this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2024
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Framework 2880 x 1920 (new) display review (lemmy.world)
submitted 3 months ago by pnutzh4x0r@lemmy.ndlug.org to c/framework@lemmy.ml
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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/18838538

Wuuttup. I'm here complaining again about Framework's Linux unfriendly display. The new one this time.

https://frame.work/products/display-kit?v=FRANJF0001

Old display, 2256 x 1504 (3:2)

GNOME

100% scale

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Everything is tiny
  • Unusable

100% scale + large text accessibility

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Most apps scale appropriately
  • Some apps don’t respect GNOME’s large text setting (Alacritty)

125% scale

  • Most apps look blurry (Picard, Firefox, Spotify, Alacritty)

200% scale

  • Everything is way too big
  • Unusable

Plasma

100% scale

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Everything is tiny
  • Unusable

125% scale + Apply scaling themselves

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Most apps scale appropriate
  • Some apps can’t scale themselves and look tiny (Picard)

125% scale + Scaled by system

  • Most apps look blurry (Picard, Firefox, Spotify, Alacritty)

200% scale

  • Everything is way too big
  • Unusable

New display, 2880 x 1920 (3:2)

GNOME

100% scale

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Everything is tiny
  • Unusable

100% scale + large text accessibility

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Most apps scale appropriately
  • Some apps don’t respect GNOME’s large text setting (Alacritty)
  • Everything is tiny

150% scale

  • Most apps look blurry (Picard, Firefox, Spotify, Alacritty)

200% scale

  • Everything is way too big
  • Unusable

Plasma

100% scale

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Everything is tiny
  • Unusable

150% scale + Apply scaling themselves

  • Nothing looks blurry
  • Some apps can’t scale themselves, but look a little better here? (Picard)

150% scale + Scaled by system

  • Most apps look blurry (Picard, Firefox, Spotify, Alacritty)

200% scale

  • Everything is way too big
  • Unusable

tl;dr

In the old display, GNOME at 100% + large text was the best compromise. In the new display, Plasma at 150% + Apply scaling themselves is the best compromise.

Interestingly, Picard scaling itself looks super tiny in the old display, but in the new display it looks... better. It's still not correctly scaled like native Wayland apps, but it's better.

Warning

If you can't stomach moving from GNOME to Plasma, then 🚨 DO NOT BUY THE NEW DISPLAY 🚨. The new display is worse for GNOME.

Once again

I am once again begging Framework to just give us a damn regular DPI display that works! Without workarounds. Without forcing users on specific DEs. Without forcing users to stop using their favorite apps. This new display has basically all of the flaws as the previous one.

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[–] Mihies@programming.dev 35 points 3 months ago (1 children)

This should be rather fixed on OS/software level, shouldn't it? Otherwise no better resolution screen works like ever. That said, I get it, Linux is complicated, but solution to forever use low resolution screens doesn't feel right. 🤷‍♂️

[–] pmk@lemmy.sdf.org 6 points 3 months ago

The solution is one of the following: Wait for someone else to fix it. Pay someone to fix it. Fix it yourself.

[–] MossyFeathers@pawb.social 28 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I don't understand. If an OS or piece of software can't handle scaling on certain resolutions or aspect ratios, then that's unironically the software's problem, not the hardware. Insisting that hardware follows software would eventually lead to a total stagnation in technology. If the hardware doesn't exist then the software can't exist either.

Am I misunderstanding the issue? Like, what is this display doing differently other than the aspect ratio?

[–] Guenther_Amanita@slrpnk.net 9 points 3 months ago

Yeah, I agree. That's why I switched from Gnome to KDE a while ago.

I really like Gnome, but then just came the time I had enough. The whole "Then don't buy xy monitor" just drove me mad. Before Plasma 6, Gnome just felt more premium. But even then, fractional scaling just worked on KDE, while on Gnome, I had to apply bandaid solutions all the time and still couldn't read anything because it was either too small, too big or completely blurry.

Now, I prefer KDE, and would recommend it over Gnome if someone asked me.
Gnome just feels backwards in so many aspects, e.g. VRR, HDR, etc.
Sure, some things on KDE get half-assed from time to time, but at least the devs show some interest in at least trying to takle some issues.

[–] Darohan@lemmy.zip 20 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Not to be all "it works on my machine" but like,, it does. I've never seen or heard of any of these issues on a framework on Linux - using Plasma in NixOS in my case, and frequently using Picard, Spotify, and Firefox. Given they have official support for both Ubuntu and Fedora (Big Gnome moment), and have done in-house testing on both distros, as well as having Arch(?) and NixOS users on the engineering team, I think you might be looking at a problem in your own config rather than something innate to Framework?

[–] zurohki@aussie.zone 10 points 3 months ago

using Plasma

Plasma and "apps apply scaling themselves" works perfectly for everything except non-DPI aware apps. If you don't use any of those, it all just works.

Ideally all DPI aware apps would apply scaling themselves and non-DPI aware apps would be scaled by the system, but this is complicated to actually do. All apps run in the same xwayland environment at the same DPI under Plasma, so you have to set scaling for the whole environment.

[–] PlexSheep@infosec.pub 1 points 3 months ago

Ive had weird scaling with plasma on various distros with 1.5 global scaling. Currently on gnome pop!_os and it either works or I've learned to ignore it.

I remember steam was a bad one.

[–] toddestan@lemm.ee 9 points 3 months ago

I also don't want to be the "it works on my machine" either - but I've had a 13" Framework for over 2 years now, been using XFCE on it the entire time with little drama. Granted, I haven't tried Gnome or KDE, but my experience is that Linux with XFCE is fine on the 13" Framework and I think the screen looks great*. I can't imagine Gnome or KDE are going to be that different.

*Well, other than the screen being glossy. Framework now offers a matte replacement, though I haven't cared enough to buy that and swap it out yet.

[–] nichtburningturtle@feddit.org 4 points 3 months ago

The only blurryness I had with 1.5 scaling was with XWayland apps, but that was fixable. Note, that I'm on hyprland/qtile.

[–] muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 2 points 3 months ago

I'm not really having an problems its small but i like it small and its not blurry at all. I use qubes btw

[–] bund@sh.itjust.works 2 points 3 months ago

175% on fedora silver blue works perfectly