*HP EliteBook 8740w Owners Lounge - PART 2*

[RampageII]

The recent NewmodeUS drive caddies have bracket holes drilled in the wrong place. I have two of those caddies, and move drives between my 8740w and 8440p. The NewmodeUS bracket installed on the HP ODD works fine. The NewmodeUS bracket installed on the NewmodeUS caddy doesn't seat. The HP bracket from the ODD installed on the NewmodeUS caddy doesn't seat. Ergo, HOLES IN THE WRONG PLACE on the body of the NewmodeUS caddy. I'm kvetching with NewmodeUS about it.

So... the NewmodeUS bracket is fine.... and NewmodeUS might sell the OP the bracket only.

I think that's always been the case. It doesn't mean there's a new version.
The reason they don't fit perfectly smooth is precisely because the mounting holes are off by a couple of hairs.

[RampageII]

If you were more enthusiastic about the NewmodeUS "2nd-drive caddy" when this discussion first started, I probably would have bought one instead of the HP part. Based on your insightful comments, I agree it's probably a better caddy.

Enthusiastic?

You must have me confused with a salesman on commission.

[Siorah]

BTW, has anyone tried a 750 GB hard drive with the 8740w? I know, currently 640 GB is officially the maximum (referring to the Quick Specs) but maybe 750 GB already works, too.

However, it is only available from Seagate (Momentus 7200.5) if you want 7200 but I found a user which is happy with it (in his MacBook Pro)

750GB does work, well with F.09 anyway.

Just make sure you partition it on a different machine before putting it into the HP, cos windows 7 screws it with a 100MB partition on install.

[Aikimox]

^^ 100MB out of 750Gigs - sounds like a robbery

BTW, it's not always 100MB, could be even 300

[Siorah]

it is if you decide to use multiple partitions!

I hate the fact it creates that when it installs.

wastes a partition slot on the partition table which could be used for something better.

[Aikimox]

That's true, though the more partitions and operating systems you use on a single disk, the more unstable and fragile the installation becomes. Had lot of fun in the old System Commander's days, but the older you get the stronger is the urge for simplicity

[oltsa555]

I'd really appreciate it if any of you guys who own 8740w with M7820 and have tried to drive 30" monitor @ 2560x1600 resolution with it, would confirm that it really works.

^Anyone?

Also does anybody know an european reseller who sells 8740w fully configurable? Looks like those are pretty rare if not even non-existent...

[Aikimox]

^ you could order from the US. Pay with wire transfer, use friends/relatives/third party forwarding service to provide a valid US shipping address, add 40$ for Travel Warranty and be happy
Oh, forgot to mention the customs. But even with all of the shipping fees and taxes you should still pay less than buying from a European reseller.

[Wizman]

Yikes, thanks for the heads-up and the detailed post. Well, I might make a duct-tape ghetto mount just to give the drive some extra security -- I'm not going to pay for a drive caddy at this point (HP parts store seems to charge a lot for shipping). It's fine at the moment since the notebook is just sitting there but I move mine around sometimes . . . I don't like the idea of it being semi-loose.

In regards to adding a 2nd hard drive in place of the DVD drive in our 8740w. I called HP Parts and Technical Support today about the "Hard Drive Bracket" that is needed to securely hold a hard drive into the "HP Upgrade Bay Cradle" (part#613682-001).

They told me that there is no HP part number for the "Hard Drive Bracket" and that it is not available for purchase. The bracket is included when you purchase a 2nd hard drive from HP, but not available separately.

So how do we mount a 2nd hard drive in the Upgrade Bay? Seems we have several choices:

(1) buy a "HP Upgrade Bay Cradle" (part#613682-001) from HP along with the 2nd Hard Drive...bracket included. Problem with this option is cost because HP overcharges for the hard drive. The configuration looks like this:



The HP drive bracket that HP refuses to sell separately looks like this:



(2) buy a "HP Upgrade Bay Cradle" from HP, buy the 2nd hard drive from your favorite on-line discount store (i.e. Amazon.com), and then use your own methods to secure the hard drive to the HP caddy (i.e. double-sided tape, small custom bracket, duct tape , etc.). The drive will fit fine into the Upgrade Bay Cradle without the drive bracket, but then it is only being held in place by the drive connector. Not a problem until your 8740w takes a hit or fall...with enough energy to knock the 2nd hard drive loose from its connector.

(3) buy the 2nd hard drive caddy from another source instead of HP. A good source would be NewmodeUS.com who sells an all-in-one caddy for the Upgrade Bay...no extra drive bracket is needed. Only problem, confirmed by Nandy at NewmodeUS today, is that their caddy for the HP Upgrade Bay may or may not fit exactly in your 8740w and may need some minor "adjustment" to fit properly...as mentioned by Rampage and others here on the forum.

Nandy says there are some minor deviations from HP notebook to HP notebook (and probably in the caddys too) and the "tab" at the rear of the caddy that helps hold the caddy in place may not line up correctly after being inserted into the Upgrade Bay. Nandy suggests that you replace the "tab" on the NewmodeUS caddy with the tab assembly from the rear of your DVD caddy (attached with 3 screws). That can resolve the alignment problem. OR just hit the tab and caddy with a big hammer until it fits.

Add 1TB HDD or SSD - HP Upgrade Bay (compare AU097AA, AK868AA ) [HP12-2BAY-8730] - $44.75 : NewmodeUS, Hard Drive Caddys for Notebooks

(4) another option that has not been tried yet, but might work fine, is to buy the HP or NewmodeUS caddy (bracket) for the Primary Drive Bay. It appears the primary drive bay caddy/bracket might fit okay into the "HP Upgrade Bay Cradle". It also looks very similar.

Here is the NewmodeUS caddy for the 8740w Primary Drive Bay:



Hey Charles, I could use your help. Would you please remove your 8740w primary hard drive with drive bracket attached and see if it fits into the "HP Upgrade Bay Cradle" ? This is just a mechanical test. I would do this myself, but my 8740w was returned to HP last week under RMA to be replaced with a new one (will explain in a future post).

If the HP Primary Drive with bracket fits into the HP Upgrade Bay Cradle, then this is another option for those of us who already own a HP Upgrade Bay Cradle. The Primary Drive Bay caddy from NewmodeUS is suppose to be functionally identical to HP's, so if your primary drive with bracket does fit, then the NewmodeUS primary caddy wiill work too.

Hard drive caddy for HP 8530p, 8530w, 8540p, 8540w, 8730w, 8740w [CQNC6400] - $34.95 : NewmodeUS, Hard Drive Caddys for Notebooks

[maunakea]

Nandy suggests that you replace the "tab" on the NewmodeUS caddy with the tab assembly from the rear of your DVD caddy (attached with 3 screws). That can resolve the alignment problem.

NG. Putting an HP OE bracket on a NewmodeUS caddy does not work. The NewmodeUS holes are drilled in the wrong place.

BTW, I lucked out with my 8740w... I got a refurb 8740w from HP ($1350), via iUnitek, and the screen is Dreamcolor!!! It was not marked as DC in the item description. It also has the 6300 Wifi module.