IMO if you can get a new laptop with Win7 go that way. Win8.x, aside from initial faster booting, has nothing to offer but frustration.
The Lenovo laptop I bought had the option of reverting to W7, I opted not to because it wasn't a straightforward process and involved contacting Lenovo support for authorisation details etc and having to source a W7 distro to do it.
That said, I have SGP, and ascom drivers etc running on my Win8 laptop. I had some difficulty getting things to work but it's not been impossible. Getting my SSAG running was a problem, but I eventually found a workaround, seems that 8.x has issues with reporting the ID of some devices when plugged in to USB3 ports.
This thread detailing the issues with the SSAG and resolution might help if you go with 8 and have problems with other hardware.
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...highlight=SSAG