage the creation of new input modules — components that allow you to customize the keyboard in the same way that the current expansion card system allows you to customize ports.
It’s not just about the GPU
Input modules were born out of a desire to solve the numeric keypad problem for large laptops: Are you using the extra space to embed a numeric keypad while the rest of the keyboard feels cramped or off-center, or are you making a keyboard without a numeric keypad and risk wasting a ton of space?
“After doing some market research, we found that the ratio between people who love and need number pads and people who hate them is almost exactly 50/50,” the Framework blog post says. “We used this as an opportunity to not only let you choose your preferences, but to completely customize the input experience.”
Input modules come in three sizes: small, medium and large. The larger modules are for the keyboards themselves, and the Framework says it will offer both white backlighting and RGB backlighting for its own modules. Medium modules can accommodate numeric keypads, but they are also large enough to accommodate other types of input devices, including “jogs, sliders, touch displays, e-ink pads, smart card readers, and more.”And the smaller modules are mostly for cosmetic customization, although the Framework says “it’s also possible to create functional modules like an LED matrix or a tactile slider.”
All modules can be up to 3.7 mm high and still fit into a laptop case. “Many” native Framework modules will use open source firmware and the Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller, opening them up for further customization by developers and end users.