Yes, thats how I had installed all my shit to my hdd for mine. The carputers MOSTLY need a 2.5" hdd, which is as you call it, "laptop" hdd. Trust me, they're not plug in and they're gonna match up, you need an adapter for it. I have like, 2. One thats a little 'board' and the other is a cable. Want to buy my carputer setup? LOL. I'll send it 100% complete. You will need a monitor, a keyboard, and a mouse. Plug it in and let it rip. HOWEVER. If you want my close to 3000 mp3s, that will cost a little more than without, lol.
(seriously, I wanna sell this one to do another)