I’m on day 8 of AMD R5 onwership and it’s my first framework. I run Windows 11 and Linux Mint on it. Mint is only used as a clean os, so if I’m at a client’s site and need to double check a clear setup i use Mint.
My biggest issues are…
Battery life - today with Windows 11 in power saver mode I got 6 hours with 25% left. I often will work from places with no steady power or just moving about. So battery life is important to me.
Lack of ports - I love the concept of the expansion cards. There just aren’t that many slots.
Fans - When plugged in, with the case open. They ramp up really quickly.
To give a balanced opinion things I love…
Build quality - Is excellent. Keyboard - Brilliant. Best I’ve used in quite some time. Screen - Couldn’t ask for better Performance - For the R5 I have. I can play all the games I want (Left for dead 2, GTAV) at better than my previous desktop that admittedly only had a RX470 in.
My previous was a R5 5500u Dell Inspiron 14. The battery on that was better than the Framework and it was 1/3 the cost. I could be on the train from 7am until 4pm without plugging in.
I’ve thought about this a lot before buying my AMD framework. The design is fairly dated now. It’s not as thin or light as I’d like to see in a late 2023 laptop but to me that’s acceptable for the flexibility of the expansion cards and only having to carry two extra cards (Ethernet and HDMI).
But I would assume after the 16 is in production and released to the public then a redesign of the 13 will be on the cards. I would also assume they will keep the same motherboard design. Which ultimately is the point of framework, to reduce ewaste. Probably keep as many parts as possible from the existing model and offer the new chassis to existing customers?