[ltp] Upgrading from T520?

[Steven J. Owens]

Folks,

     I'm thinking of upgrading from my 2011 t520.  I'm inclined to
stick with the T series in general because I really, really like the
comfort of having a tougher build.  What do people think of current
models?  Should I stick with the t520?  Are there significant
improvements since 2011?

     Backstory:

     In 2011 I finally replaced my t43p running ubuntu with a t520.
There was some sort of sale/discount going on and I'd used my t43p
for 5+ years, so I decided to treat myself.  Here's the specs:

$1079.00	t520 with nvidia
$ 225.00  	Intel Core i7-2720QM Processor (2.20GHz, 6MB L3)
$   0.00	2 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)
$ -50.00 	windows home instead of pro
$ 250.00  	15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080)
$  40.00	500 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
$  20.00	smart card reader
$  20.00	fingerprint reader
$  30.00	camera (720p)
$  30.00	bluetooth (3.0)
$  50.00	9 cell Li-Ion Battery - 55++ 
    free     	Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000  instead of thinkpad b/g/n
$ 269.00	3Yr Priority Onsite + 3Yr ThinkPad Protection 
--------
$1923.00 total
$1599.00 with discount

     As you can see, I was foolish enough to buy one with Optimus, My
reasons made sense, running in discrete mode worked fine and I always
had the option of trying to get optimus working if I wanted to work on
CUDA (which was a serious possibility at the time I was shopping.

     However, I never did need CUDA, and recently Optimus has been a
huge pain in the rear as I've tried to get an external monitor
working.

     Recently I was looking at thinkpad prices because I'm buying one
for a friend who just graduated law school and passed the bar.  That
got me thinking about upgrading out of my Optimus hell...  

-- 
Steven J. Owens
puff@darksleep.com / (412) 401-8060 cell 
| "I'm going to make broad, sweeping generalizations and strong,
|  declarative statements, because otherwise I'll be here all night and
|  this document will be four times longer and much less fun to read.
|  Take it all with a grain of salt." 
|  - http://darksleep.com/notablog