My next Laptop? Framework, System 76, Apple ?
Am a sort of digital nomad (travel OS 8 months a year, home for 4) , and my Surface Pro 7 (running LMDE) just crapped itself while I am travelling. Hard to do any diagnostics while travelling and it won't boot from my LMDE USB thumb drive.
I had thought to replace it with either a System 76 or Framework when i got home and while I have never owned an Apple product, perhaps even a Macbook Air as there is always Apple repair places everywhere.
And god help me, I'd run MacOS on the Apple
6 replies
If you want Linux, get a framework.
If you want macos, get a Mac.
There's really nothing else to think about.
I regret my Apple. MBP M1 Pro. It's got plenty of power, but macOS gets worse and worse.
Just of note, Asahi Linux could be an option in the future! Currently, the main limitation is no DP alt mode through the TB4 ports, lack of TouchID, and no VRR or HDR. The devs are working very hard and it's quite impressive what they have achieved already! Asahi is a great option right now if you have an Air though, as long as you don't need USB-C displays or USB4 connectivity.
Funny enough - I'm already rocking Asahi. Love it! The hardware shortcomings don't really affect me, thankfully. It's much better than macOS as a whole, but still has enough bugs to be a headache, unfortunately.
Despite the bugs, though - I would still highly recommend Asahi if one must buy an Apple laptop (and has a bit of Linux know-how).
I'm assuming that you are looking at the smaller size options (13"), particularly since you are prioritising portability (why else would you have gotten a tablet computer?)
Your main options will be the FW 13 / 13 Pro, the System76 Lemur Pro 2026, and one of the Macbooks (ideally an M1 or M2, since those will be cheaper and are still really good chips, plus compatible with Asahi Linux if you want to try that out)
The Macbook Airs do not have a fan (so they will run quite hot, a friend of mine regularly complains about this whenever they try to run anything intensive) and have a limited selection of ports, and you will have soldered RAM and storage. However, particularly for the M1 and M2 series, you can get them for a very good price compared to the smaller brands. Even the M3 is going down in price!
For System76, they are unique as they are also developing their own Linux distros, Pop! OS, so by purchasing their hardware you are also supporting Linux development. Their recent Lemur Pro has the Panther Lake CPU (so you will get efficiency and graphics performance competitive with the base M chips), and reportedly has very good battery life too. The one point is that the Lemur Pro w/ Panther Lake has soldered memory, just like the Macbook. The storage appears to be replaceable though. Port selection is a lot better than the Macbook Air as well
Finally, you have the Framework devices. The base 13 has some build quality issues with flexing and such, but nothing that makes it a less functional computer. The Kraken Point CPUs will not be as performant or efficient as the M series or Panther Lake silicon, but it is probably enough for most tasks. It just won't last as long as the Apple Silicon or the Panther Lake laptops. The highlight of the FW is its modularity, you can replace all the parts easily and even upgrade the mainboard, speakers, display, etc.! You can also add colourful accents if you want a more fun machine. I also like that FW has modular ports, incl. a UHS-II SD card slot!
The FW 13 Pro is likely out of your price range, it's more expensive than the base 13, but has a number of benefits, like the Panther Lake CPU, LPCAMM memory (not soldered!!), a (matte) touchscreen, a fully CNC machined chassis (like the Macbooks!), much better battery life (competitive with the Macbooks!), better speakers that are side-firing rather than bottom firing, haptic touchpad, etc. But I think the highlight is that one can upgrade a base 13 into the "Pro" by swapping out the chassis, main board, display, input cover, etc.! So if you can't get a Pro now, you can later on upgrade only the features you want (maybe you want better battery life but don't need the new touchscreen)
TLDR in terms of repairability (where left to right means more repairable):
Macbook Air (soldered...everything) --- ... -> System76 (soldered RAM) -> Framework
Build quality:
FW13 (base) -> System76 Lemur Pro -> Macbook Air / FW13 Pro
Performance:
FW13 (base) -> System76 Lemur Pro / FW 13 Pro / Macbook Air
Fun factor:
Macbook Air -> System76 Lemur Pro (COSMIC is pretty fun, but otherwise unremarkable) -> Framework (super customisable!)
OS:
Macbook Air ships with MacOS, can run Asahi Linux for M1/M2
System76 Lemur Pro ships with Pop! OS or Ubuntu, and you will directly support Linux development
Framework can ship with no OS (only for DIY), Ubuntu (only for prebuilt), or Windows (ew)
So in my opinion, Macbook Air -> Framework -> System76 for OS
Battery life:
FW13 (base) --- ... -> System76 Lemur Pro -> FW13 Pro / Macbook Air
Other differentiating factors: