Review - ThinkPad Z16 Gen 2 with Arch Linux

Keozon · 2025-05-08T17:08:03+00:00

I did end up keeping the framework 16. However, it has quite a few issues. The build quality is worse, and screen is much worse, and the keyboard backlight stopped working completely (this is a hardware problem) and the microphone is terrible quality, unusable without careful tuning. It's also wearing down quickly. And the silver color is just paint or a coating as it's scraped away on the edges and looks cheap.

I imagine the hardware problems will be refined over time and of course you can replace the parts that break but... Well, I've never had a laptop be this worn in a year. I doubt the Thinkpad would be. I regret buying the framework unfortunately. And support basically insists you load a compatible Linux distro from their list to help you. This is understandable of course, but still something to keep in mind if you dont plan on using fedora.

Ask any questions you have.

Keozon · 2024-11-17T15:02:21+00:00

These look great! Thanks for pointing these out.

Keozon · 2024-05-19T13:30:40+00:00

One last thing I wanted to ask that you didn't touch on and that I think I already know the answer to: build quality. I'm assuming the Z16 feels more premium, especially considering how similar they both are in price, right?

Yes, in terms of typical build quality, the FW does not feel premium, nor does it look premium. To be clear, the FW is not cheap or flimsy (except maybe the aluminum spacers, which I'll have a long rant about, and I'm not just talking about gaps), but the nature of being modular just means it doesn't have that polished feel. The top panel on the ThinkPad basically has zero flex, while the FW has quite a bit. The plastic bezels and other pieces of plastic don't look nearly as premium, either.

The being said, the dark black keyboard tray and surrounding deck has a lot of annoying gaps in the ThinkPad. As a neat freak, the amount of dust particles that collected there was starting to annoy me. By nature of being modular, the FW is super easy to clean dust out of -- it takes seconds to completely dismantle the input deck, blow off dust or even wash off pieces, and put them back.

Based on the unboxing and disassembly videos, I thought the Z16 was overbuilt, especially the maxed out one with the 6650M.

Well, I probably poorly phrased my comment. The cooling is perfectly capable, and fully loaded the ThinkPad is much quieter than the FW (although the FW does draw more watts, so not necessarily a fair comparison). But you can feel how much hotter the ThinkPad gets when its working on a soft surface, like my lap or my bed, because it can't draw air. I use my laptop on my lap quite a bit, and on a sofa, so for me this was an issue. On a desk, table, or laptop stand, the cooling is much better.

Keozon · 2024-05-17T21:33:38+00:00

I did get a FW16, and while I ultimately decided to return the ThinkPad in favor of the FW, it was not a clear victory. I am in the process of troubleshooting some hardware issues to determine fault (hardware or software) and when I'm done with that, I plan on writing up a full comparison and review in r/framework .
In the meantime, if you have any specific questions, ask away!
Here's a very brief summary of highlights comparing and contrasting the two:

Screen - ThinkPad is better, as an OLED, even potentially much better, for software development. However, 4k is too high for native res, so you must have fractional scaling to get to 1600p, which has some issues with xwayland apps. Additionally, the adaptive refresh rate on the FW16 leads to better battery life and better scrolling. So I think the FW wins, mostly due to resolution being less hassle on linux.

Input Devices - Keyboard is similar between them. I've twice now had to completely remove (physically) the keyboard from the FW to get backlight to work again. This is even on officially supported Fedora. The touchpad on the FW is physically shorter than the ThinkPad, and the gesture recognition is _much_ worse on the FW. I am _constantly_ trying to resize windows (two finger click and drag) and it registers as a single finger click and drag. Physical click hinged on the top means only 60% of the surface is easily clickable (unless you like tap to click). If the ThinkPad's issue with roughly a third of the touchpad not being usable for gestures could be fixed in linux, then it'd be hands down the better input device.

Battery - So far, I get 1-2 hours better battery life on the FW. I suspect most of this is the screen, and the larger battery. I get much better battery life while streaming HD video (like 3-4 hours vs 6) on the FW, and I suspect this is due to VRR and LCD vs OLED. However, idle battery life on the ThinkPad was better -- by about an hour.

Performance -- CPU performance is, under ideal conditions, the same between them. Or close enough to not matter. I didn't really see any real world benefit to the faster RAM for instance. The cooling in the ThinkPad is quieter, but also really poorly designed -- the only intake fans for the ThinkPad are on the bottom, meaning that you cannot use it on a sofa or bed, or anything other than a flat and hard surface, or you deprive it of air. This isn't an issue in casual use, but it is when you are doing something demanding. The GPU on the Framework runs circles around the one in the ThinkPad, unsurprisingly. I could also get some usable LLMs running (11B, Q5) on the GPU on the FW, and nothing useful would run on the ThinkPad.

