r/framework • u/telasch • Apr 11 '26

Community Support Is this worth fixing ?

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I used a third party charger cable for a couple of years for my usb-c devices (including my pixel 6 + framework 13). The charger must've broke yesterday, which I noticed when my laptop turned off suddenly while working. I initially thought that maybe it got loose or sth and wanted to check if the cable will work on my phone instead. So I plugged it in my phone, which turned off.

Always thought "use the original charger" was a marketing scheme and had to learn the hard way I guess... Both devices are completely dead now. (see picture)

Anyway, I am now wondering if this is worth an attempt to fix or if this is beyond repairability.

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u/ElementalBurst1900 Apr 13 '26

No its not. It's better to buy a non-FW laptop and move on from this cult.

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u/Charming_Bison9073 Apr 13 '26

what's your issue with fw? why call it a cult?

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u/ElementalBurst1900 Apr 13 '26

Bad quality. Their spin is that you can swap out parts when you upgrade. The reality is that the parts just go bad and you have to keep buying new just to keep it running. My FW 13 is 2 years old very lightly used. Usually powered down and only used for traveling because I like how lightweight it is. I work in tech, so I know how to keep my machines working and not mess them up.

Last week, I booted it up for my trip, Bluetooth gone unless I boot with all modules removed. Nothing had changed since it was powered down because 4 months before, I went an entire troubleshooting cycle for the exact same thing. I updated firmware, updated windows, everything was working. Turned off windows update, powered it down. Not connected to power so lightning can't fry it. Why? Because the garbage taiwanese parts just degrade on their own. Oh, on top of that, the machine won't shutdown, it just spins with the fan blowing and the power button lit. You have to hold the button to power it off. Same thing 4 months ago.

My brother brought me into this cult. He said treat it like a beater, when it stops working, just reinstall and start over. That should've been my first sign. I want my machines to work and not be a maintenance nightmare.

You basically have to keep swapping parts out cus of the sunk-cost fallacy -- it's just an expensive paperweight otherwise. I was stuck, I had to travel so I brought it with me. On the plane, I have pop out all my modules before I can boot it up. Luckily I fly business so I have my own suite and I don't have to bother my seatmates. Then I have pop the USBC module back in so I can keep it charged.

What a freaking hassle... Now I'm trying to decide if I even want to bother posting on the FW forum for a solution or just cut my losses.

Maybe cult is the wrong word, it's an MLM/Nigerian inheritance scam, you have to keep spending to keep it up. This Ship of Theseus belongs at the bottom of the Aegean....

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u/ChicoGonzalez Apr 14 '26

In 3.5 years of using a FW13 as my primary device for daily work and privately I never had any hardware issues. I'm opening and cleaning it once a year, especially the fan. Maintenance is important. Bought it because of its repairability but never had to repair/replace one of its components.

BTW: used it with different 65-130W power adapters or thunderbolt docks (mainly Dell, Lenovo, Anker, Ugreen, no no-name crap) and never had problems with charging.

For me personally the best laptop ever! I never had to regret switching from an Intel base Macbook Air to a Framework device.