I7 3520m is a 2012 ivy bridge CPU.

Not surprised at all they chose this hardware.

ThinkPad X230 (in my limited and skewed opinion) is still the second best laptop ever made (for purposes like mine), behind only its predecessor, the X220 which has (what I and many others consider) the best laptop keyboard ever made.

It’s easy to find one with an i5 that’s perfectly adequate for most ordinary business tasks. Pretty good screen, ports, battery life. Upgradable, sturdy, repairable. Highly unlikely to be stolen. $150 in like new condition.

I’ve bought them for all my non-tech friends and family who I support, all are happy. Please buy these and keep the market for parts alive.

pixelface

if you're not already aware, swapping the X220 keyboard (and palmrest) onto an X230 is a fairly straightforward swap. That modification plus the FHD mod and accompanying 1920x1080 IPS make the X230 a very nice daily driver.

Kaibeezy

Peripherally aware, as I’m tech-adjacent. I will have a closer look. Thanks for the nudge. Is there a definitive source for how-to?

bubblethink

Unless you strongly prefer the smaller form factor, I would suggest T530 (the intel igpu version, not the nvidia one) instead of x230. T530 supports FHD natively. The keyboard mod principles are the same for all laptops from that year. Keyboard mod resource: https://github.com/hamishcoleman/thinkpad-ec

x230 FHD resource: https://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=122640