StarLabs 7-row laptop

[gevor]

Folks,

I recently had an email exchange with the British hardware startup StarLabs (https://starlabs.systems/) about the possibility of the classical 7-row keyboard mod with the IBM style touchpad. While they are somewhat skeptical about the market prospects of this option, they are open to the possibility to launch such a project if it is crowdfunded.

So we might have a unique chance to get a cool modern laptop with some of the ThinkPad features (well, 2 out of 3 most important for me) at a reasonable cost.
Shall we try?

Pros the way I see it:
- They have a proven track record of actually delivering the laptops
- Their newest laptops are between ok (14" StarBook mk V) and fantastic (16" StarFighter, the newer one) in terms of specs. Actually if you look at the evolution of their StarBook designs, it is getting better and better and the next generation (VI in progress at the moment) might be pretty cool - look at the 16" 1.4Kg 4k StarFigher!
- They are committed to open source at the BIOS (they give an option of AMI and coreboot) and EC level; no x2100 style issues with patching the EC controller
- You can officially buy it (e.g. if the company is paying or you want to put it as a business expense for the tax purposes). And you get warranty, support etc. (including commitment to the BIOS / EC support and updates).
- They are open! Look at the way they do the status updates: https://support.starlabs.systems/status . And the guys actually respond via email within 24 hours. So hopefully it won't be the TP25 style story with the poll and then, a couple of year later, a different product on the outdated platform.

Cons the way I see it:
- it is not the classical ThinkPad, so significant part of nostalgia will be gone. No ThinkVantage button, no ThinkPad logo unless you put on a sticker etc.
- we won't have an external battery (but you can easily buy spare batteries on the website and they are user-replaceable); no way you can get 16" 1.4Kg laptop with external battery
- no ThinkLight (but then again, the StarFighter has a magnetic clip on top, so it could be an option)

I would be happy to hear your thoughts on this. Are you interested yourself? How much extra would you pay for this mod (e.g. 100 - 300 - 500 USD on top of the cost of the laptop)? What would be the best way to attract the attention?

And in general, is it a good idea? I it feasible, or is it just a pipe dream?

[dr_st]

I think that for die-hard Thinkpad fans, the lack of a trackpoint would be a bigger deal-breaker than any of the cons you mentioned.

With that said, I think if someone, anyone, actually delivers a laptop with a classic 7-row layout, and it is successful, it increases the chances that Lenovo or one of the other big OEMs will consider bringing it back as well.

Nothing to lose, really.

[gevor]

I guess we can have TrackPoint as well. It should not be under a patent, I remember Dell laptops having one.

The question is how to raise enough interest (in the crowdfunding form) to make it happen. They won't do it on their own, so it's up to the community to finance the tooling for the first batch.

[600X]

This is wasted energy if you ask me. That laptop will not be successful. If you actually want a realistic option for a 7 row modern laptop, you should design a keyboard deck for the Framework 13/16 and distribute it through their marketplace.

[gevor]

I tried writing to the Framework team, but got a pretty standard cold "we are not interested at the moment, please visit our website" reply. Striking contrast to the one I got from StarLabs!

I agree, this is a much smaller and in a way more fragile startup. But why are you so skeptical about their laptop?

[dr_st]

I tried writing to the Framework team, but got a pretty standard cold "we are not interested at the moment, please visit our website" reply.

Funny, I got pretty much the same reply from Lenovo when I brought up the idea to them shortly after the 25th Anniversary Edition.

[Edward Mendelson]

This review suggests that StarLabs' keyboards won't satisfy any ThinkPad user. Scroll almost all the way down to the paragraphs about the typing experience. After reading this, I lost interest:

https://fossbytes.com/starbook-mk-v-fro ... bs-review/

[600X]

I tried writing to the Framework team, but got a pretty standard cold "we are not interested at the moment, please visit our website" reply. Striking contrast to the one I got from StarLabs!

I agree, this is a much smaller and in a way more fragile startup. But why are you so skeptical about their laptop?

https://github.com/FrameworkComputer

It's up to you to make the keyboard you want, not Framework. You can find all the info and schematics you need in the GitHub link.

I made no comment about their laptops, I was referencing the success of a hypothetical 7 row machine.

Those who are most into the typing experience often tend to prefer less rows/keys, at least in my experience. My current desktop keyboard is 5 rows. To the point of my previous poster, I'd rather have less keys and a better typing experience.