The old keyboard wasn't merely "quite nice". Apart from the short travel (which was still quite long by notebook standards and rather easy to get used to), it had a feel very like a good full-sized desktop keyboard. No, it wasn't a Model M or anything, but it was head and shoulders above most of the crop. I used the old USB Thinkpad external keyboard with my desktop as well as my laptop (when it was on the docking station). Unfortunately, it's been discontinued as well.