5 ms·

Framework's new Linux laptop is selling faster than its Windows one

77 points by Garbage 5mo ago

hactually 5mo ago
Incredible news. I've ordered one myself... wish the 16 Pro was out but I figure it makes sense to support companies doing the things you want. The last thread on framework was disappointing in how many said "oh, if it just had X I'd totally buy it" who probably all use Mac's with it's basic configuration.
arcfour 5mo ago
I mean, I have to imagine the type of people that even know about Framework's products, let alone those that have interest in buying them, are overwhelmingly likely to be the type of people that use Linux, not Windows. Not to pooh-pooh their success! Just my initial reaction to this headline was that it's a bit misleading/silly.
- bl4kers 5mo ago
  Except the ratio was never before seen, which makes it noteworthy
notepad0x90 5mo ago
Is framework aiming for mass market breakthrough? if so, I hope they're planning on the macbook neo. I have no reason to recommend it outside of tech-enthusiast circles over a macbook now, thanks to the neo. But I really don't think they want mass market, it wouldn't be a win for anyone. By design, it's a "repairable" computer, so people who want to repair their own laptop are the main customers. You can't repair macs easily, but they last long enough for that to not be an issue. and honestly, the apple care experience is ideal for most people. I do hope then that they stick to the tech-enthusiast market perfecting Linux-friendly laptops. The laptop market hasn't learned from framework's success, so I was hoping at the wake of the neo's success, someone could prove a similar quality laptop is possible by a non-apple company, keeping the competition alive. My biggest concern for them is, one of these bigger laptop makers panic because of losses from the neo, and takes over framework.
- burgerone 5mo ago
  The apple care experience is a scam
  - deaux 5mo ago
    Just a few years ago I accidentally stood on my Macbook, screen broke and we got a new one no questions asked. If that's a scam then everything is.
    - burgerone 5mo ago
      Firstly, you had to pay so much money for that screen that you had to consider buying a new device. Secondly, Apple Products seem specifically engineered to easily break catastrophically (see SSD power supply below speaker grill, zapping the NAND modules if liquid enters the conveniently placed holes. Or a loose metal plate slicing a crucial ribbon cable when the phone was dropped. And many more such cases This mix of overly fragile design and ridiculously expensive first-party repairs combined with parts pairing and the resulting inability of third-party, non-apple-certified repair shops to level the playing field is what I call a scam.
  - notepad0x90 5mo ago
    Not for people who don't know the first thing about laptops and how to fix them.
- eigenspace 5mo ago
  Framework laptops are selling like crazy. The pre-orders on their highest end configuration of the new pro are completely sold out, and the pre-orders on the two lower variants are backed up until their 9th batch that wont ship until August. It looks like theyre selling more laptops than they expected to, not less. Their laptops are niche, but that niche seems to be growing quite nicely. There's a big cultural wave of frustration with Big Tech companies and their rent-seeking practices, and Framework is doing a good job of riding this wave. Your concern about their being bought out is unfounded. They're not a publicly traded company and dont need to sell equity to anyone if they dont want to.
dankwizard 5mo ago
This one isn't rocket science. Framework isn't as mass market as your typical laptop competitors. You can make an assumption a purchaser of framework is tech minded / informed shopper. You can also see their prebuilt option is Windows only. When going DIY, adding Windows is between $225 and $339 depending on edition. Most informed shoppers and techheads also know you can go to key selling websites and get completely legal and working Windows keys for <$20. Why would people volunteer to pay 1000% more?
- kay_o 5mo ago
  Most tech heads would just use the activator, since the key selling sites are simply sending <$20 to criminals for a key that is equally illegal as the activator. The last few I've seen on G2A were phished/stolen bizspark or similar accounts and bulk "reclaimed". I would imagine most keyshops are similar.
- orphea 5mo ago
  get completely legal and working Windows keys for <$20 You cannot. The fact that a $20 key may activate Windows doesn't make the installation legal, Windows is still pirated. And you can pirate it $20 cheaper.
  - reisse 5mo ago
    It depends on your legal framework. It might be seller's problem, not yours, and 20$ is a price for shifting responsibility.
- jamesnorden 5mo ago
  If you buy a $20 key you're both pirating and giving money to a criminal, so it is, in fact, worse.
  - dankwizard 5mo ago
    Look into G2A - Nothing illegal about it.
  - 5mo ago
pjmlp 5mo ago
This is not surprising, given how many of us were buying Netbooks, even with their OEM specific Linux distros, until Microsoft came up with the Windows XP discount. My ASUS 1215B survived from 2009 up to 2024, with multiple Ubuntu LTS updates, HDD replaced with SDD and eventually maxed out to 8 GB. IF Dell, Asus, Lenovo et all started selling on regular computer stores what is only available to computer nerds on their online stores, this would be much more noticeable. As it is, normies walk into a store and get to chose between Windows, macOS, Chromebooks, iPad Pro or Android DEX/HyperOS Workstation/....
deleted 5mo ago
[deleted]
dtj1123 5mo ago
Anyone know if the new pro laptop has intel ME disabled?
- chancitag 5mo ago
  It most likely does not. My framework 16 laptop is AMD based but has the equivalent feature (AMD PSP) enabled. https://community.frame.work/t/feasibility-of-diy-intel-me-neutralisation/65723 https://community.frame.work/t/feasibility-of-diy-intel-me-n... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_Platform_Security_Processor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_Platform_Security_Processo...
  - cromka 5mo ago
    I was somehow totally convinced Framework used coreboot firmware... Not sure where I got it from but boy, was I wrong.
Ir0nMan 5mo ago
To be fair, many of those who choose Linux at checkout will still end up installing Windows. They’ll just acquire it themselves, sometimes in non-traditional or novel ways.

