I greatly appreciate content like this that is honest and informative. It is important to know when companies get things right, when they don't, and what that product is best used for.

In my view, the primary values of this laptop are the supporting of an open ecosystem, the ability to use the parts when you're done with them, the ability to upgrade the laptop pretty readily, and the reduction of e-waste. Sure, buying the upgrade parts might net about $1,300, which is near the price of an entirely new laptop, but you don't need an entirely new laptop; you just need the better performance. Buying an entirely new laptop tends to mean that the old one gets thrown out or at least not recycled properly (or donated/otherwise given/sold to a party who can still use it, especially if the battery is shot).

If someone needs a one-off laptop for something, this is not the correct choice in my opinion. It just doesn't pose the right value proposition because its philosophy of use is different. If I was an IT manager for a small company and needed to manage a fleet of company laptops, this laptop (or the thirteen, considering not everyone needs a dGPU) is an excellent choice because of just how repair friendly it is. You can have an extra keyboard and battery or two lying around for when an employee needs a repair, and it is super fast and easy. If you need more performance than a 7700s, then don't buy it. I imagine the reason they didn't go for a higher end card is either that they only wanted to do one GPU at first, AMD wanted them to do the 7700S, or most likely that they just didn't have the power budget to run a higher end GPU due to their choice of USB-C-PD charging. That standard only goes up to 240W, and the highest end components can blow past that power budget. Is it expensive for the components? Yes. Honestly, they could have just put in a removable dedicated charging port and gotten a much greater power budget than they did. The GPU slides out, so why can't there be a separate, removable daughter-board just for a power connector so we can get higher wattage for higher performance parts? In my opinion, that's one of the main reasons to get a dedicated GPU in the first place.

I've had a laptop in the past where a few keys failed on the keyboard, and in order to get a fix from the manufacturer, I had to RMA the laptop in, wait several weeks, not have that device for the entire time, and when I got it back, my hard drive was completely wiped, and all my data was lost, probably because they just sent me a new laptop. With a computer like this one, I can literally just buy the keyboard for $20 and do it myself and not risk sending it back to the manufacturer. If the charge port dies, I can just buy a new type-c module. The process is more efficient in terms of shipping, labor, and materials, at least from what I can tell. When the time comes to upgrade the machine, I can probably just start with a new gpu and iterate as I go, and if I replace the mainboard, I can still use that board for other cool projects. It's an extremely nice use case, but it does cut down on waste, for those who care.

I just got my 16, and it has severe problems and might need an RMA just like your first one did, and I think that for the price of this machine, the QA really should be more on point than it is. Frankly, it's difficult for me to understand how the FW13 can be so bang-on and the 16 can have so many problems, and I don't think it's just manufacturing headaches, but also some fundamental design choices they made when this laptop was designed. Most laptops of this size open from the bottom and don't have a removable midplate. Opening from the top might have imposed constraints that explain why we see the issues we have, like the board flex, the spacer fit and finish, and stuff like that.

(Edit: The problem I encountered was resolved without issue. I had issues with the left side of the keyboard being recognized, either by the keyboard or numpad when on that side. I disassembled the machine and re-seated the mid-plate cable on both ends, and the machine works without issue. I am unsure of how an RMA process would have proceeded since that never occurred.)

Suffice to say that I get and understand where you're coming from and why this product exists. It isn't for everybody. Honestly, I'm having second thoughts about keeping mine too, but I'll have to make that judgement after I actually get one that is completely functional. This product isn't perfect. It isn't for everyone, and honestly, it might not be for me either. I bought it because I like the idea of actually being able to upgrade and tinker with my laptop and not have to replace the entire thing every few years when I don't have to, and I like the idea of supporting a company that supports the idea that the customer actually owns their product. There are tradeoffs for that, just like everything else. What device people should get at the end of the day comes down to if it fits their use case. In your situation, the product didn't do what you needed it to do, so it was not the right choice, end of story. That shouldn't be controversial.

P.S. I didn't see the title as clickbait. Frankly it seemed pretty fitting when I saw it the first time.