Framework Raises $18M In New Funding, More Collaborations Coming With Cooler Master

[stiiixy]

Well, you live up to your name, so I get where you're coming from.

I've no experience with thier laptops, and no budget to 'experiment' (invested in massive solar/battery tech right now), but if they could keep a reasonable level of modularity to price (there's a limit to flexibility/$$$), I daresay their gear is my next purchase. I was handed a HP x360 2-in-1 and it has some redeeming features, but three months in, the QWERT ASDF keys have already started to fail. No point in night-lit KB if the fucking things don't work.

And the options for replacement of the keyboard and the single button touchpad has rendered the entire 'hardware interface' ineffective. I simply utilise KB/M.

Having had IBM T-series to work with it's a hard swallow. Especially when the KB/M now takes up my shirt/shorts/undies slot 😇

I'd love to buy in to the Framework framework, but all I can do for now is offer well wishes and hope they're around in the next 24 months.

[coder]

I was handed a HP x360 2-in-1 and it has some redeeming features, but three months in, the QWERT ASDF keys have already started to fail. No point in night-lit KB if the fucking things don't work.

LOL, part of the keyboard backlight on my Dell work laptop failed. There's still enough light that you can make out the key caps, as if I even needed to. Either way, the failing backlight is of no practical concern to me, but it annoys me to look at! I guess I could probably disable the backlight, entirely, but since the stupid thing is running MS Windows, I'm not about to invest any time into that.

[billyswong]

Believe me: I do understand the potential. However, for a part that's literally a deal-breaker, they do not currently provide that option, and that's after years of being in operation. So, it's clearly not a priority for them and I will not just buy one of their laptops, hoping they will one day offer such a component. If they want to get me in the door, I must be able to get a touchpad with 3 physical buttons, whether built-in or as an extra.


Given their current touchpads have zero buttons, I don't see why they'd have a 2-button version and not just go straight to 3. My Thinkpad has 3 buttons and the Dell laptops I previously had for work did also. It's not a unicorn feature.

Turns out people are requesting touchpad buttons since 2022

https://community.frame.work/t/the-clickpad-and-the-sliding-clicks-please-give-us-touchpad-buttons/14932

https://community.frame.work/t/please-make-the-touchpad-good/31374

When will Framework offer that, or some 3rd party make that? I don't know.

[stiiixy]

Honestly, I've given up caring long ago, and simply carry the KB/M combo of my choice with me.

And because of that antagonistic enforcement, it's wired. USB-C allows me a multitude of options, I simply bought a massive combo unit. USB-A/C, NIC, SDCard, HDMI (sad, but necessary on occassion).

[coder]

Honestly, I've given up caring long ago, and simply carry the KB/M combo of my choice with me.

I sometimes use my laptops (especially my work machine) in places where there's nowhere to use a mouse, nor even a convenient place to put a trackball.

Many years ago, I had a gyroscope-based, wireless presentation mouse. You'd move the cursor just by holding the trigger button and twisting your wrist. However, it stopped working after a few years of sitting on the shelf. I used it on my HTPC, which was a great application for it.

[sophisticles]

I need to apologize, I was wrong and I admit it.

They haven't raised 36 million dollars in 2 rounds of funding, they raised over 45 million dollars in 3 rounds of funding:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Framework_Computer

So they raised 9 million dollars in initial funding, another 225 thousand from a YouTuber, another 18 million in 2022 and now they raised another 17 million and are looking raising another million dollars from smaller "investors".

At what point do people wake up and smell the cappuccino?

Think about it, the company was started by the head of hardware at Oculus a bit over 4 years ago and with tens of millions of dollars in investment capital supposedly decent sales, they still go back to the well to get millions more and this time they are lowering how much they are willing to accept form an investor.

You have to be a real sucker to invest in this company, it has scam written all over it.

[coder]

I need to apologize, I was wrong and I admit it.
They haven't raised 36 million dollars in 2 rounds of funding, they raised over 45 million dollars in 3 rounds of funding:

Heh, what a disingenuous apology.

At what point do people wake up and smell the cappuccino?

Think about it, the company was started by the head of hardware at Oculus a bit over 4 years ago and with tens of millions of dollars in investment capital supposedly decent sales, they still go back to the well to get millions more and this time they are lowering how much they are willing to accept form an investor.

