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I love the X220. Its input system is unparalleled, its storage (mSATA??) mega flexible, its case nigh unbreakable, its ports waiting to connect to almost anythi

I love the X220. Its input system is unparalleled, its storage (mSATA??) mega flexible, its case nigh unbreakable, its ports waiting to connect to almost anything, its parts all replaceable. I even have the SK-8855 so I can use the (exact) same keyboard when at a monitor and keep all my muscle memory. In the ways you physically interact with a machine, the X220 gets it all right, and there's something ineffably cool about a machine that's indeed so physical. That said, its display tech is bordering on too old. 1366x768 is too small for most people to reasonably work on. In true X220 style you can upgrade this, and although you give up a DisplayPort on the dock, most people won't care about that. The other problem is external resolutions are limited to 2560x1600, which isn't 4k. Finally, a lot of software has gotten too heavy for its CPU. You can run things like VSCode, Slack, Google Meet, etc. on it, but it's not wonderful. I have a basic belief that if an app is slow on the X220 it's too slow in general, but developers of workplace collaboration apps and almost all websites disagree. One of my "when I get rich" projects is to design/print a board to put a Raspberry Pi 5 CM in an X220 shell and sell it along with display upgrade kits. I think I've had actual dreams about this.

LeFantome 1y ago
It flat out amazes me that there are not replacement motherboards or Pi upgrade kits for older Thinkpads and MacBooks. They have a huge following and many amazing features as you say. The MacBook screens, trackpads, keyboards, and speakers are still top shelf. I have a couple of old MacBooks (and a Thinkpad) that I would upgrade for sure. A Snapdragon X Elite would be great. The thing about a Pi 5 though is that it is really not any faster than the X220 natively.
- boogsbyte 1y ago
  That's not true. There have been modded ThinkPads with modern motherboards for many years now. https://www.tpart.net/product-category/all-products/ https://www.tpart.net/product-category/all-products/
  - justaj 1y ago
    But only on the original can you install Libreboot (currently, at least)
  - camgunz 1y ago
    Fair but they're very small batch.
- camgunz 1y ago
  I had an X62 (upgraded motherboard in an x60 shell from 51nb) and my brother had whatever the upgraded X220 was, but they were a little flaky. Super cool though. AIUI the thermal design is the blocker with modern chipsets. Usually it's really carefully tuned along with software to dial in the right performance/battery life/longevity/safety metrics, and that's a different skillset than EE'ing a new board. > The thing about a Pi 5 though is that it is really not any faster than the X220 natively. It's generally faster [0] but I mean, it's the Raspberry Pi experience. Battery life would be much better, though. I understand people wanting a "modern" X220, but a big benefit for me is that I can't write junk slow software on it, so something circumspect like an SBC is ideal for me. Plus I love the idea of slapping a new CM in there and everything getting better. > speakers are still top shelf I'll confess to apostasy: I bought a 14" M1 Max at the end of 2021. Although it's quite different than the X220 it's a great machine in its own right, and one of the ways it's objectively better is its speaker system. It's bananas how good it sounds. It's a computer I hate to love, but I agree the Apple Silicon laptops are probably all time great laptops. I"m tempted to say they're maybe even on par w/ the X/T series 2005-2012, but they're essentially not user serviceable, and in particular I'm skeptical the keyboards and storage hold up over time, so we'll see what the used market looks like in a few years. [0]: https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/12009065?baseline=8981415 https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/12009065?baseli...

LeFantome 1y ago

It flat out amazes me that there are not replacement motherboards or Pi upgrade kits for older Thinkpads and MacBooks. They have a huge following and many amazing features as you say. The MacBook screens, trackpads, keyboards, and speakers are still top shelf. I have a couple of old MacBooks (and a Thinkpad) that I would upgrade for sure. A Snapdragon X Elite would be great. The thing about a Pi 5 though is that it is really not any faster than the X220 natively.

boogsbyte 1y ago
That's not true. There have been modded ThinkPads with modern motherboards for many years now. https://www.tpart.net/product-category/all-products/ https://www.tpart.net/product-category/all-products/
- justaj 1y ago
  But only on the original can you install Libreboot (currently, at least)
- camgunz 1y ago
  Fair but they're very small batch.
camgunz 1y ago
I had an X62 (upgraded motherboard in an x60 shell from 51nb) and my brother had whatever the upgraded X220 was, but they were a little flaky. Super cool though. AIUI the thermal design is the blocker with modern chipsets. Usually it's really carefully tuned along with software to dial in the right performance/battery life/longevity/safety metrics, and that's a different skillset than EE'ing a new board. > The thing about a Pi 5 though is that it is really not any faster than the X220 natively. It's generally faster [0] but I mean, it's the Raspberry Pi experience. Battery life would be much better, though. I understand people wanting a "modern" X220, but a big benefit for me is that I can't write junk slow software on it, so something circumspect like an SBC is ideal for me. Plus I love the idea of slapping a new CM in there and everything getting better. > speakers are still top shelf I'll confess to apostasy: I bought a 14" M1 Max at the end of 2021. Although it's quite different than the X220 it's a great machine in its own right, and one of the ways it's objectively better is its speaker system. It's bananas how good it sounds. It's a computer I hate to love, but I agree the Apple Silicon laptops are probably all time great laptops. I"m tempted to say they're maybe even on par w/ the X/T series 2005-2012, but they're essentially not user serviceable, and in particular I'm skeptical the keyboards and storage hold up over time, so we'll see what the used market looks like in a few years. [0]: https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/12009065?baseline=8981415 https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/compare/12009065?baseli...