I think a 14" Dell Latitude will win (from another store), with about the same performance as the above mentioned ThinkPad's.
I mean Vostro, 15.6"...
Screen: 15.6" WXGA HD-LED AntiGlare (matte) 1366x768 pixel
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5-3210M Processor (3M Cache, up to 3.10 GHz)
Chipset: Intel® Mobile HM75 Express
RAM: 8 GB DDR3/1600 MHz (upgraded from 4 GB)
HDD: 500GB 5400RPM SATA
Graphic card: Intel® GMA HD 4000
Optical drive: 8x DVD+-RW DL drive
OS: Windows 8
(I hope it won't be that crappy)
LAN: Gigabit LAN
WLAN: Dell Wireless 1703 (802.11b/g/n+ Bluetooth v4.0)
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 4.0
Audio: HD Audio
VGA port: yes
HDMI port: yes
Webcam: 1.0 MP HD
Card reader: 3in1 Card reader
USB port: 3db USB 2.0
Battery: 4400 mAh (Lithium-ion)
Weight: 2.36 kg
Size: 376 x 260 x 31.5-34.5 mm
Warranty: 36 months (+ 15 days pixel warranty)
http://www.notebook.hu/notebook/gyarto-szerint/dell-notebook/vostro-sorozat/dell-vostro-2520-150593.html
The good old (naaah... only old) Vostro is almost dead. I'm hunting again.
Since I don't use it for video editing or playing new games (maybe only the online GEOFS flight simulator), video card is not an issue. Even an integrated Intel UHD is fine.
Requirements: 15.6" matte (preferably) IPS screen, no aggressive PWM, Intel i5/i7 (8/9/10th generation) or AMD Ryzen 5/7 CPU, 8 GB DDR4 RAM (with the possibility of adding 4-8 GB later), 256 or 512 GB SSD. Battery life is not an issue either. Unfortunately numpad cannot be avoided in this size class.
Candidates:
Dell Vostro 5590:
https://www.notebook.hu/dell-vostro-15-5590-n5104vn5590emea01-2005-hom-275078 +: it's a Dell, not a Chinese sh*t to the core (although the manufacturing site of Dell is in China, too); upgradable RAM (up to 24 GB); only high-frequency PWM; quite positive verdict by laptopmedia; 3 years warranty
-: integrated GPU, even this basic model is expensive
Lenovo IdeaPad S540:
https://www.laptop.hu/lenovo-s540-15iwl-81ne0041hv-blue-w10-o365+: dedicated NVidia GPU, 1 TB HDD
-: Chinese sh*t to the core; only 128 GB SSD, max. 12 GB RAM; PWM might be a problem (depending on the screen type, notebookcheck and laptopmedia published controversial measurements); annoying high-frequency fans; only 2 years warranty
Asus VivoBook S530:
https://www.notebook.hu/asus-vivobook-s15-s530fn-bq435t+: dedicated NVidia GPU, no PWM, upgradability
-: strange keyboard, available colors are ugly (designed for women?

), loud fans, only 2 years warranty