Note that the coreboot that NovaCustom uses is not the same coreboot that Purism or System76 is using. It's Dasharo coreboot. This is not free (as in price). NovaCustom has to pay for a license.
If the purchaser does not want Dasharo, they can usually compile their own non-Dasharo coreboot and flash it themselves.
cosmic_cheese · 4h ago
I don’t mean to minimize the company’s role in their offerings, but are these rebadged Clevo/Tongfang/etc laptops? There’s a place for those but that would make NovaCustom more comparable to system76 or Tuxedo than Framework, which designs their own hardware.
antif · 1h ago
I’d wish custom development could be minimized and everyone instead assembled next generation systems using the best open, standardized, and reusable parts.. which then could be sourced or salvaged on almost any continent. Just a wish.
Fire-Dragon-DoL · 3h ago
I think system76 is now designing their own hardware too?
cosmic_cheese · 3h ago
As far as I know, for models currently on sale that applies only to their desktops (which are cool, but considerably more niche since people interested in desktops are likely to build their own), with their laptops being Clevos.
qchris · 43m ago
My personal opinion is that System76 isn't really targeting personal users with their desktop line, though, but instead is more focused on professional users. For example, I built my own desktop computer at home, but if I needed one for work for doing ML or just to have the increased compute over my company-issued laptop, there's no way that my organization would sign-off on letting me spec out my own parts from Newegg and spend a day or two building and testing the system, then trying to install NVIDIA drivers on Ubuntu.
What they would (and do) sign-off on is a one-time purchase of a desktop from an approved vendor for that desktop, which comes with out-of-the-box support for the NVIDIA GPU I've selected. That's more the niche that I feel System76 is really filling.
Fire-Dragon-DoL · 2h ago
Ah I see!
necovek · 5h ago
This seems to have nothing similar to what Framework laptop offers.
The main (only?) selling point for NovaCustom is open source coreboot firmware and disabling of Intel ME.
I'd like to see Framework laptop with these features, but those two features do not make a Framework alternative.
exiguus · 5m ago
The security features are options you can select like:
- Disabled IME
- Coreboot EDK or Heads
- Removed Camera and Microphone
- Buskill kit
- Privacyscreen
- Tamper-evident Screws and Packaging
fsflover · 2h ago
> The main (only?) selling point for NovaCustom is open source coreboot firmware and disabling of Intel ME.
Also it's officially certified to run Qubes OS.
zamalek · 3h ago
I took a poke around their website and it looks like you can purchase a motherboard. It seems this exists somewhere between the mainstream and Framework: a regular laptop with right to repair.
NVIDIA, though? We are still a good few months, or years, away from attempting to seriously use NVIDIA and Linux in the same sentence without looking like a complete idiot.
rpdillon · 2h ago
I'm not sure what you're talking about here. I am a customer of System76 several times over. I just purchased a laptop for my 15-year-old that runs Pop_OS and has an NVIDIA card, and he has been doing both AI on it as well as high-end gaming, all is zero assistance from me in getting things set up. I also worked on self-driving cars and maintained fleets of hundreds of machines with H100s, all running Ubuntu.
I don't feel like a complete idiot, but now you're making me wonder. What's your experience been?
AlotOfReading · 1h ago
My Linux system has a nasty little bug in the card audio ouput system that results in dropped audio when there's too much bus traffic. That's a direct result of Nvidia issues deep in the stack. And of course, Nvidia's automotive division is infuriating to work with.
Good Linux support though.
bigyabai · 46m ago
Nvidia drivers have included serious Wayland support since the 550 series. My NixOS Nvidia system has run equally as smooth as my Intel iGPU for close to a year now.
yndoendo · 8m ago
I have a GTX 650 Ti that keeps being erratic with Wayland to where it becomes unusable out of the box. Didn't take any time to try and resolve because it is being used as a server. Disabled the GUI service and only boot into terminal.
princevegeta89 · 3h ago
I don't understand... what is the privacy concern with Framework Laptops?
All hardware used is transparent and replacable. Software is the user's choice, and many users go for Linux. It is as transparent as you can make an OS to be.
>Framework. vPro Enterprise Framework devices actually meet HSI level 4, but they unfortunately do not handle firmware updates properly. They have not shipped a single firmware for their 13th generation over a year since its release date, and over 6 months since the disclosure of LogoFail. While they do ship some updates for other devices, how they have been handling so far is not acceptable if you need a secure device.
mixmastamyk · 18m ago
Believe they updated firmware again, but yes proprietary and slow to update.
SlowTao · 3h ago
* puts on cynical hat * I suspect it is most just marketing. Privacy can help you sell even if it is no better than what a lot of people are doing.
Using open boot and a neutered Intel ME is a good start but nothing too unique nowadays.
