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Framework Laptop 13 Pro: Major Upgrades and Linux Front and Center
Framework Laptop 13 Pro - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852177 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852177 - April 2026 (763 comments)
- cassianoleal 6mo agoDoes anyone know how the Intel and AMD offerings compare? I take it battery life is better on Intel. What about performance for different tasks, such as coding, compiling, etc. What about local LLMs? Do both platforms have "unified memory" à la Apple Silicon? Neither?
- sam_lowry_ 6mo agoAmd versions can not suspend to RAM, I heard.
- hexfish 6mo agoYou mean just suspend as in 'sleep'? Like closing the lid on a macbook. I am doing that with the regular framework 13 (same amd though) multiple times a day.
- sam_lowry_ 6mo agoAnd this drains 10-20% of battery per day?
- cromka 6mo agoIt's called s2idle and all modern CPUs rely on that, not just AMD. S3 was made obsolete.
- dijit 6mo agoif I understood right, the AMD chip is more power hungry due to not having the ultra-low-energy cores, and doesn’t support the new USB-4 standard. Benchmarks have to wait until the actual Intel chip is out.
- lpcvoid 6mo agoMy 7840u can do USB4 with PCIe lanes, and that's from 2023. Of course AMD can do USB4.
- craftkiller 6mo agoThe AMD board support USB4 40gbps in 2 of the 4 expansion slots. 7040: https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionality-on-framework-laptop-13-amd-ryzen-7040-series-SkrVx7gAh https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionalit... AI 300: https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionality-on-framework-laptop-13-amd-ryzen-ai-300-series-Hy5SfMRs1l https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionalit... Pro with AI 300: https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionality-on-framework-laptop-13-pro-amd-ryzen-ai-300-series-rJhi9ErTl https://knowledgebase.frame.work/expansion-card-functionalit... The nice part about the Intel board is all 4 ports support usb4/thunderbolt 4 so all 4 ports are completely interchangeable whereas on the AMD board I need to remember to plug my dock into the back ports closer to the hinge.
- dijit 6mo agoThanks for checking! I am on my phone and I just remembered that the connectivity was somehow less. :)
- adgjlsfhk1 6mo agoAMD unfortunately didn't actually get faster this gen. panther lake is faster than zen5 mobile for both cpu and GPU (except for workloads where avx512 matters)
- distances 6mo agoYes it was a bit weird how the latest generation AMD laptop chip was a sideways step. I blame the useless NPU wasting silicon, but what do I know. I still got it as it was better than Intel's last year's offering, and it's still a fine chip. But kind of highlights how good the previous 7000 series chip was.
- robotnikman 6mo agoIt looks like Intel's new Panther Lake chips are a hit, they have amazing battery life and performance compared to their AMD and ARM equivalents (excluding Apple ofc), and the the integrated graphics is better than AMD, ARM, or Apple. They do not have integrated memory, but by using LPCAMM2 they get better memory speeds than any laptops using the usual SODIMM memory modules. It's nice to see Intel on the upswing again, more competition is always a good thing.
- cassianoleal 6mo ago> they get better memory speeds I saw that, but how does that work for GPU workloads? Either games of AI, really. Do I need to set a value on the BIOS for how much of the memory is split between RAM and VRAM?
- cromka 6mo ago> and ARM equivalents (excluding Apple ofc) Excluding Qualcomm as well, especially excluding the X2 Elite.
- 999900000999 6mo agoWe'll see what happens when it ships. Honestly I expect significantly cheaper laptops from other oems.
- bloppe 6mo agoSure, but if you factor in the possibility of never having to do a full system upgrade again, and instead just upgrading individual parts (including the chassis) as needed, the long term cost of ownership would be way lower if you commit to framework
- obsidianbases1 6mo agoTime value of money comes to mind for this, though
- BiteCode_dev 6mo agoOn 100k yeah, on 1k no.
- 999900000999 6mo agoEverything I've read about Frameworks quality control makes the above very doubtful. If you watch the sales on other laptops you can easily get similar specs for half of what framework is charging. I have a 5070TI laptop I purchased for around 1200$ after a rebate. Not only does the Framework 16 only offer the significantly weaker 5070 addon, it ends up totalling to about 2500$. Maybe in 5 or 6 years Framework will sort out its QC and offer better GPUs, but it's not for me today.
- BiteCode_dev 6mo agoIt's already the case. I plan to upgrade my old 13 with some parts from the pro next year. I won't have to pay a full machine for a new screen, battery or touchpad. At the price of the RAM (I never fill my 32GB, why would I buy any?), not buying a new machine basically pays for the first laptop premium. Next upgrade, I'll be saving money. And giving money to an ecosystem I like, creating a stronger competitor with those values. Love it.
