HP 8730W to 8740W upgrade?

Can I upgrade my 8730w's mobo to 8740w? Is it possible? Are they compatible?

I ask this because, I found this item on ebay: New HP EliteBook 8730w 8740w Motherboard 595698-001 | eBay

 

According to the link they are the same.

What would you gain from this (assuming that your system is working...)?

 

that same link, also has a "compatibility," list, with no mention of the 8730w, but a LOT of 8740w....

 

I'm going to make an educated guess and say NO, this will not work.

I'm not sure why it is listed as "8730W/8740W" motherboard since they are two different systems. The 8730W is based on the old Core 2 platform while the 8740W is based on the last-gen Core i-series processors. You can't transfer your 8730W's processor over to the 8740W, for example. They are not compatible.

And on top of that the ports are different for the 8740W so it won't fit in your 8730w chassis ... and the heatsinks are different.

 

I'm going to bump this. Has anyone actually lined up 2 motherboards to check if the mounting holes match up?

Screw port layouts, I have a dremel, I've cut holes for DVI plenty of times.

I'm well aware I can't use a core 2 on hm55 and I'd have to get new heatsinks, of course.

I really think it can be done. You might have to cut out a part of the chassis where the battery is. The only problem would be if the entire 8740w chassis is bigger or wider than the 8730w.