Also at this point hardware privacy is all well and good but if you are going to dump stock Windows 11 on it, well it is called Windows for a reason, lets all your data out of one.
fsflover · 2h ago
The problem is Intel Management Engine, which is disabled in NovaCustom.
transpute · 1h ago
Which laptop vendors have an option to fully disable Intel ME?
- Clevo ODM laptops with coreboot (OEM: NovaCustom, Purism, System76)
- Some (?) pricy Dell Rugged laptops, at purchase time
- Some (?) standard HP business laptops, via BIOS
speedgoose · 3h ago
A maximum of 8GB vRAM in 2025 is quite limiting. You can only run the smallest large language models on those laptops.
marssaxman · 38m ago
Your world must be so different from mine! It would never occur to me to care about such a thing.
I was content with 8GB of main RAM in my dev laptop until about a year ago.
SlowTao · 3h ago
Maybe this laptop is not for you then. That's cool.
But if you don't need to run LLM's these will be fine.
speedgoose · 2h ago
Yes I guess some could also be fine with a privacy focused mechanical typewriter.
When Apple and AMD sell very descent laptop hardware (M4 or Ryzen AI Max), I find the Intel/Nvidia combo with only 8GB a bit conservative.
mgerdts · 3h ago
I’m confused how a premium priced laptop comes with an NVMe drive that uses host memory buffer (HMB) rather than having sufficient RAM on the drive. At Amazon, a better drive like a WD SN850x costs 25% less than the GOODRAM drive they include.
iLoveOncall · 36m ago
Yeah a company that you have to pay 9 euros to NOT HAVE an engraving of their logo on your $2,000 machine really inspires confidence in their respect for your privacy.
bigyabai · 22m ago
It does for me. In case you missed the Snowden leaks, pretty much every American laptop OEM is in bed with the NSA.
I swear that hipster marketing has ruined HN's ability to evaluate products. Next you people are going to start bitching about the logo not lighting up.
demarq · 2h ago
This really has no bearing to the framework laptop. Great project though!
horsellama · 4h ago
finally a vendor that allows the customization of the super key
and also ships with nvidia gpu
I might have found a new laptop…
stavros · 3h ago
Don't Frameworks ship with QMK now, allowing you to customize the entire keyboard at the hardware level?
umbra07 · 2h ago
16s do, but not the 13s.
horsellama · 3h ago
oh yes, they do
but I meant the actual sticker on the keycap (very silly requirement, I know)
haiku2077 · 2h ago
Framework offers either a Windows logo or the Framework logo
getcrunk · 3h ago
Yea I don’t like trying to ride the frame work tailwinds, but wow modern hardware with modern nvidia gpu that supports core boot and heads? The only thing missing is a stellar company reputation that inspires trust
If the purchaser does not want Dasharo, they can usually compile their own non-Dasharo coreboot and flash it themselves.
What they would (and do) sign-off on is a one-time purchase of a desktop from an approved vendor for that desktop, which comes with out-of-the-box support for the NVIDIA GPU I've selected. That's more the niche that I feel System76 is really filling.
The main (only?) selling point for NovaCustom is open source coreboot firmware and disabling of Intel ME.
I'd like to see Framework laptop with these features, but those two features do not make a Framework alternative.
- Disabled IME
- Coreboot EDK or Heads
- Removed Camera and Microphone
- Buskill kit
- Privacyscreen
- Tamper-evident Screws and Packaging
Also it's officially certified to run Qubes OS.
NVIDIA, though? We are still a good few months, or years, away from attempting to seriously use NVIDIA and Linux in the same sentence without looking like a complete idiot.
I don't feel like a complete idiot, but now you're making me wonder. What's your experience been?
Good Linux support though.
What am I missing here..?
>Framework. vPro Enterprise Framework devices actually meet HSI level 4, but they unfortunately do not handle firmware updates properly. They have not shipped a single firmware for their 13th generation over a year since its release date, and over 6 months since the disclosure of LogoFail. While they do ship some updates for other devices, how they have been handling so far is not acceptable if you need a secure device.
Using open boot and a neutered Intel ME is a good start but nothing too unique nowadays.
Also at this point hardware privacy is all well and good but if you are going to dump stock Windows 11 on it, well it is called Windows for a reason, lets all your data out of one.
I was content with 8GB of main RAM in my dev laptop until about a year ago.
But if you don't need to run LLM's these will be fine.
When Apple and AMD sell very descent laptop hardware (M4 or Ryzen AI Max), I find the Intel/Nvidia combo with only 8GB a bit conservative.
I swear that hipster marketing has ruined HN's ability to evaluate products. Next you people are going to start bitching about the logo not lighting up.
and also ships with nvidia gpu
I might have found a new laptop…
but I meant the actual sticker on the keycap (very silly requirement, I know)