T470P (specs) is a 7th gen CPU, P51 has an 8th gen CPU (specs). Both have 4 cores. P52 is an 8th gen or a different one with 6 cores (specs). However, I only saw one or two reports for the P52 a few years ago, and they’ve both had trouble. I’m concerned that the graphics card could cause problems too, but I can try finding one with integrated graphics. I would like a laptop with at least 4 cores.
I prefer to go with Thinkpads because I like their keyboards, they have generally reliable Linux support, earlier versions tend to be easily repairable, and they let me change the battery charging thresholds by changing values in /sys/power somewhere. But I’m open to other brands.
I’m excluding the T480 because mine stopped charging a while after I updated away from the thunderbolt firmware that degraded the USB-C port. I guess it got too much damage before I bought it used. I’m only considering the T470P because it has a USB-A charging port (slim tip adapter). 9th gen and up are out of my budget. I’m only going to buy a used computer.
Has anyone used the P52? Do you have suggestions on other computers?
Use case: I want to be able to use more disposable VMs without too much lag, which my T480 i7-8550U and 24 GB RAM kind of struggled with. And I plan to use this one computer for at least the next 5 years. But 5 years later I’ll probably be able to get a much better computer, so I’m not sure if the small jump from 4 to 6 cores is worth it.