*HP EliteBook 8740w Owners Lounge - PART 1*

Hey knight,

When you have the original 4GB (2x2) RAM installed, does it show the full 4096MB on CPU-Z, under memory tab?
What brand did they use on your laptop?
Also, under SPD tab, does it recognize the RAM in any of the slots?

Mine came with 4GB RAM and is made by Elpidia or Elpida.
CPU-Z only shows 4030MB and it doesn't show up in the SPD tab at all. The slots appear empty.

 

You know the thing about it is, I didn't notice the humming until the incident with the power supply.
But knight says his 8740w sounds the same, so I must be trippin.

It's not that big of a deal. I would call them, but it appears to be normal on this particular laptop.
I'll bug them later on for something more important.

Today is day #8 and no crashes so far.

 

Good Morning,

That's my hope that HP implented a similar sRGB mode in the DC2 laptops... That could work...

Best, Walter

 

@RampageII
Good to hear that!

I'm watching the thread dedicated to this problem:
8740w shuts off with four memory chips @ HP Support Forum.

So far there is no meaningful resolution. HP's still investigating that...

 

I happen to have an FX3700M card, brand new, untouched in its original box. Would I be able to use it in the 8740w? And if so, is that even a good idea or would I likely run into issues with it?

By the way, what are some higher percentages that those of you who have ordered the 8740w received or been offered?

Thanks!

 

RE:

O M G!!! Got an update...

Backlit Keyboard shortage again? You kidding me?!!!
I was issued a discount for my troubles.

 

this thread uses more smileys than any other thread on NBR.

 

Except in my last one, I wasn't smiling.

 

To clarify, my old machine came with 4 GB Samsung. It had crashing issues. My new machine came with 8 GB (logo on stick is M inside ellipse). It seemed to crash even more than the first. I uninstalled 2 of the sticks on the new machine and it seemed to help (but not solve) the crashing. I installed the 2 sticks in my old matching and it was crazy-unstable...undid that real quick. Last night I finally got the courage to try re-installing the 2 sticks back into the new machine. Last night I could go no more than a few minutes before crash. This morning I managed to get about 10min before crash and just got done going back to 4 GB. BUT...I swapped the sticks...the ones that seemed to cause all the problems (from slots 3 and 4) I moved to slots 1 and 2, removed the "good" two...and everything seems back to normal. So those sticks are not bad.

And to answer some of your other questions...I checked CPU-Z and it saw all 8 GB and change (forgot exact number, 81xx MB). Looking at SPD has always been useless, it never showed anything in any of the slots on either machine.

 

Aww :cry: I want the ATI FirePRO so badly and apparently the elitebook only has it...

MAN ALL THE PROCESSING POWER

Yes man please send that number, I think its possible for the US to send the laptop to hp canada


I CAN"T WAIT and then I CAN SHOW ALL MY FRIENDS

my lappy is way better bro

 

Looks like i am in round 2 of screw up by HP. .. Just got the shipping delay notice for the re-order i placed. I think i might end up getting it for free by the time 8750W is available (on paper though).

 

- So no manufacturer name, just the M inside ellipse logo? Not sure what it could be.
- I see, so you have 4x2GB. I thought it was 2x4GB....
- So crashes are mainly due to all 4 slots being used.
- Good to know it's not RAM manufacturer incompatibility then.

I was thinking of getting 2x4GB from G.Skill or Samsung.
Perhaps along with the stock RAM. But it looks like I'll have to wait for that BIOS update HP is working on before I can use all four slots.

 

I believe it would have to be shipped to a US address in order to get the US discount.
Aikimox is from Canada also and he mentioned he's having it shipped to relatives in US first, who will then ship it to him.

 

So I guess we should order the non-backlit keyboard then??? !? Is this a common occurrence for HP's business practices?

Can be the backlit keyboard be swapped out later?

 

aww :cry:

Wait so if i just tell them to ship it here, wouldn't it just cost me around 100 dollar extra? Tbh I have no relatives in the US

Also does the elitebook 8540w have the ATi firePRO gpu?

 

It does but a less powerful variant (Firepro M5800) based on the Ati Radeon 5730

 

Yes, but not the M7820, it's the M5800 (less power compared with the M7820).

 

To clarify,

HP US will not ship to Canada. They will not even approve a Canadian Visa - you have to either have a US credit card or make a wire transfer.
The only way to do get the laptop from the US is to get it shipped within USA and then forward the system to Canada (which will cost another 500-600$).

