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Chris Cochrun 2022-01-03 12:41:35 -06:00
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<p>Over the years I've been a consistent[<a href="https://technomancy.us#fn1">1</a>] user of
Thinkpads; early on because I liked the keyboards, but then later
just because I wanted hardware that would last a long time rather
than a machine with a soldered-in battery that's designed to be more
disposable.</p>
<img alt="thinkpad x301" class="right" src="https://technomancy.us/i/x301.jpg" />
<p>My most recent device was a Thinkpad X301 built in 2008 which I
started using in 2016. While it's no speed demon, using Firefox with
<a href="https://ublockorigin.com">uBlock Origin</a> configured to
block 3rd-party scripts by default left it feeling quite usable for
my purposes, and the physical design of the device was perfect. They
used a rubberized coating for the chassis in the X301 that
I haven't seen in any other model that feels really nice on the palm
rest. Unfortunately while nearly every component of that machine has
withstood the test of time, the battery has not. The original
battery's charge is down to around 90 minutes, and while it's
swappable, working new batteries in this form factor simply cannot
be purchased for any amount of money. I bought from two separate
vendors claiming to have original batteries, but both of them sold
me a battery which ballooned up and became unusable after a month or
two.</p>
<p>When I started to look for replacements I was dismayed. So many of
the newer models had fallen into the Appleization
trap—everything must be made as thin and as glossy as possible
at the expense of every other concern. I don't want a thin laptop! I
want a laptop where I can look at it and see what's
displayed on the screen instead of my own face staring back at me. It
seemed it was still possible to find a model with a replaceable
battery, but even this basic feature was becoming increasingly rare.</p>
<img alt="mnt reform in a hammock" src="https://technomancy.us/i/recursion.jpg" />
<p>A couple years ago I became aware of
the <a href="https://crowdsupply.com/mnt/reform">MNT Reform
laptop</a>, and it seems like the perfect antidote to the mistakes
the entire industry seems dead-set on repeating. It's a laptop
that's focused on open design with schematics freely available and
all parts easily serviceable by the end user. Finding this was like
a breath of fresh air; it's like someone was finally listening to
my frustrations.</p>
<img align="left" alt="an Apple ][ computer with its case open" src="https://technomancy.us/i/appleii.jpg" />
<p>The MNT Reform has
been <a href="https://www.inputmag.com/reviews/mnt-reform-review-your-diy-laptop-fantasy-is-here-at-last">described</a>
as "the anti-macbook" which I think is fitting, but ironically I
prefer to think of it as the Apple ][ of laptops (in a good way). If
you're like me and you're fed up with thin laptops, you will be
pleased to see that this machine is <em>chonky</em>. It has to be in
order to have room for its three most unique features: a mechanical
keyboard, a trackball, and a standardized 18650-cell
battery bay. Originally the batteries were what caught my attention
after all the trouble I'd had buying replacements for my Thinkpad, but
when I saw the mechanical keyboard I knew I had to have one. (But
also: can we talk for a second about the <em>audacity</em> of
producing a laptop with a trackball? Much respect.)</p>
<p>Part of having an open design is having everything
documented. While you can get the schematics for everything from the
motherboard PCB to the 3D printed trackball buttons, the part that
nearly everyone will benefit from is the
excellent <a href="https://mntre.com/reform2/handbook/index.html">Operator
Handbook</a> which describes the usage of the system in detail.</p>
<img alt="bottom view of reform with components and PCB visible" class="right" src="https://technomancy.us/i/reform-clear.jpg" />
<p>Other than the thick size, perhaps the most eye-catching feature of
the Reform is its transparent bottom plate, which is laser cut from
acrylic. Similar to the open lid of the Apple ][, it invites you to
take a look inside and reminds you that this machine isn't magic:
it's wires and capacitors and screws and connectors. It's physical
parts you can understand and control.</p>
<p>This machine isn't perfect though; there are trade-offs. The four
ARM Cortex A53 cores in the CPU do not perform any out-of-order or
speculative execution, which means they are not vulnerable to
attacks like <a href="https://technomancy.us">Spectre</a> and Meltdown, but at the cost of
speed. (I'm using it mostly for chat, email, and developing
the <a href="https://fennel-lang.org">Fennel compiler</a>, and it's
plenty fast for that.) The lid closes with a satisfying magnetic
snap, but it doesn't have a lid sensor, so you'll have to turn off
the screen yourself. The stock wifi antenna's range is quite
limited. (But you can easily replace it!) Suspend is
currently <a href="https://source.mnt.re/reform/reform/-/issues/8">not
super reliable</a>, but there are ongoing efforts to improve
that.</p>
<img alt="reform kb" class="right" src="https://technomancy.us/i/reform-kb.jpg" />
<p>The keyboard is ... well, it's head-and-shoulders above any other laptop
keyboard I've tried. Instead of a comically huge space bar, the
bottom row is broken up into a reasonably-sized space bar plus
several other useful keys. But it's still frustrating in a few ways. (Note
that I'm a major keyboard nerd who has spent a lot of time getting my
keyboard setup <a href="https://atreus.technomancy.us">just
right</a> and I am far more picky about this kind of thing than most
people!) While you can reprogram the keybord firmware to
reassign keys with ease, the physical layout is very awkward. It has
a conventional row-stagger which is not great but also not
unusual. The problem is that in most row-staggered boards each
row is offset from the one above it by 1.25 key widths or so, and on
the Reform it's 1.5. Even 1.25 is too much (zero would be ideal),
but 1.5 makes it so you have to contort your hand even more to hit
keys on the "ZXCV" row.</p>
<p>Of course, it's a hackable laptop! Reprogramming the firmware to
rearrange the keys can't fix problems with the physical arrangement,
but I've built hundreds of keyboards by hand, so I planned to do design and
construct one from scratch for my Reform when I got it. Unfortunately it's a little more complicated than I anticipated;
the stock keyboard is integrated with the system controller which is
involved with powering on the entire system and controls the OLED
display containing the battery indicator, etc. I couldn't just adapt
my existing design for a new form factor.</p>
<img align="left" alt="ortholinear kb mock-up in a reform" src="https://technomancy.us/i/olkb.jpg" />
<p>Luckily the folks at OLKB
announced they were
developing <a href="https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/06/ortholinear_keyboard_laptop/">a
kit for an improved keyboard</a> with no row-staggering. I'd prefer
an ergonomic design, but this is still a big improvement over the
stock board, which is itself light years beyond anything I've ever
used in a laptop before. I'm looking forward to building one out.</p>
<p>Overall I'm thrilled with this laptop. It's available both as a DIY set
which needs some assembly (just screwing things together and
plugging connectors; no soldering) and as a prebuilt laptop, but
honestly if you're anywhere near the target market for the Reform,
you're probably going to enjoy the assembly process and are best off
skipping the pre-assembled option. In the end the Reform is a
powerful antidote to the user-hostile trends which have prevailed in
computing over the past decade or so, and if you're anything like me
and you don't mind a little tinkering, I can't recommend it
enough. </p>
<hr />
<p>[<a name="fn1">1</a>] Starting with <a href="https://technomancy.us/74">a T60p in
2007</a> followed by an X61, then an X200s, and finally a
X301. I <a href="https://technomancy.us/160">took a brief detour</a> with a Samsung
ultrabook but the keyboard was so unpleasant that it didn't last
long before I sold it.</p>