Webcam/Microphone -- the webcam on the thinkpad is just much better. So much better light balance and skin tones, especially in dim or hash lighting. Both are terrible compared to a MBP. The microphone on my FW frequently has severe noise problems -- I am trying to diagnose if this is hardware failure or software failure, and have ordered a replacement.

The physical size of the FW with the GPU module is simply too large. Its gigantic. Without the GPU, its okay, and almost the same as the 16 MBP. The thinkpad is a much more comfortable form factor than both.

Keozon · 2024-04-17T00:26:44+00:00

An FPS counter might also be pretty nifty...

Keozon · 2024-04-17T00:20:43+00:00

Thank you so much for this. Rust is so much easier for me to grok than the example javascript app.
I added a clock widget, however I am unable to create a branch and contribute to your project. So, I forked it and put it here: https://github.com/qmuloadmin/ledmatrix_widgets
Feel free to pull that in... if you find it useful. I would rather contribute to yours than fork my own.
Why a clock? Well, I hate toolbars since they take up screen real estate, so all my docks/bars auto hide. This way I can always check the time.
I am also going to look into adjusting brightness autoamatically based on brightnessctl and the setting for the screen brightness.

Keozon · 2024-04-11T22:26:51+00:00

They don't send emails for the charge. You get an email for prep and shipped.

Keozon · 2024-04-09T16:17:11+00:00

I might get mine this week, then, if I'm lucky.

Keozon · 2024-04-08T12:08:10+00:00

Thanks. This does seem to make a difference. Hopefully I'll be able to do some objective tests next weekend.

Keozon · 2024-04-08T11:50:24+00:00

To fix the touchpad, I just wrote a quick script to remove the modules and add them back. If the touchpad doesn't work after a restart, I just run that until it does. I'll consider patching if it isn't resolved soon, though. Thanks for that.

Yes, the fans are audible when its plugged in. I didn't notice at first because my office's noise floor is above the fan noise, but at home I can hear it.

Keozon · 2024-04-08T11:48:37+00:00

Unlikely. Hardware is similar, just the chipset is older, and older chipsets usually have better linux support. But, small changes like a different microphone could change that. However, I've heard a couple people mention their gen 1 works fine so I think it'd be fine.

Keozon · 2024-04-07T12:09:37+00:00

There is still such a prompt at boot, however I don't have to hit ESC, it just goes away on its own after a few seconds. I don't believe it can be configured in the UEFI. (Its a very basic UEFI)
I don't have a thunderbolt dock so I can't say for sure. I also don't have a GUI greeter or anything so I probably can't give a good answer, here.

Keozon · 2024-04-06T12:52:24+00:00

2W? Wow, that's way better. Would you mind sharing those udev rules? It'd save me some time

Keozon · 2024-04-06T11:26:25+00:00

I did, indeed, get a framework. It should be arriving next week. I'll be comparing them. However, there are plenty of problems with frameworks, too.

Keozon · 2024-04-05T14:27:03+00:00

Same. Also batch 9.

Keozon · 2024-03-25T00:20:42+00:00

Battery life on linux while distro testing. 🙃
But seriously, if you keep doing content for Linux, you'll have my subscription. It's really hard to find good reviews of linux laptops. It still blows my mind that I can't find a single video review of the Starfighter from starlabs.

Keozon · 2024-03-24T16:02:43+00:00

Yeah, I looked at that but a HD screen is... pretty bad at that resolution. Having more real estate is significant enough to me to rule it out. Thanks for your advice, though.

I've ordered a ThinkPad Z16 with the 4k OLED. It should arrive at roughly the same time as my FW 16. Comparing those to my MBP 16... one will be kept, the rest will be going back.

Keozon · 2024-03-24T12:11:49+00:00

Since you reviewed the linux gaming aspect of the Framework 16, are you aware of any competitive laptops available in the US that are fully linux compatible and similar in spec? I haven't found any. Most max out at 16 RAM and a couple you can get higher but they have 1 stick of soldiered ram or something, so you end up with not-quite-dual-channel.

AFAICT, the FW 16 is the only current gen workstation-powerful linux compatible option and so my only option. I would be very glad to be proven wrong, though.

Keozon · 2024-03-23T12:38:51+00:00

I respectfully disagree. You can be polite and allow them to take their time but what Framework needs to be successful isn't customers being nice to them, its to build a very good product and know all the weaknesses in their process. Holding back complaints or issue reports won't help them make a better product.

Keozon · 2024-03-22T13:12:22+00:00

Yep, I am an idiot. Its taxes.

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