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framework 13 AMD... yay or nay?

hi,

pretty much the subject... I am trying to choose my next laptop and I am tempted to buy a framework 13 AMD. I saw this post from one year ago : https://www.phoronix.com/review/framework-13-amd

and while the review is impressive, comments are not. how things have evolved since then? any experience?

EDIT: you convinced me, I just ordered mine. Thanks for the incredible answers !
NEW EDIT: I use arch (btw), and Gnome. For the answers, I do not think this will pose a problem but... what do you think?
(and yes, I ordered mine before reading last comment of paequ2 who doesn't like it... for reasonable reasons, maybe. I hope I will have more luck ;) )

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  • I currently own a Framework 13... and... after daily driving it for a year, I decided I don't like it.

    The deal beaker for me is the high dpi display. Linux just isn't 100% compatible with hpi displays. I'm tired of my apps either having blurry fonts or tiny text. Ironic because hi dpi displays are supposed to look better.

    With Framework, you'll be pushed into using Fedora (it doesn't solve all the scaling issues) or pushed to stop using apps you like because they're using older GTK (some times there are no alternatives). You'll also have to dive into debugging scaling issues.

    I just switched back to my Dell XPS 13 9310 FHD and it was a breath of fresh air having everything just work. Any distro, any apps, no scaling debugging, text is readable and crisp, app UI elements look properly sized.

    I only ever switched out the modular ports once, but honestly it would have been better to buy a dongle instead because that would work on any computer.

    Oh, and I tried the higher resolution screen. It didn't fix the scaling issues.

    Oh, and, I actually had a display fail on me! After like 8 months, half the display went black. Thankfully, they were nice enough to send me a free replacement, but it definitely left me feeling like the Framework isn't that sturdy or durable.

    The shell also dents easily. I dropped a small music player from desk height onto the top lid and it left a small dent. (I have like 3 dents on the lid.)

    Repairability is the one feature that the Framework beats everyone else on, but to me the cons outweigh the pros.

    • I had the same display failure, but 4 times in about 9 months. It made me pretty done with the whole thing. I only got the laptop back from the repair centre 2 or so weeks ago but I have no faith the issue is properly fixed now. Let's see how it turns out, if it happens again I'm going to throw this thing out of the window.

    • Framework 16 with the same display and linux mint user.
      Pushed towards fedora? What? I also have no issues whatsoever with the screen or igpu of amd, so i wonder what you were using there and with what chipset.
      Ive been daily driving mine for nearly a year now ( amd chipset and igpu) and none of those issues at all...

      • Here's a screenshot I just took from my Framework 13. Notice how some of the text is clear, but the entire menu to the right is blurry.

        Common "fixes" are "move to Fedora" or "just enable some experimental flag in some random config". This all misses the point though: I don't want to have to do any of that. I just want a system that works with the most amount of apps.

        Of course, it depends on what you specifically value. For me, I value broader software compatibility over slightly neater pixels. Some people might like it the other way around. That's fine, but it's something important to know.

    • I have a linux desktop with dual 4K screens and I don't have problems with high DPI? The only problems I've come across is with Wine which is easly fixed within the winecfg.

      I'm on OpenSuSE, using KDE in X11. I DID have scaling problems with Wayland which I avoid until it is fit for daily use.

      Of course 4k is 4 times 1080p (or twice in X and Y dimensions) so maybe it's much easier to scale to? 2K on the Framework is an odd resolution so maybe scaling would be more troublesome? 1080p to 1440p would be 1.3x scaling.

      • I don’t have problems with high DPI ... only problems I’ve come across is ... I DID have scaling problems with Wayland

        This is exactly my point. You did have problems with high DPI. You had to fix some random config and avoid Wayland.

        I don't want to deal with this. I want to be able to use whatever software I want and have it work with minimal or no extra "fixing". I value this over slightly neater pixels.

        • Then you shouldnt have picked wayland, period. There is a reason its still experimental. And in general, hearing you talk, im not sure linux is your thing in general. Even in linux mint i have to poke in cli once in a while..

          EDIT: as i mentioned below,i just gave it another go as i recently upgraded linux mint. Keyboard layout was stuck to us so altgr didnt work. Teams window could also not be double clicked to maximize and remote desktop via remmina was acting odd, like my mouse had shifted to the right. Desktop wallpaper was also shifted. Like i said, experimental on some systems ( in this case linux mint ) :)

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