On a side note, you know you don't really need such an expensive and powerful machine for your studies. Almost any average notebook under 1k $ will suit your needs.

 

While the FirePro M7820 is based on the MR5870,
the M5800 is based on the MR57xx. Less powerful and less power hungry.

 

The Maintenance and Service Guide has the Core i7-920XM listed as an option for the 8740w...Hmmm.....

 

Yeah word, but the ATI FirePRO is so attracting

alot of gpu computing power

 

Which, by the time you really need it, will be totally obsolete.

 

YEAH MAN :cry: things get obsolete, so easily XD....like I'm pretty sure my Core 2 Quad Q8200 is obsolete right now for engineering (this is a desktop CPU)

 

The 87840w is the first business laptop from HP to have a backlit keyboard (AFAIK), so it's hard to judge "common practice". I'm guessing they really didn't know how popular it would be.

I can tell you for certain, that the keyboard can be swapped out. I kept the backlit keyboard from my old one and installed it on my new one. The only other issue is how long it will take for them become available for purchase through HP or some third party.

 

With no CPU OC'ing enabled in BIOS 920XM and 940XM are a waste of your money.
840QM is almost on par with 920XM and with the setfsb app. you can possibly overclock it to 2.3-2.4ghz on all 4 cores and up to 3.8-4ghz on a single core. It also requires less juice - 45W, and to me is a clear winner.

 

Thank you for summarizing the crash problems. So far no problems with crashing, but my system only has 1 slot filled with 2gb of memory. I have 2gb kingston sodimm on the way. I will report my findings asap!

 

I agree.
BUT, if the price difference is not much, I would take the 920XM.

What "setfsb app." are you talking about?

HP should be offering the 920/940 as an option soon. The 920 has been listed in the Service Manual since the beginning, so the system should be able to handle it.
It'll run hotter than the 700s/800s of course, but that's a given. As long as it's stable, it's OK.

I'll probably buy a 920XM. I'll go from a 720 to a 920. Total cost will be $150-$200.
Hell, that's even less than the cost to upgrade to an 840 from HP.

The other possibility for me would be to just get an 840 and break even..... we'll see.

 

@ Rampage,
Look here for OC'ing tips.

I wouldn't go for 920XM even if the price was the same as for 840QM (well I'd grab the 920XM and sell it to get a 840QM + SSD ).
You can see from here that there's virtually no difference between the two. But the 10-15W difference may result in stability and overheating issues.
Up to you, of course

 

@ Aikimox.

Wait, I'm confused..

Isn't this setfsb app. meant to be used with laptops that DO have overclocking options?
That thread is for MX17s, which already have OC options. Unlike the 8740w.

Or can this setfsb app. in fact be used on an 8740w to OC any of the available CPUs?

I asked because first you dismissed the 920XM since it can't be OCed on the 8740w.
And I agree. Strictly from the fact that w/o OC options, there's no point in having an "unlocked" CPU like 920XM. So for example, if I had the choice between a CD2T9900 or C2DX9100, I would pick the T9900. Since they both run at the same speed and the the only advantage the X9100 has over the T9900 is rendered useless by the lack of OC options in HP laptops. Plus, the T9900 is cheaper.

But then you said...

Which of the two are you referring to when you said that setfsb can be used to OC it? The 840 or 920?

If you meant the 840, then wouldn't you be contradicting yourself by first dismissing the 920XM for lack of OC options on HP laptop and then saying that it's possible to OC the 840.
If the 840 can be OC on the 8740w using "setfsb", then so should the 920.
Which by direct correlation, it implies that the 920XM would still maintain it superiority over the 840.

 

That's why I was talking about the built-in *system image* backups -- restores *everything*. No need to reinstall, etc. Unless they're lying and that isn't what the system image does for Windows (they *say* it's a full-disk image . . .)?

Although with OpenCL now in a position to compete with CUDA, that playing field is leveling - and in fact the ATI cards win in some cases. nVidia still has the edge and better ISV support (and given that pro software tends to be inexcusably behind the curve, I suppose their lead will remain very strong there for longer), but we're moving toward having meaningful options.


@True_Sultan:
*sigh* . . . as we keep trying to point out, this is the wrong system for you, although you seem to have your heart set on it. We showed you several better plans. Ultimately, of course, the choice is yours . . . but you're incorrect about what you should be looking for. [I do high-end graphics research, image processing, and a bit of other GPGPU stuff . . . I do know of what I speak.] When I'm doing anything truly heavy I'm on a compute cluster. I've been able to work quite effectively with a variety of systems, many rather out of date, because when you're working with real data that demands real computation, you use a real computer (either a desktop machine for moderate work, or a compute cluster for the real stuff).
edit: another way to think about it: the university is NOT going to expect students to have high-end machines and will make available sufficient computing resources to do the required work, or any exploration they want to engage in on their own time; if you do actual research you will have access to the *really* nice stuff. In both cases your machine is nigh-irrelevant, particularly if it's a laptop.

