On The Case!


Article Title - Page 1

 

On The Case!

A look at 4 ATX cases... one of the most important parts of your system!

 (continued)

 

Our third contender is the Enlight 7237 Mid ATX Case. Enlight is also well know in the case market and they are known for decent products with good value.

The tallest of the 4 in our review, this case is very spacious. It would easily house a Dual Pentium II motherboard and has lots of room. This case has 4 - 5.25" and 2 - 3.5" bays. It is made of a solid heavy gauge metal construction but doesn't have the polished surfaces of the A500F.

The front bezel is very good looking and is well ventilated for good airflow into the case. The unit also has a very well engineer fan housing and intake vent on the front of the chassis. A fan can be mounted inside and it will have very good intake access through the front metal frame.

In order to get inside, you need to remove the front bezel and then pull forward the three sided cover over the front over the case. This proved to be relatively easy to do since you don't have to pull the cover over the back where all your cables will be coming out. The bezel snaps back into place easily. The Enlight came with a good quality 250W supply. This case is also a very good value. It costs $56.95 at Axion Tech.

 

    Enlight 7237

    Design - 9
    Construction - 8
    Style - Looks
    - 8
    Accessibility - 8
    Price -
    8

    Total - 8.2


Finally, we have a case from the PC Hardware Giant, Acer. Acer's AOpen Line of cases are big in many reseller/clone shops since they also sell many other peripherals from Acer. Here is the AOpen HX45

This case, in my opinion, in the best looking case of the bunch. The front bezel has a clean, simple, contoured look. Unfortunately there is not a lot of ventilation in the front panel. It comes in a 3 - 5.25", 3 - 3.5" (one hidden) configuration and has ample room inside for most full size ATX boards. Like the In-Win, you slide the cover off from the back to get inside.

The construction is excellent. Also, just like the In-Win, this case has heavy gauge steel with a smooth finish and the same coating. Although the power supply is only 235 Watts, it seems to be the best quality of the bunch. The fan in the supply is whisper quite and strong with good airflow. The HX45 also has a mount for an extra case fan on the front plate. This is a good all around effort from Acer that will be a reliable "skin" for your machine. However, quality costs a little more at $59.95

 

    AOpen HX45

    Design - 8
    Construction - 10
    Style - Looks
    - 9
    Accessibility - 8
    Price -
    7

    Total - 8.4

 


All in all, our favorite case was the A500F from In-Win. However, cases, like many things in life are subjective. Your tastes may be different and your metrics for size and functionality varied. There are a lot of cases out there these days! Now you know a little more about 4 of them and what you can look for in a "skin" of your own!

-Peace

Davo
     

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