- deleted 6mo ago[deleted]
- ChrisArchitect 6mo agoDiscussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852177 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852177
- maxloh 6mo agoI like their openness on hardware design. They open sourced their design under CC-BY-4.0 (surprisingly no NC!) in hope that it could enable reuse [1]. However, the whole thing is overpriced. Quoting kingsleyopara's comment 4 days ago [2], ...matching specs it comes out as more expensive than the MBP - even worse when you factor in potential discounts/sales which framework doesn't offer. Framework 13 Pro: £2064 (Ultra X7 358H, 16GB, 1TB, default ports, no adapter) Framework 13 Pro: £2264 (Ultra X7 358H, 32GB, 1TB, default ports, no adapter) MacBook Pro 14: £1699 (M5, 16GB, 1TB, no adapter) MacBook Pro 14: £2099 (M5, 32GB, 1TB, no adapter) MacBook Pro 14: £2199 (M5 Pro, 24GB, 1TB, no adapter) - added as I think it’s an even better deal [1]: https://github.com/FrameworkComputer/Framework-Laptop-13 https://github.com/FrameworkComputer/Framework-Laptop-13 [2]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852620 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47852620
- Forgeties79 6mo agoI mean yeah they’re right but it’s not like the difference is particularly staggering. And unfortunately having control and quality runs a premium these days. Plus depending on what you’re upgrading it could very well save you money in the long run, as the parts you can replace or upgrade yourself in an MBpro are few and far between. The few things you can replace often cost an arm and a leg and require way more technical expertise than a framework demands. Also, Mac lock in. Not something to lightly ignore. Framework will run basically anything except MacOS.
- aquariusDue 6mo agoI'm not hating on Framework and I'm genuinely rooting for them but the last part is a bit of a weird PRO to me. What else can it run besides Windows and insert-long-list-of-Linux-distros-here compared to your run of the mill laptop? Can it run OpenBSD, NetBSD or FreeBSD without issues? How about Haiku if we're feeling crazy? Something that I think is a better PRO (if we're talking operating systems) is that from what I understand (though I might be wrong) is that you could use the Storage Expansion Card and have Windows installed on it for those moments when you have to boot into Windows in anger due to some use case not served by Linux (Adobe Reader I'm looking at you). Now that's nifty to me.
- grg0 6mo agoInteresting that the new laptop is selling beyond their expectation, and that the Ubuntu version is outselling the Windows one. Maybe their customer base is a "niche", but it seems to be one that makes them good coin nevertheless.
- shantara 6mo agoNot sure why would I preorder a laptop of all things. It looks interesting, but I’d rather wait until the reviews are out.
- gloxkiqcza 6mo agoBecause there’s a hardware shortage going on. I can see why somebody who needs a new machine commits early.
- BiteCode_dev 6mo agoAlso, with hardware being now more expensive, just being able to swap parts for upgrades or repairs is way more appealing than before. Not to mention they don't spend time with marketing fluff about AI, which in the current market is winning them some clients. But I also think the fact that they have been here for a long time now, and they got the pro backward compatible with the old 13 means people trust them now. They delivered.
- linsomniac 6mo agoI'd pre-order one, but not with RAM. It might go up more, but I'm hoping not...
- helterskelter 6mo agoI love my Framework laptop. The only thing I haven't seen mentioned in detail is the expansion card bay redesign. Current F13 expansion cards will pull out sometimes when you remove a USB cable, which is a real annoyance. F11 fixed this by creating optional set screws you can install on the inside of the machine that forces the expansion cards to stay engaged. I know F13pro has redesigned the switches for removing expansion cards, and that the design was headed by the same person who did the F11, so I'm really hoping for set screws or some sort of similar "true" locking mechanism. If anyone from Framework is reading this, would you be able to fill in some details?
- cassianoleal 6mo agoIf it's what I'm thinking about, they showed it in one of their videos where they compare the old 13 to the Pro. It looked like a latch mechanism that you can operate with one hand but still keeps it secure in place. Edit: this should be what you want to know - https://youtu.be/GnOpIQJnYWU?t=536 https://youtu.be/GnOpIQJnYWU?t=536
- helterskelter 6mo agoYeah I watched the product videos I just want to know if there's a way to prevent accidental unlocks like the F11 has.
- craftkiller 6mo agoI've had the framework 13 since batch 5 of their original first model and that has never happened to me once. Are you sure you're pushing the expansion cards _all the way_ in? They should click and the little button between the cards should pop up slightly more when the cards are fully inserted. It is certainly possible to have the cards visually look inserted and work normally but haven't actually been pushed in far enough to click/lock into place. FWIW I've also replaced my chassis once, and never had this issue with either chassis.
- helterskelter 6mo agoYeah they are, but I've got some admittedly snug USB cables on my charger, other cables don't do it. I've looked at the latch mechanism and it seems sharp and not worn down, and it clicks when I put it in. I suspect the button on the bottom gets pressed accidentally and unseats the latch.
