Framework Adds Ryzen AI to the Framework 13, Launches the Framework Desktop, Teases the Framework 12

Modular laptop specialist Framework is branching out, announcing a compact desktop computer — along with a refreshed Framework Laptop 13 with AMD Ryzen AI 300 processor and an upcoming convertible Laptop 12 model aimed at the cheaper end of the market.

"Why does Framework need to build a desktop? Aren't desktops already modular and upgradeable? They are. In fact, the desktop PC ethos is part of what inspired the Framework Laptop to begin with," Framework founder Nirav Patel admits of his company's latest device. "The desktop world is amazing. There is a broad, long-lived, interoperable ecosystem with hundreds of brands and hundreds of millions of consumers participating. You can build, upgrade, repair, and personalize to the limits of your imagination (and budget, and desk space), and share your amazing creations with all of the other true believers.

"We want to make this space as accessible as we possibly can by building a desktop that is simultaneously small and simple and incredibly powerful and customizable. Everyone should have the opportunity to experience the culture around PCs and PC gaming first-hand."

The first desktop Framework, unsurprisingly dubbed Framework Desktop, is a compact chassis housing a mini-ITX mainboard powered with an AMD Ryzen AI Max CPU — delivering up to 16 cores running at up to 5.1GHz boost, a Radeon 8060S embedded graphics card with machine learning and artificial intelligence (ML and AI) acceleration capabilities, and up to 128GB of unified memory — shared between the CPU cores and the GPU cores.

You'll have to tie down exactly what you need at the time of ordering, though: the system's LPDDR5x memory is soldered onto the motherboard, along with the CPU and GPU combo chip — meaning that "upgrading" means replacing the entire system. In a nod to the company's modular laptop range, though, the case does include slots at the bottom for its USB-powered modular port system.

The Framework Laptop 13 has also seen an upgrade, with Patel announcing a new Mainboard featuring the AMD Ryzen AI 300 series processor family. "These [updates] bring new processors, Wi-Fi 7, a revamped thermal system, a next-generation keyboard, and new Bezel and Expansion Card color options," Patel says. "Any Framework Laptop 13 owner, going all the way back to the original 11th Gen Intel Core version in 2021, can pick up the new modules and upgrade the computer they already own to the latest technology."

In addition to the refreshed Framework Laptop 13 and new Framework Desktop, Patel also unveiled a an upcoming device targeting those on a tighter budget or who need increased portability: the convertible Framework Laptop 12. "This computer is the purest manifestation of our vision and product philosophy at Framework," Patel claims, "and is in many ways the product I started the company to create. We build products to fix what we see as a broken industry, and few categories are as emblematic of the problems with consumer electronics as entry-level laptops.

"We designed this computer from the start to take all of the upgradeability and longevity of Framework Laptop 13 and bring it into a smaller, lower cost, more flexible, and more colorful form factor. We're introducing it in five bold colorways, each with an optional color-matched stylus. The two-tone look isn't just for show, either. We overmolded shock-absorbing TPU over rigid PC/ABS plastic with an inner metal structure for robustness. In the event you ever do manage to break it, it's also our easiest product ever to repair."

Inside the convertible casing is the buyer's choice of 13th-generation Intel Core i3 or Core i5 processors, up to 48GB of DDR5-5200 memory and 2TB of Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) storage, and a Wi-Fi 6E radio. The 1920×1200 delivers a claimed >400 nits of maximum brightness, and includes full capacitive touch and stylus support for use in tablet mode.

"Even though we had students in mind when we began developing this product two years ago," Patel says, "we found as we iterated through prototypes that every adult who tried it wanted one too! I'll personally be switching to a Framework Laptop 12 as my primary laptop now that we've announced it."

Framework has opened pre-orders for the Framework Desktop starting at $1,099, with the current batch expected to ship in the third quarter of the year; the new Framework Laptop 13 starts at $899 in "DIY Edition" guise with no memory, storage, or expansion cards included, and is expected to begin shipping in April; the Framework Laptop 12 will open for pre-orders in April, Patel says, with interested parties advised to sign up to be notified.