Should I buy W541??

Hi, I'm going to buy a new laptop for college. I'm studying computer science (machine learning ) and statistics. I need a laptop to work with large datasets. Also, I want to do some stock simulations and automated trading in a regular basis. I'll connect the laptop to 2-3 external monitors.
Because I'm a student, mobility is also something I'm concerned about. Currently I'm consider buying a W541. Is this a good choice?
Reasons for considering W541:
1. Up to 32g RAM
2. Light weight comparing to other similar products.

I've also checked Asus G750 gaming laptop, which is on sale. I think GeForce might be a better choice because I don't think Quadro worth the extra $$ for my needs(I might be wrong, ).

In addition, could someone give me some advices on how to choose between 4710MQ and 4810MQ? Also, 3K vs 1080P, K1100M vs K2100M?

Thanks!

 

I've used the following recent 15" workstation-class machines --

Lenovo W540
HP ZBook 15
MSI WS60

Of those 3, the HP felt the most "solid", but I prefer the design language and dock of the W540, and it was cheaper. The MSI is thinner than the other two, but felt more flimsy.

I'd go for a W541 (or a W540 refurb to save some money, if you're fine with the touchpad situation). I'd avoid 17" models like the plague (such as the aforementioned G750) unless you really feel like there's a good trade-off there -- lugging anything > 15" to class can be a pain (I tried it once when I was in undergrad for CS), especially as studies and paperwork increase and desk space starts coming at a premium.

 

Thanks for your advice! I haven't thought about the desk space issue. Do you think a high performance GPU is needed for CS study? In this case, should go for a K2100M?

 

I use a T540p at work (same size as the W540/W541) and I don't think it's exactly the most portable thing. It -feels- plasticky and flimsy, especially compared to say, the T520/T530 series. The lid is particularly disappointing in how it doesn't really close well. It's quite large, note that it has a keyboard with a number pad, that gives an idea of just how big it is.

For the multiple monitors you'd need some custom solution. We use ThinkPad Ultra Docks at work and they only support two outputs plus the laptop, and even that is a little finicky. Matrox makes stuff for output to several monitors.

 

In addition to the quoted part that I fully agree with, let me just add a couple of observations:

1) The 3K IPS panel found on W540/T540p is nice indeed, however...you'll be at the mercy of the proper scaling - or lack thereof - for numerous third party applications. On the other hand, the FHD LCD - unlike the one found in previous T/W generations - is utter junk.

2) There are numerous reports of W540 throttling under not-so-heavy loads along with various BIOS bugs (which might or might not have been resolved by now for the W541) and in general seems to be the weakest link of the *40 series range. Personally, I'd pass.

My $0.02 only...

 

I'll anything made by Lenovo after 2012. They are all crap.

 

I doubt that any work\project in any high institution will need the power of the W540/W541 with Quad Core CPU & 32GB RAM. I struggle to utilize the power of my high end W520 in all my work projects in the 3.5 years I had it.

If I were you, I'll go for the new Lenovo W550s which will give you adequate power for your school project and additional battery life and less weight. With this, you don't need to carry around the heavy charger of the W series

 

Thanks for all the inputs! I think I'll pass this one and go check some laptops with better quality. I've read a post that someone has pointed out that the design of the cooling system of W540 is really bad.

 

For college notebooks, you don't need a quad core CPU. A light weight notebook would be more suitable for that purpose.
As for the cooling system designs, I don't think W540/W541 is bad in that aspect from reading the reviews on notebookcheck.net. Actually W540/W541 is probably too conservative in that aspects.