 

so, has anyone got their DC2 8740w yet?

 

Has anyone gotten their 8740w to run multiple displays AND still have the laptop lcd work?!!!

We've been with HP support, gotten drivers, MB bios updates, and still...as soon as we connect the second external display through DVI it pops in as detected, then back out, then back in.....etc.

HP is baffled, we sent the Quadro equipped laptop back for the Firepro..since it is supposed to go up to 4 via the lovely youtube video, but we cant get more than 2 external with no LCD, or just 1 and1 with the LCD.

ANYONE get this going? Where, how, what drivers? We're at our wits end here!

 

Actually, I was talking about replacing the drive itself. i.e. RMAing the drive, waiting for the drive to comeback etc. That actually takes more than hours, but just sending the drive back etc takes a few hours, let alone the wait time to get the drive back. That's why I think if your system is a work system then you should wait or get a proven drive, like the Intel.

By autoCAD and professional apps, I meant the ISV supported apps, etc. That's why Nvidia cards are more expensive. Nothing to do with CUDA at all right now.

 

If you read that thread further you'll notice that people got even their i5-520M's OC'ed to 4ghz. Setfsb will work with any CPU. I'd give it a try. The guy who's developing it can be contacted for details.

 

Yep, in fact my rep has offered me a 920XM processor as an option . Even he has confirmed the availability of the DreamColor 2 panel, with or without camera ^^ . With that said, he hasn't told me any ETA... but at least in Spain the 8740w configuration is not bad as I thought

However, he said that the 840QM is not already available in my country . What a mess... Well, I don't want the 920XM for the same reasons posted by Aikimox: heat and price (excessive in Europe!). So I'll wait a bit more. Considering the 840QM was released on June, 20, I think it's very soon to expect right now its availability worldwide.

@NotebookGrail: Thanks for your e-mail. It seems it's almost certain the DC 2 panel will have the same features as the HP LP2480zx. So guys, welcome to a good sRGB emulation mode, no more oversaturations in the Windows GUI, movies and so on I like this thing even more

 

Thanks NotebookGrail for the email.
I don't know if it inspired confidence or not, given that it came shortly after HP sent me an email saying my order had been delayed. Then again, I didn't expect it to ship today as they originally listed in my purchase email. The status page still says Admin and lists shipping date as 7/10 and delivery ETA as 7/14.


Now if only the RAM issue would get worked out.

 

It will be. Give some time to HP to find out the cause and they will workaround it with a newer BIOS or a motherboard replacement. Don't forget they had a serious issue with the 8730w in the past: the "infamous" battery drain, and they eventually fixed it.

 

Ah, fair, didn't think about that. I never RMA a drive unless it dies *really* early; mostly I just go ahead and buy a new one with fast shipping, and pop in some old drive in the meantime (generally whatever drive came with the machine, since I always replace those).
If my SF drive dies I may come around to your way of thinking rather quickly!

That's what I meant too. ATI *has* ISV certified drivers for all the standard stuff (AutoCAD, CATIA, Pro/ENGINEER, etc) - for example, the cert list for all Autodesk software:
ATI FirePro? and ATI FireGL? Certified Applications
Probably pretty much the same list as what nVidia got certified. It's just that many of these apps use nVidia-specific stuff like CUDA for acceleration, or nVidia has implemented extensions giving hardware support for certain shaders they use. In general, most GPU acceleration to date has been card-specific, either due to coding on the ISV side or special support from the GPU maker. Notably, there are a few apps such as Maya where ATI traditionally has the lead. In any case, OpenCL allows portable or nearly-portable acceleration code, which will be particularly helpful for physics-type stuff as well as anything that uses ray tracing.

So yes, ISV-specific drivers with shaders implemented for them by the GPU maker will continue to provide an edge, but now that CUDA isn't the only major player in GPGPU, I anticipate more effort towards writing accelerators in general, and those will work either way.


As a side note, we use a lot of nVidia cards where I work (generally but not always Quadros), and I have come to hate their drivers; it's fairly common (for us at least) to have issues where the card drops carefully configured settings and returns to some nVidia default, with no warning other than things suddenly not working right.

