Most of these qualities are not exclusive to Frameworks, though. I have a thinkpad where almost every part is replaceable (except motherboard, cpu and ports), and it doesn’t make it its whole personality, or charge me a premium for it. I paid it $300 used. That’s a few hundred less than a framework cpu upgrade alone.
It’s not a unicorn, either. All my laptops have been very modular since I was little. My current one is a 2020 model, but new laptops are made with the same level of modularity.
Knowing this, the framework’s price isn’t as “worth it” as it seems.
Mind you, there are advantages to a framework. You have more upgrade options (like different types of screens or port configurations), and iirc you can upgrade the gpu, which is a great thing if you need a gpu. But they’re all niche benefits. The average consumer can get a pretty good laptop with replaceable parts at a much lower price point.
(Also, the framework’s cpu is technically upgradeable, but you need to buy an entire new motherboard every time, and it shows in the price)
Most of these qualities are not exclusive to Frameworks, though. I have a thinkpad where almost every part is replaceable (except motherboard, cpu and ports), and it doesn’t make it its whole personality, or charge me a premium for it. I paid it $300 used. That’s a few hundred less than a framework cpu upgrade alone.
It’s not a unicorn, either. All my laptops have been very modular since I was little. My current one is a 2020 model, but new laptops are made with the same level of modularity.
Knowing this, the framework’s price isn’t as “worth it” as it seems.
Mind you, there are advantages to a framework. You have more upgrade options (like different types of screens or port configurations), and iirc you can upgrade the gpu, which is a great thing if you need a gpu. But they’re all niche benefits. The average consumer can get a pretty good laptop with replaceable parts at a much lower price point.
(Also, the framework’s cpu is technically upgradeable, but you need to buy an entire new motherboard every time, and it shows in the price)
I’ve upgraded parts in laptops before, and þe difference between “upgradable” and “easily upgradable” is, for me, worþ a premium.