Framework 13 Pro hands-on at Computex: the 'MacBook Pro for Linux users' tagline holds up

At Computex this week, Framework CEO Nirav Patel sat down with press and let people get their hands on the Framework 13 Pro for the first time. The laptop's tagline – 'the MacBook Pro for Linux users' – sounds like a bold marketing claim, but after touching the device and talking to Patel, it's starting to feel like an accurate one. A full review is still incoming.

The target audience is software developers who want Linux but refuse to give up the premium hardware feel they got from Apple. Framework's answer is a new black anodised aluminium chassis that genuinely feels solid and serious – comparable to a MacBook or a Razer Blade, a clear step up from the standard Framework 13's more utilitarian build. Crucially, the new shell doesn't sacrifice any of Framework's repairability, and it's compatible with any Framework 13 from roughly the past five years. The other headline addition is a haptic touchpad. Patel says it might not matter much to lifelong PC users, but for people migrating from MacBook it's essential – being able to click anywhere on the trackpad is muscle memory for that crowd, and losing it would make the switch feel like a downgrade. Under the hood sits an Intel Panther Lake Core Ultra 7 with an integrated B390 GPU core, though Patel is clear that gamers aren't the primary audience here.

The Framework 13 Pro launches later this month, and pre-order numbers are already telling a story: Linux configurations are outselling Windows ones. 'It's actually outselling the Windows configuration,' Patel says, 'which is crazy to see.'

Once the review unit arrives, there'll be a proper look at how the 13 Pro holds up under real developer workloads – and yes, some games thrown at that B390 GPU for good measure.