Isn't USB-C designed to wear out the cable (or dongle) and not the port?
So if you used a Yubikey to log in and out ten times a day, you might need to replace it every three years. Of course you'll make the same amount of connections if you require it only for login, assuming you don't leave it connected.
Lets see. Say you work 5 days a week. That's about 260 days a year (without vacations etc). Say you unlock your device 4 times a day when you work. That is 1040 times a year. Does your device even last 9-10 years? Well, if it is a MacBook, Apple ditched support for all <= 2012 MBPs. Not sure when they did, but this was true at start of last year for sure.
I would definitely unlock my device more than four times a day. Often times my periods of focus last 30 minutes. Half the time that’s a task switch, the other half I get up to walk. This doesn’t account for meetings interrupting me.
Try to get the screen or battery replaced. To be fair, they're easier user serviceable than newer MB(A/P)s. For example, me with my MBP 2015 will have a harder time to service it once it gets EOL (hardware-wise) than you have now with your MBA 2012.
I've replaced the battery twice, last time in september 2019, and this last time it costed me 60 EUR, and the battery life is much better than the original one.
I might want to replace the battery again in the next 3-4 years if I still have this laptop, and you might be right in that this might not be possible, but at least today it is.
Well is it really trying to get around SEC limitations?
The only reason that I bring up ICO is because there is a massive amount of wealth being hoarded in ETH that can be used to generate returns for the owners.