459
Framework proved repairable laptops can work, but almost nobody is willing to buy one
(www.xda-developers.com)
this post was submitted on 08 Jul 2026
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My MacBookPro from 2006 (and those of several colleagues) turned their batteries into spicy pillows in under a year. Glad to hear that the "you're holding it wrong" 5 bars signal strength everywhere you go phone company also has great (self reported) battery health, these days.
There's the raw cost of the batteries, then there's the hassle and downtime. If you just love hanging out at the genius bar then having your MacBook serviced is a positive experience for you - enjoy. I'd rather just grab a spare off the shelf and slap it in when I've finally had enough of my existing battery being anemic.
I seem to have notebooks thrown at me for free every so often, so often that I haven't bought one for myself in 20+ years, so what Framework does or doesn't do is a bit academic for me, but... if Framework makes their batteries generic enough that anybody (competent) with a 3D printer and a soldering iron could make them, you would think that would keep the batteries cheap and readily available.
I’m not sure that there’s any such thing as a “generic laptop battery”. They’re still made to fit one or maybe a handful of models. AFAICT, buying a replacement Framework battery is about the same as buying any other laptop’s replacement battery. I’ve replaced 4 different laptops’ batteries in the past 5 years, and the Framework was the second easiest (after the Thinkpad that you literally just slide the battery out of), but even the most difficult one wasn’t that hard. So as far as hassle, I’d say the worst offender still isn’t that bad.
Batteries just aren’t that hard to replace.
There's 18650s and similar standard cells. Many laptop batteries used to be collections of standard cells back in the day - they could be again.
My complaint about laptop batteries isn't their ease of replacement (which has been declining over the decades), but rather their cost. That cost is driven in large part by their specific application - they've got it, you want it, and there's little or no supplier competition...
Ah, ok. Well I don’t think Framework has done much in the way of cost. The 13’s battery is listed on their site for $70, so it’s about on par with other battery replacements, if not a bit more expensive.
Yeah, Framework is a bit over a barrel on cost - never going to be able to compete until they get volumes up. It's an impossible thing: can't lower prices because volume is too low, can't increase volume because prices are too high.