77 points by Garbage 5mo ago

Incredible news. I've ordered one myself... wish the 16 Pro was out but I figure it makes sense to support companies doing the things you want. The last thread on framework was disappointing in how many said "oh, if it just had X I'd totally buy it" who probably all use Mac's with it's basic configuration.

arcfour 5mo ago

I mean, I have to imagine the type of people that even know about Framework's products, let alone those that have interest in buying them, are overwhelmingly likely to be the type of people that use Linux, not Windows. Not to pooh-pooh their success! Just my initial reaction to this headline was that it's a bit misleading/silly.

bl4kers 5mo ago
Except the ratio was never before seen, which makes it noteworthy

notepad0x90 5mo ago

Is framework aiming for mass market breakthrough? if so, I hope they're planning on the macbook neo. I have no reason to recommend it outside of tech-enthusiast circles over a macbook now, thanks to the neo. But I really don't think they want mass market, it wouldn't be a win for anyone. By design, it's a "repairable" computer, so people who want to repair their own laptop are the main customers. You can't repair macs easily, but they last long enough for that to not be an issue. and honestly, the apple care experience is ideal for most people. I do hope then that they stick to the tech-enthusiast market perfecting Linux-friendly laptops. The laptop market hasn't learned from framework's success, so I was hoping at the wake of the neo's success, someone could prove a similar quality laptop is possible by a non-apple company, keeping the competition alive. My biggest concern for them is, one of these bigger laptop makers panic because of losses from the neo, and takes over framework.

burgerone 5mo ago
The apple care experience is a scam
- deaux 5mo ago
  Just a few years ago I accidentally stood on my Macbook, screen broke and we got a new one no questions asked. If that's a scam then everything is.
  - burgerone 5mo ago
    Firstly, you had to pay so much money for that screen that you had to consider buying a new device. Secondly, Apple Products seem specifically engineered to easily break catastrophically (see SSD power supply below speaker grill, zapping the NAND modules if liquid enters the conveniently placed holes. Or a loose metal plate slicing a crucial ribbon cable when the phone was dropped. And many more such cases This mix of overly fragile design and ridiculously expensive first-party repairs combined with parts pairing and the resulting inability of third-party, non-apple-certified repair shops to level the playing field is what I call a scam.
- notepad0x90 5mo ago
  Not for people who don't know the first thing about laptops and how to fix them.
eigenspace 5mo ago
Framework laptops are selling like crazy. The pre-orders on their highest end configuration of the new pro are completely sold out, and the pre-orders on the two lower variants are backed up until their 9th batch that wont ship until August. It looks like theyre selling more laptops than they expected to, not less. Their laptops are niche, but that niche seems to be growing quite nicely. There's a big cultural wave of frustration with Big Tech companies and their rent-seeking practices, and Framework is doing a good job of riding this wave. Your concern about their being bought out is unfounded. They're not a publicly traded company and dont need to sell equity to anyone if they dont want to.

dankwizard 5mo ago

This one isn't rocket science. Framework isn't as mass market as your typical laptop competitors. You can make an assumption a purchaser of framework is tech minded / informed shopper. You can also see their prebuilt option is Windows only. When going DIY, adding Windows is between $225 and $339 depending on edition. Most informed shoppers and techheads also know you can go to key selling websites and get completely legal and working Windows keys for <$20. Why would people volunteer to pay 1000% more?

kay_o 5mo ago
Most tech heads would just use the activator, since the key selling sites are simply sending <$20 to criminals for a key that is equally illegal as the activator. The last few I've seen on G2A were phished/stolen bizspark or similar accounts and bulk "reclaimed". I would imagine most keyshops are similar.
orphea 5mo ago
get completely legal and working Windows keys for <$20 You cannot. The fact that a $20 key may activate Windows doesn't make the installation legal, Windows is still pirated. And you can pirate it $20 cheaper.
- reisse 5mo ago
  It depends on your legal framework. It might be seller's problem, not yours, and 20$ is a price for shifting responsibility.
jamesnorden 5mo ago
If you buy a $20 key you're both pirating and giving money to a criminal, so it is, in fact, worse.
- dankwizard 5mo ago
  Look into G2A - Nothing illegal about it.
- 5mo ago

pjmlp 5mo ago

This is not surprising, given how many of us were buying Netbooks, even with their OEM specific Linux distros, until Microsoft came up with the Windows XP discount. My ASUS 1215B survived from 2009 up to 2024, with multiple Ubuntu LTS updates, HDD replaced with SDD and eventually maxed out to 8 GB. IF Dell, Asus, Lenovo et all started selling on regular computer stores what is only available to computer nerds on their online stores, this would be much more noticeable. As it is, normies walk into a store and get to chose between Windows, macOS, Chromebooks, iPad Pro or Android DEX/HyperOS Workstation/....

deleted 5mo ago

[deleted]

dtj1123 5mo ago

Anyone know if the new pro laptop has intel ME disabled?

chancitag 5mo ago
It most likely does not. My framework 16 laptop is AMD based but has the equivalent feature (AMD PSP) enabled. https://community.frame.work/t/feasibility-of-diy-intel-me-neutralisation/65723 https://community.frame.work/t/feasibility-of-diy-intel-me-n... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_Platform_Security_Processor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_Platform_Security_Processo...
- cromka 5mo ago
  I was somehow totally convinced Framework used coreboot firmware... Not sure where I got it from but boy, was I wrong.

Ir0nMan 5mo ago

To be fair, many of those who choose Linux at checkout will still end up installing Windows. They’ll just acquire it themselves, sometimes in non-traditional or novel ways.