Just for fun (and yet another BSD for normal people test), I'm running a OpenBSD current system on my X220 with a GNOME setup and omfg everything is neatly setup and integrates really nicely.
* Documentation on /usr/share/local/doc/pkg-readme/gnome is clear.
* sysutils/toad makes mounting/unmounting removable drives painless and easy.
* Everything just works (auto logins, shutdown/restarts, multimedia keys, etc).
It's totally a seamless experience.
Props to @ajacoutot.