Lenovo ThinkPad W550s Pro Reviews

Prioritizing portability over processing power, the Lenovo ThinkPad W550s is a mobile workstation that delivers plenty of mobility, but falls behind the competition under more strenuous workloads.

There are two saving graces here. One is that the W550s is still a fast system; it's just not as furious as the model it's replacing. And second, battery life is insanely good. That poses the question, which do you care about more—computing performance or battery life? If it's the latter, this is the mobile workstation you've been waiting for. Otherwise, a "Haswell" will still serve you well.

The Lenovo W550s is a laptop for those who need the raw power of a workstation, but need it in a form factor that won't be an undue burden when on-the-go. In many ways it is similar to the W540 workstation we previously reviewed, but certainly thinner and lighter with a noticeable boost in the feel of the construction quality.That's not to say the W540 isn't a durable machine, only that the W550s, when held in one's hands, feels more robust. The performance is spot-on for those with demanding needs, as well, and the battery life eclipses what you'd get from many competing workstation laptops. As such, if you need the level of power offered by the W550s, you can't go wrong with it. Prices start at $1,133.10.

With understated aesthetics and a durable design, there is much to love about the ThinkPad W550s, if you can afford it. Long battery life and a large, high resolution display keeps you productive longer while you're mobile. Plus, the docking port allows users to take the ThinkPad W550s back to their desks to use as a desktop replacement, given its strong performance. All said, this mobile workstation is met with some tough competition, especially when it comes to price per part. So, the real question is: are you ready to be $3,000 (£2,020, AU$3,845) poorer for the ThinkPad pedigree? Unless your world revolves heavy video editing or graphics manipulation, sacrificing a little bit of performance to achieve over 10 hours of real-world battery life with workstation-class performance is well worth it if you can do more.