Is K2100M with the upgrade from K1100M for running Photoshop and AI

I'm in the process of customize the W540, but I'm not sure which upgrade is worth the money. I'm going to using the laptop for Cad program, Photoshop, AI and some video editing.

Here are the options and price:

Processor:
i7-4700MQ standards.
i7-4800MQ for $140.
i7-4900MQ for $380.

Graphics:
K1100M standards.
K2100M for $250.

Hard drive:
500GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm standards
500 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm TCG Opal Capable for free
SSHD 500GB5400 8GB Cache for $20
1TB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm for $60
128 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA3 for $170
180GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA3 Opal for $270
256GB Solid State Drive Serial ATA3 for $320

Storage Subsystem:
Primary SATA RAID 0 for free
Primary SATA RAID 1 for free

Micro Hard Drive:
16GB M.2 Solid State Drive Double for $40

Please advise.

Thanks in advance.

 

The standard processor is well enough for the graphics. The upgrade to the K2100M could be worth it, considering the use. It's an upgrade that takes you from a Class 2 card to the bottom end of Class 1 cards. But it's not like the 2100M is eons better than the 1100M, so it's up to you to decide if it's worth 250$ to you.

Storage subsystem options will only be applicable if you choose 2 drives of the same size and type. Raid 0 is fast but ultimately risky to loose your data. Raid 1 will configure each hard drive to be the mirror of the other, so that if one fails the other drive will automatically take over, with no loss of data.

16GB solid state cache option is not worth it. Either go with a 7200RPM hard drive for a cost vs space approach, or with a full blown SSD if you want everything to be snappier, but do mind that capacity costs much more money there. Best usually is to have a 120GB SSD for the OS and programs, coupled with 1TB HDD for storage and "buffer" purpose.

 

Focusing on the 'video editing and PS' requirements:

I would be looking for the most CPU + RAM you can buy within your budget (32GB RAM is not overkill here...) and skip the storage subsystem offerings (including RAID) and put in my own SSD's aftermarket (minimum 480/512GB models...). Depending on how soon and how long you project the ownership period to be, I might even consider waiting for the newer Broadwell platforms to become available too.

For example: the extra $380 over 5 years (and estimated ~15% raw speed increase) for the cpu's you list now are easily a generation bump increase and you can have that power now (comparing the i7 4900MQ over the i7 4700MQ) and for the next five years for a mere $76 per year more (easily worth it for the daily increase in productivity you will have of each day of ownership). If a Broadwell platform is considered, not only will you have the extra performance and more for the same money, but the system should run much cooler too (for very close to the same $$$$ in total cost).

For CAD work, the K2100M may be worth it if you use (or will use, over the notebook's lifecycle) any advanced features that leverage the GPU's prowess to the program(s) you'll be running.


Overview:

Buy the most computer you can afford (afford = within your budget) and the most computer is always the latest platform with the highest performing CPU matched to the most (and fastest) RAM you can pair it with. CPU+RAM = Work done (productivity).

The storage subsystem, the gpu and the RAID options will only benefit a very specific workflow and even then may not be worth the cost/risk vs. real world benefits and the stability of the system long term (RAID...).


With a late Q4 2014 availability for Broadwell anticipated, that may not seem worth waiting for, but with up to 30% lower power requirements for the same performance it may be worthwhile if you'll be using your workstation on location vs. a fixed location at your home or office.


Whether you chose a Haswell or a Broadwell platform; buying a couple of high capacity/high performance aftermarket SSD's (with the M.2 slot earmarked for the O/S + Programs, when they become readily available) would finish off this system nicely.

The SanDisk Extreme Pro (2x 1TB) and the Samsung 850 Pro (again; 2x 1TB capacity) would be the two drives I would be eager to try in this scenario.


See:
Intel Broadwell release date & specs | IT PRO

For the base system: I would get the smallest/cheapest HDD's you can get from the manufacturer (500GB 7200RPM for C: Drive and the 1TB 5400RPM HDD for D: drive) to ensure that the wires and connectors come with the system (it can be a nightmare to order the small parts afterwards) along with the base memory setup that is offered. The cost of upgrading the RAM and moving to SSD's by yourself is far cheaper than what the manufacturer offers. Eg. $320 for 256GB SSD compares very, very poorly to ~$240 for a 480GB SanDisk Extreme II that you can currently get. And for a new system being built today, I would not recommend such a small capacity anymore (don't forget the OP'ing of the SSD's... for your workflow I would be looking at my recommended 30%, which, for a 1TB model is roughly 650GB of actual/usable capacity after formatting. Partitioned to 150GB for C:\ Drive for Win8.1x64 Pro + Programs and 500GB for Data and/or scratchdisk usage.


Hope some of the above helps.

Good luck.

 

If there's any question, I would always advise purchasing the most powerful graphics offered for the system. While storage, memory, and even processors can be upgraded, you can never upgrade graphics in most notebooks.

When choosing processor, I would be balancing performance and value and purchasing the best processor that's not overpriced. Intel tends to charge an exorbitant premium for their top one or two processors that far outscales their performance benefits. A general rule of thumb is that an improvement of 20% or more is generally noticeable, while a smaller percentage improvement is not necessarily going to be noticeable. I'd compare the percentage improvement in processors against their cost and your needs to figure out what's best.

As tiller said, storage can be upgraded after purchase without voiding warranty, and so can memory. As companies overprice these components in configurations, order the system with default storage and memory and upgrade them both yourself when you get the system. I'd second tiller's SSD recommendations, as the Sandisk Extreme Pro and Samsung 850 Pro are the best performing consumer SSDs currently available for your system. And purchasing the maximum amount of memory is a good idea as well, in my opinion; especially if you plan to have the system for a while. With DDR4 coming out soon, DDR3 is going to be more expensive if you wait. Best get it now so you have it when you need it.