 

Interesting, what other GPGPU stuff do u do? And image processing like photo shop? or image processing like image analysis? Anyway so when handling real research I should be doing it in a cluster or a desktop workstation rig? Also I mean I want graphic power...and apparently the ATI FirePRO M7820 beats the HD 5870MR...so yeah...so fill me in here please...I mean if I truely don't need it, I can save a whole lot of money..maybe save 1000 bucks or so and just get an Asus or something along the line

Also the Lenevo Thinkpad W510 is good choice, but the Nvidia card is apparently weak and it heats up..So thats why I want an ATI card...but :cry: only s***d HP has it

 

damn, you boys are still waiting for DreamColor 2?

sorry.

 

I found this thread that seems to contain lots of information about the LP2480zx (including replies directly from a HP DreamColor Technologist) and thought it might make for some interesting reading. Enjoy

Setting up HP DreamColor LP2480zx monitor for work in Color : Apple Color

 

The "circle M" logo is for Micron, a.k.a. Crucial. They make some of the most reliable and highest quality RAM on the market.

 

Yep, that's it.

 

Short answer is you need an active displayport adapter. Check out AMD's Eyefinity FAQ.

 

There's overclocking and then there's stability. If the system bonks out on Prime95, OCCT, etc... it isn't stable.

You can't compare the dual core arrandale's to the quad core clarkmonsters and their better fab (45nm vs. 32nm) which means more headroom for overclocking.

In addition, with the quads, as you keep pushing, extra voltage always comes in handy and that's where the 920xm/940xm will actually shine with the extra native vcore.

At stock speeds, Extremes > Non-extremes. (But price erformance ratio is suspect)
Overclocking potential Extremes > Non-extremes. (price erformance ratio is less suspect).

 

Ahh, yes.
Looks like you understood my point better than he did. :yes:
Don't sweat it Aikimox.

 

Khehhm... Is this an argument?
Nobody said there are no stability problems with overclocking. However, there's still a nice boost till the system becomes unstable, usually 0.3-0.5ghz, depending on the BIOS and overall thermal and voltage budgets.
I can compare i5's and i7's easily In non-optimized (for more than 2 cores) applications, 4ghz i5-520M will outperform a 3.3ghz 920XM. Especially big difference will be in gaming benches as only a handful of games can benefit from 4 cores and above.
Comparing a 840QM vs 920XM is similar to comparing T9900 vs X9100. With setfsb the same level of OC'ing could be achieved on both (~3.6ghz in M17X-R1 for ex.) but T9900 still had less power consumption and ran less hot. A 45W 840QM will less likely strain the 8740w cooling system when OC'ed. All you need is to raise it's freq. to 2.1-2.2.ghz on all 4 and the TDP will probably equalize with the 920XM's stock 55W. Pushing the extreme's? Hell, no! Not in this system. You may do that in Clevo's and AW's but should be very careful doing so in a business notebook.
If you haven't noticed, HP doesn't even officially offer the extreme CPU's for their business models. There's a reason.
The quad-monsters run too hot. The i7-720QM in my W510 hits 85C on all cores occasionally with no OC', 8740w owners report above 80C with their 820QM/720QM's.
Even M17X-R2 doesn't keep them ice-cold.

OCCT is a bad example for stress testing, BTW. They'll declare every CPU reaching 80-85C+, unstable. That's not a stability issue, blame Intel for letting the monsters run that hot.
Anyway, the point was - " 840QM vs 920XM in a 8740w".

 

At some point I might stop posting here at all and let you figure this all out through your own trial and error way.
Maybe that's for the best.

 

Okay so far my laptop is running smoothly with 2x2gb of RAM. I just added the 2nd stick, a 2gb Kingston ValueRAM SODIMM (KVR1333D3S9/2) and I have zero crashes thus far.

 

Don't get upset Aikimox.

I just found your statement a bit contradicting when you were quick to dismiss the 920 for the lack of OC on the HP, and then quickly suggested that by OCing the 840 you could make it just as capable or even better than the 920.

See???

:laugh:


But yes, I also agree with you on the thermal difference between the two and how it may not be such a good idea in that regard.
Remember, I only said I would consider a 920 if I can find one for a good deal.

Then again, if the 8740w could not handle the extra heat from the 920, would HP offer it anyway and risk having problems later on?
Nevermind, I just remembered the current problem with RAM slots. :laugh:

Yes, yes, I know it's not available yet. But all signs point to it being available in the near future.
Maybe they'll offer a triple heatpipe cooler along with it.