Budget-friendly laptops can Save you money in the short term, but if they are cheaply made and quickly obsolete, you may end up replacing them soon. That’s why the spirit of the framework is perfect for budget laptops. In theory, being able to upgrade or replace nearly every component on your device means years of life for your laptop, keeping the device away from landfills.
The new Frame Laptop 12 starts at just $549 for the DIY version, which is a great price, and is a laptop you might use, which can last much longer than your average machine.
Please plastic
Photo: Luke Larsen
Frame Laptop 12 is the third major product in the lineup to date. The company first launched the Frame Laptop 13 in 2022, followed by the larger (more powerful) 16-inch model. But this 12-inch laptop is unique because it is not only the smallest, but the cheapest, bringing the framework philosophy to a whole new crowd. The frame laptop 12 is similar to a student laptop, especially a Chromebook. These are designed to endure some abuse to make it suitable for school.
Although it only uses a 12.2-inch screen, the overall footprint on its desk is a bit bigger than you might think. Due to the almost ridiculous bezels around the display, the device is larger in some sizes than a laptop about 13-inch, such as the Dell XPS 13. It’s too thick (and the bezels are so thick) and even taller than the 13-inch MacBook Air where the lid is opened, and its screen is smaller despite the lid being opened. This is a very small screen, especially compared to the size the device carries.
There are some interesting parts on the screen. This is the first frame device with a 16:10 aspect ratio and glossy touch screen. The frame laptops 13 and 16 both have matte displays. But the reason for the touch screen is that this is a 2-in-1 laptop, which means the hinge can rotate 360 degrees. You can even buy a stylus for notes or paintings, although my stylus doesn’t.
Photo: Luke Larsen
Photo: Luke Larsen
This also means it cannot be opened easily with one hand. There are no lips on your fingers, either, so you need to pry it open with both hands. Thankfully, the build quality is good. It’s made of plastic, yes, so there’s some giveaway on the keyboard and lid. But the framework says it has a “internal metal structure” that gives it a rather powerful feel. Not fragile at all. The frame also uses “overload, impact-free” thermoplastics to enhance the edges to ensure they are not etched or dented. It has nothing to do with what you see on your budget Chromebook to mean for the classroom.
The quality of the monitor is hit or missed. Colors are the biggest damage to the display and the entire laptop. It has an ugly green tone, which I confirmed with the Spyder color scale. This is typical for a laptop of this price, but it’s still disappointing. The good news is that it has a resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels, which is very bright, reaching brightness at 434 nits. This helps.
Despite the defects in the display, the frame laptop 12 has some advantageous points. The first one is the keyboard, which has a great trip to the 1.5mm key. The touchpad is perhaps even more surprising. Often, seeing an unresponsive touchpad at this price, it feels clumsy, can slide or has a stiff, loud click mechanism. On cheap laptops I like, like the Asus Vivobook 14. It won’t provide tactile feedback like those, but the click mechanism is quiet and precise. This may be a small reason to like laptop 12, but when you interact directly with various parts of the laptop you directly interact with, they can make it noble rather than cheap.
