the prices you’re quoting are absolutely insane, T14 Gen1 AMD should be around the $/€200 mark, that’s old tech (those are actually 3000-series Ryzens), you’re entering battery replacement territory with that age - and those things are expensive.
yeah, i was expecting people would lose it over that price. 200 euro is the price of a T450 here btw. for some reason, it seems they’re DOUBLE the price in Greece, with 5000/6000-series (gen 2) T14s costing about 700 euros. It’s insane, but it’s my only shot.
durability - well, as you’ve learned first hand, that’s an easily breakable/losable/stealable device, all the milspec bullshit notwithstanding. babying the thing obsessively is a losing proposition. what you should do is make this device as fungible as possible, i.e. set up a good backup/restore system so when (not if) something does happen, you’re up and running in no time.
well the primary issue isn’t the data, it’s the hardware itself being replaced. i could keep the t450 around for that, i guess?
fixing the things in any semi-normal market is a non-issue, as they’re easily opened and the parts are standard and plentiful. I’ve sourced and replaced screens on a T420s, T480s, T14 AMD Gen1; you get them either from local junkers or from aliexpress.
no shit, i had the t450’s screen repaired same day. the problem is the repairs cost (the 1080p panel was about 80 euros), that’s why i want to cut down on repairs.
as to your spec that it needs to be a store - maybe rethink that. I haven’t been to greece in a decade, but I remember the then burgeoning alt-market of phones and similiar stuff, being resold, decoded en masse, repaired, etc., I doubt it’s that much different nowadays.
eh, last i dealt with a device i bought online customer support was total dogshit (skroutz.gr iirc) and they kept sending RMA pickup guys despite me telling them I don’t have the box. they literally don’t have any humans to talk to about any problem you might face.
A T480 is about 500 euros, just as much as a T14, but with a worse CPU.