Thanks for the feedback about upgrades Doug, I guess most laptops are capable of upgrades these days.
Unfortunately, it seems like it's going to be a waiting game for me.
I've looked into the Gigabyte Aero 15W and although it looks like a great laptop with fantastic specs, there are multiple issues - the keyboard (not taking inputs or recording too many due to a hardware issue), weak hinges and overheating issues (because it's a thinner form factor). The keyboard problems were thought to be originally software-related but now it appears after a number of updates it's all down to the hardware.
The Zeph also appears to suffer from heating issues. When I heard Razer had released a cheaper version of their Blade 15 I thought "great! that'll solve it!" but it turns out that it has heatpipes instead of their "vapor chamber" setup and again because of the slimmer form factor it overheats....everything else about it sounds like it's pretty-well perfect which is a real shame.
What is up with laptops that easily cost £1,000+ and they are still plagued by the same problems you'd expect only the cheapest laptops to suffer from? The companies must be getting returns every day for these issues so how are they actually making any money?
It makes me all the more disappointed that my Dell Inspiron 7677 which is now probably on a scrap-heap somewhere had issues with the screen, since otherwise it appeared to be a perfect laptop (albeit a bit weighty but certainly manageable).
So...any further suggestions please? Good luck with your search by the way Biggilus.