CasesReviews

InWin B1 HTPC Case Review

Introduction Earlier this year InWin announced their latest HTPC case, the B1.  More stylish than the popular Chopin with a tempered glass cover, and following a different cooling principle than the open air H Frame mini of yesteryear, the B1 is an affordable and stylish case for those seeking a compact home server or mini PC. At the time of writing, the B1 is $85.00 on Amazon, coming in under the InWin Chopin ($99.00).  It offers a 200w 80 plus gold power supply as well as an 80mm internal fan, but trades the durable aluminum aesthetic of the Chopin for …

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CasesReviews

Guest Review: Mini-Box’s M350

This guest review was provided by forum member Windfall, with editing performed by John Morrison. Want to contribute a review or editorial? Private message John (confusis) on the forum!   Go back. Way back. Okay, maybe not very far back: 1996, when Mini-Box was founded. “Inspired by the unprecedented success of small form factor mainboards,” they have since “since directed [their] focus on designing and developing smaller, more compact PC peripherals.” I don’t know if that’s true or not, as I got it from their about page. I can tell you though, that from their product portfolio, it certainly appears …

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News

Raijintek Launches the Metis Evo

Raijintek, famous for their Metis SFF case, has created a new generation of this SFF stalwart – the Metis Evo.. From Raijintek; “Design Art in its best by RAIJINTEK – New series of SFF chassis. The METIS EVO case is designed to fulfill a smallest case built with Ultra high air flow to solve all thermal issue of SFF chassis nowadays, can even install 200mm fan at front & 120mm/140mm/200mm AIO and DIY water-cooling. METIS EVO case supports up to Mini-ITX motherboard, able to install an ultra-high air flow 200mm at front (option), also can install 120/140/200mm radiator at front …

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Feature

Forum Feature: SENTRY 2.0

In a semi-regular series, we will have a short look at various projects and one-off builds in the forum. This is not a paid promotion in any way, just a selection of cool stuff we like! Hot on the heels of the first generation Sentry, the Dr Zaber team has taken it upon themselves to update the concept. Taking feedback into account from the first production run, as well as crowdsourcing more, the team has stepped it up a notch (or three) in design and execution.   For most in the SFF community, the Sentry needs no introduction. However, for …

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MotherboardsReviews

ASRock’s Z390 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ac – A New Direction

For some time, ASRock has been using the Fatal1ty branding on their high end products – a tie back to the days of old, where Quake was king, and bright, flashy branding was cool. However, Fatal1ty has given way to ASRock’s “Phantom Gaming” brand, with a much more subtle aesthetic. All black? Yes please! Beefy heatsinks? Yessir! First sighted on ASRock’s limited availability (unfortunately) GPU line, the Phantom Gaming brand has come to motherboards – slowly taking over the performance space within ASRock’s lineup. This particular model uses the Intel Z390 chipset – what Z370 should have been, but I digress. …

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CasesReviews

Streacom’s DA2 – Versatility

It’s no secret that the majority of go-to cases found within our community are from the Indie scene, designed by fans and enthusiasts. Whilst Streacom may not be officially part of this Indie grouping, they are indeed a small bunch of enthusiasts determined to do something different in amongst the mainstream “SFF” offerings. Mentioning SFF by name in their mission statement, it seems the company has their eyes in the right place. With this, the team at Streacom decided to create something to compete with the SFF stalwarts, with design decisions focused on space efficiency. We had our first eyes …

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CasesReviews

Lazer3D’s HT5 – HTPC with Lasers.. Sorta

Indie cases, the major driver of our community forum and niche, come in many shapes and sizes (preferably small). Lazer3D recently approached me to try a couple of their products that are in final development – the HT5 and the CG7. Whilst the CG7 is due to launch in November, the HT5 has a September launch. Guess which one we’ll look at first? Aiming squarely at the premium HTPC market, the HT5 offers a customisable chassis with various material finishes. Wood finishes? Yes please! Let’s have a look at how far the acrylic case market has come in the past …

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