- thinkp26 6mo agoI'd love to buy, but I have no other choice than a ThinkPad. - ECC - trackpoint + 3 buttons, even better without touchpad It can be bigger. I don't care about the weight.
- cromka 6mo agoThinkPads support ECC? I am seriously surprised to hear that. I see that P16 Gen2 does, at least. Wow.
- majorchord 6mo ago[flagged]
- hellcow 6mo ago[flagged]
- Lucasoato 6mo agoWould it ever be possible to have this kind of laptops but with ARM CPUs?
- krisknez 6mo agoThere are already 3rd party boards with ARM chips
- craftkiller 6mo agoJust want to add: Also there are multiple riscv boards but I'd want to caution the casual readers: I believe both the ARM and riscv boards suffer from very high power draw so you'll get poor battery life using them as laptops. They would only be worth it for people that have reasons to be running arm/riscv, but for the general consumer you are definitely going to want the x86 boards.
- cromka 6mo agoThis is probably only a matter of proper device tree, at least for the ARM.
- d3Xt3r 6mo agoYou might be interested in this: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2026/the-first-good-raspberry-pi-laptop/ https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2026/the-first-good-raspbe...
- kristopolous 6mo agoThis is what I don't get, among <Linux> computer uses, apple macs are a minority. I even went around at Linux conferences and counted, like 30-40%. Why are they so so dedicated to being as much as a look and feel clone as Mac as possible? I've got zero interest in a MacBook chaser. It's not like those are inaccessible to me. I've voluntarily said no to them. Why would I want someone else's imitation of it? "If you can see here we've meticulously cloned every detail of the product you are definitionally not interested in because you are here!"
- ufish235 6mo agoYou’re confusing the look of the device with the feel of the OS.
- mynameismon 6mo agoI suspect a large number of computers would be thinkpad, primarily due to its repairability, which is the biggest selling point of framework by far. So, together, you cover a pretty significant chunk of the market
- kristopolous 6mo agoPeople are very specific about their keyboards and trackpads. There's people that still use x220s from like 14 years ago and refuse to give them up. Debian developers, JPL'ers, I've seen a bunch. It's just a different chassis folks. I've thought seriously about just making that as a business, going all in Supposedly framework is ok with it
- tw04 6mo agoBecause you’re in the minority. The vast majority of the population views the build quality and materials of the macbook pro to be the standard by which all others are measured. The only thing that’s surprising is that you see 30-40% of the laptops at a Linux conference are macbooks given how poor to non-existent the Linux support is for the newer Apple silicon models.
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- negura 6mo agoframework advertises themselves as "laptops you own" and "linux-first". but they're misleading you. they're not actually driven by genuine values, but by marketing. unlike the other big manufacturers of linux-first laptops (novacustom, starlabs, system76) framework couldn't be bothered to open-source their firmware. this is despite demand from their own community [0] and the obvious importance it holds in the broader FOSS community (also the reason why they wouldn't be able to get QubesOS certified [1]). they don't deserve all the airtime they're getting [0] https://community.frame.work/t/responded-coreboot-on-the-framework-laptop/791 https://community.frame.work/t/responded-coreboot-on-the-fra... [1] https://doc.qubes-os.org/en/latest/user/hardware/certified-hardware/certified-hardware.html#hardware-certification-requirements https://doc.qubes-os.org/en/latest/user/hardware/certified-h...
- bigyabai 6mo agoSupporting Coreboot is not easy, or "free" with newer chipsets. It makes sense that this takes a while to implement and I'm grateful that Framework doesn't neuter their chipset selection to only represent Coreboot-supported boards.
- skullone 6mo agoDon't think that's a fair assessment. They set forth to build modular, repairable laptops you could get parts from 3rd parties with design files available to 3d print or manufacture. They are sticking by those goals. They've expressed interest in open sourcing their firmware or supporting coreboot but that's very much a stretch goal and would take a team of lawyers and a lot of money to suss out
- deleted 6mo ago[deleted]
- GregDavidson 6mo agoEverything I run on servers I also run on my laptop. Occasionally I get crashes or corruption because of the lack of ECC memory. I'd also like to be able to swap parts between a modular laptop and a home/small-office server, but again - I want ECC. If framework had a model with ECC I'd be all in!
- ndr42 6mo agoIn this discussion the upgradability comes up often. Not to deny this aspect but in (my) reality it just doesn't matter. I buy myself a Apple device every 1-2 years (alternating desktop, laptop, tablet) so that every device is in use by me for about 3-5 years and then gets handed down to the family (spouse, kids, parents). The demand is big enough that the alternative of selling the devices never occurred. So the Apple devices are not disposed and in use for more than a decade while my devices are up to date. I think this happens in a lot of families. In mine it had been this way for about 30 years when I got a Performa 630 handed down from my dad.