The PC sector weathered a serious downturn, in late 2022 and 2023, as the pandemic had pushed most people to upgrade sooner. The PC business is normally cyclical, but this made the "trough" even deeper than usual. It's been well-documented that PC hardware revenues hit lows not seen since 2009 or before.

Meanwhile, 2024 is projected to be a strong rebound, with some hardware makers already seeing quarterly revenues surpassing pre-pandemic levels. So, it makes sense that Framework was facing stiff headwinds, just as they were getting their legs under them, and now is poised to become profitable. But, perhaps they just need one final push, because the products continually need refreshing and that costs money.

You have to be a real sucker to invest in this company, it has scam written all over it.

No, a scam is something that was never designed to succeed. What they're doing seems to involve way too much work to be a scam. If it were vaporware and never produced any viable product, like some kickstarters that have come and gone, then it might plausibly be considered a scam. However, they have a track record of delivering decent hardware, so that shows there are serious people who know what they're doing.

You can't just label every business failure as a scam. Not if words still have meaning, at least. And I wouldn't call Framework a failure. IMO, they deserve a final chance to prove their idea is viable.

[qarium]

From the blog:
This is a company in serious financial trouble that is bleeding cash.
They still consider themselves a startup, they might even be pre-revenue.
I would not invest a dime in these people, I don't think there is any demand for their product, or more accurately, enough of a demand to actually build a business around
The only thing that lends credibility to this is Cooler Master participating but just be some pocket change that they invest for tax purposes.
Everything else about this says belly up inside of one year, with investors left holding the bag.
Definition of accredited investor:
https://www.sec.gov/education/capita...dited-investor

"I would not invest a dime in these people,"

and we all trust in you that you have our best interest in mind... LOL NOT.... best British slapstick NOT joke ever.

sophisticles you have burned your reputation in this forum for all times.

[sophisticles]

Heh, what a disingenuous apology.

I believe you mean sarcastic apology.

The PC sector weathered a serious downturn, in late 2022 and 2023, as the pandemic had pushed most people to upgrade sooner. The PC business is normally cyclical, but this made the "trough" even deeper than usual. It's been well-documented that PC hardware revenues hit lows not seen since 2009 or before.

Meanwhile, 2024 is projected to be a strong rebound, with some hardware makers already seeing quarterly revenues surpassing pre-pandemic levels. So, it makes sense that Framework was facing stiff headwinds, just as they were getting their legs under them, and now is poised to become profitable. But, perhaps they just need one final push, because the products continually need refreshing and that costs money.

And that "push" conveniently comes from other peoples' money, not their own.

No, a scam is something that was never designed to succeed. What they're doing seems to involve way too much work to be a scam. If it were vaporware and never produced any viable product, like some kickstarters that have come and gone, then it might plausibly be considered a scam. However, they have a track record of delivering decent hardware, so that shows there are serious people who know what they're doing.

You can't just label every business failure as a scam. Not if words still have meaning, at least. And I wouldn't call Framework a failure. IMO, they deserve a final chance to prove their idea is viable.

A scam can be something that you once believed could work, realized that it couldn't but continued to promote the claim so that you could raise money from investors, knowing full well that they would never recoup their cash outlay.

When I read these guys' statements I think of Elizabeth A. Holmes.

I know i wouldn't invest 10 bucks in this company, much less 10 grand.

Would you?

[coder]

And that "push" conveniently comes from other peoples' money, not their own.

That's how investment works.

A scam can be something that you once believed could work, realized that it couldn't but continued to promote the claim so that you could raise money from investors, knowing full well that they would never recoup their cash outlay.

When I read these guys' statements I think of Elizabeth A. Holmes.

Unlike Holmes, they have generations of products which demonstrate the technical viability of the concept. That's something she never had. The only remaining question is whether it can be commercially viable.

I know i wouldn't invest 10 bucks in this company, much less 10 grand.

Would you?

I'm not an investor, so not a good person to ask. I would have to look at their financials and see how close they are to being profitable. I'd also need a bit more grounding in the market where they're playing, before I could reach a decision about whether I think their business has a good chance of success.

One thing I would point out is that venture capital firms can and do "claw back" their unspent investments from startups, if they lose faith in the company. If its VCs aren't doing that, it shows they still have faith in the venture.

What I can say I'd do is be willing to spend a bit more for a modular, upgradable laptop, so long as the price delta weren't too great and it didn't entail a lot of added size or weight. I can't say exactly how much. It would depend somewhat on the particulars. That's also assuming it gets all the basics right, such as having a touchpad with 3 physical buttons.