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Assuming you are talking about the 4-port version of the 2019 Intel Pro model, the 2019 had more I/O than the next gen 14-inch, specifically because the 4th port on the 14-inch got turned into a dumb HDMI port that can only do HDMI out, not HDMI/DP/USB/Thunderbolt like an actual Thunderbolt port can. It is absolutely a reduction in total I/O capabilities, changes in abilities from Thunderbolt 3 to 4 notwithstanding.

I would rather have 4 Thunderbolt 3 ports than 3 Thunderbolt 4 ports, an SD card slot I won't use, and 1 HDMI port that can only be used for HDMI instead of whatever the hell I need it to be another Thunderbolt port can be.

by Grombobulous3 hours ago|

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I would rather have a Framework 13 Pro where I could choose 4 ports of my choosing and swap them out at will. (That’s my current machine, sold my M2 MacBook Pro for it).

I would rather have a ThinkPad X9 15p Aura Edition, which has 3x thunderbolt, SD Card, HDMI, and USB-A, all at the same time with no dongle.

by AprilArcus2 hours ago|

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I love the Framework laptops in every other respect, but I just don't get the "swappable port" concept. Those are still dongles; they're just special dongles that can only be used on one brand of machine and which require allocating internal space away from battery, on a machine whose power-hungry OSes can't spare a single watt-hour.

by Grombobulous1 hours ago|

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I don't know what's so hard to understand about it. They're dongles that don't stick out when you use them. That eliminates a lot of the annoyance with dongles.

They also let you customize what ports you want in your laptop. You don't have to customize them. You don't have to pull them out. It's still an advantage.

You can also replace your ports easily if they get physical damage.

They can also be used on any brand of machine or even a smartphone. They're just Thunderbolt/USB-C.

They don't take space away from the battery, the battery on the Framework 13 Pro is almost the exact same size as the one in the MacBook Pro 14, and as of the M5 model the Framework 13 Pro gets better battery life than that Mac.

by rjrjrjrj3 hours ago|

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Welcome to dongleville, population: you.

by wpm3 hours ago|

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Exactly. I'm not happy about being in Dongleville. It sucks shit here. I have boxes of dongles. They get tangled on my desk with is stupid messy with dongles. Stupid things. But I am here. And everyone else seems really happy about Dongleville and I can't change the fact that I need dongles, so we might as well just embrace it.

Because the Dongle-heads do have one thing right, one port that can be turned into lots of other kinds of ports with a dongle is more versatile than a port that can only be a video out, especially when the device doesn't have a ton of room for lots of ports.

by rjrjrjrj19 minutes ago|

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Theoretically more versatile, but high-quality SDXC and HDMI built-in is much more practical than a 4th(!) Thunderbolt 5 port.