High-resolution screen with Windows 8 scaling

[TTY]

Hello,

Hi, Can anyone comment on what the W540 looks like with the very-high-resolution screen, when Windows 8 UI scaling is used to make things look larger.

you can test Windows' ability to scale on probably most contemporary computers. Just set the DPI to a significantly higher value than you use now and re-boot. Then check all the programs that you are going to use. If font sizes are increased, then you know that scaling works with that program. I just checked whether Vista would scale a couple of programs. Adobe Reader and Mozilla Thunderbird scale well. Menus in the current Opera version wouldn't scale, but Opera has released a preview of a future version. The preview is called Opera Developer, and it seems to scale well.
http://blogs.opera.com/desktop/
I suppose it might take one or two months until Opera ver. 24 will be released as a stable version.

Where does one get the opportunity to put his hands on a W-series Lenovo?

If i would want to take a look at a Lenovo notebook before deciding what to buy, i would ask Lenovo business partners in the vicinity whether they have the model i'm considering. You can find Lenovo business partners by clicking "Where to buy" near the bottom of Lenovo's homepage. At the page that then loads, click "Find your nearest Lenovo reseller". I tried finding Lenovo resellers in or near Omaha, but the web page threw an error. I then tried by entering North Omaha, Nebraska and South Omaha, Nebraska respectively, instead of just Omaha, Nebraska, and that worked. For some reason, the web page can't handle the location Omaha, Nebraska.

And I'm nervous about the button-less trackpad/pointer.

I tried a ThinkPad that didn't have physical touchpad buttons for a few days more than a year ago. It was an X230, which does have physical TrackPoint buttons. I had big problems because of the missing touchpad buttons. If i would have been able to try the notebook for a longer period of time, i might have found an acceptable usage mode. They might have improved the UltraNav driver in the meantime, too. I can imagine that it might be easier to use the touchpad with two hands instead of with merely one hand.

And I desperately need USB 3.0

You can get USB 3.0 with an ExpressCard on your T60. It will most probably not give you the full USB 3.0 SuperSpeed, but it should be significantly faster than your current USB 2.0 Hi-Speed.