12 cases from Computex 2015 to watch out for
Everywhere I looked at Computex 2015, I saw PC cases. Giant, flashy rigs decked out with extensive water cooling. Compact and cheap enterprise desk units. Beautiful glass gamer cases. Cases from Chinese companies I'd never heard of. Cases, as far as the eye could see...
Of course, not all of these cases were brand new, and not all of them would be worthy of your next PC build. Here are a dozen I saw at the show that you should keep an eye on.
Most of them will be released this summer or later this year, which may be just in time for a new Skylake gaming rig build.
Bitfenix Atlas
Size: Full tower
Price: About $400
Bitfenix's ATLAS was one of a few cases I saw at Computex making use of a two chamber design, but the ATLAS has some clever tricks up its sleeve that set it apart. Both chambers can be pulled out, thanks to handles at the back of the case, and swapped. Want the motherboard facing you on the left side of the case, instead of the right? You can make that happen. It also supports E-ATX motherboards and will sport USB 3.1, with a Type C port, when it releases. Even if you don't care about swapping the positioning of the two chambers, sliding out the components on a pair of trays should make for easy maintenance access.
Bitfenix Pandora ATX
Size: Mid-tower
Price: About $100
Remember Bitfenix's Pandora case, featured on the left? Well, it now has a big sibling in the Pandora ATX, pictured right. The new Pandora case drops the original's premium aluminum chassis for steel side panels, but that keeps the price at the same $100 despite its larger size. There's a hard drive cage underneath the power supply cover, room for two SSDs to be mounted next to the motherboard, and some new USB 3.1 ports coming with the ATX case, including one Type C.
Cooler Master Mastercase 5
Size: Mid-tower
Price: TBA
Cooler Master's booth at Computex was uniquely focused on "Maker" culture rather than outright promoting new products, and it made for one of the most refreshing showcases on the event floor. I didn't even realize, at first, that Cooler Master's big new product for the show was all over its booth: the Mastercase, which Cooler Master is designing to be completely modular. Components and cages can be clicked into place and moved around to different areas of the chamber.
A Pro version of the Mastercase 5 will add a mesh roof panel to the top of the case. No word on price or release for this one just yet.
Cougar QBX
Size: Mini-ITX
Price: $60
The Cougar QBX is a promising ITX case with support for a 350 mm graphics card, ATX power supply, water cooling, and even a slim disc drive behind its front panel. It's the kind of case that could easily fit into your living room entertainment center (while taking up less space than an Xbox One, even) and at $60, it's ideally priced for a budget mini build. Unlike most of the cases at Computex, this one is available right now.
In Win 805
Size: Mid-tower
Price: TBA
There were quite a few flashy tempered glass cases at Computex 2015, and In Win's booth was practically full of them. Hard to complain when the cases look as nice as the 805, which supports air and watercooling and has a USB 3.1 Type-C connector proudly emblazoned upon its front panel. The front of the case is styled with an attractive honeycomb pattern, and the case will come in a few colors (red, gold, and black) if the one pictured here is a bit too flashy for you.
In Win 909
Size: Full tower
Price: TBA
The full-size In Win 909, pictured here beside the smaller mid-tower 805, supports up to E-ATX motherboards and also has a USB 3.1 Type-C port to call its own. In Win is going all in with aluminum and tempered glass, and you can see a bit of a premium touch in the curves of the 909, compared to the 805's harder edges. The front I/O panel is uniquely placed at the bottom-right edge of the case, and there's absolutely tons of room within the interior for different cooling options at the front, middle, rear, and top of the case.
Lian Li PC-Q17
Size: Mini-ITX
Price: TBA
The PC-Q17 is an interesting modification of the chassis first used for the NCase M1. Asus' Republic of Gamers' engineers got their hands on the case, and its new design features a wedge on the front and room for tons of fans all over the chassis. One of the nicest mini-ITX cases I saw at the show.
Lian Li PC-O8
Size: ATX
Price: $595
Remember Lian Li's O-Series of cases? If you don't, here's a clue: they're designed to be mounted on your wall. The naturally tall, thin cases came in a variety of sizes, but the new PC-O8 dwarfs them all by being more desk-friendly cube than wall-friendly rectangle. It's tempered glass on two sides, and its interior is split into two separate compartments: motherboard in one, power supply and storage in the other. If you love showing off immaculate cable management, extensive watercooling or a ton of blinking LEDs, this is one for you.
That is, assuming you have $395 to spend on a case—Lian Li told sent me an email stating that the PC-O8 will be available in Microcenter starting late June.
Lian Li PC-V359
Size: Micro-ATX
Price: TBA
Lian Li had at least a dozen small form-factor cases on display, from teensy-tiny ITX aluminum systems, to ones with handles, to slightly larger micro-ATX cases...there were too many to feature, but the PC-V359 was the one micro-ATX model to really catch my eye. It's a striking gold aluminum (also available in black and silver) with a front window and an acrylic top, so you can stare lovingly at its insides all day long. It's ideal for a build that sits on your desk, then, and is designed with that in mind. The motherboard mounts onto a tray positioned about halfway up the case, with power supply and storage sitting out of sight below it. Throw in some air filters, room for watercooling and a 310 mm graphics card, and you've got a nice micro-ATX case.
Rosewill Gungnir
Size: Mid-tower
Price: About $80
Rosewill's Gungnir case sticks to the company's budget pricing, but adds a premium touch here and there, like an enclosed power supply chamber and a magnetic dust filter along the top. It's a pretty restrained design, compared to some past Rosewill cases, which often have lots of plastic jutting out at odd angles. Aside from the stylized front panel, meant to evoke Gungnir, it's a nice utilitarian design and an affordable mid-tower for an ATX rig.
Fractal Design Core 500
Size: Mini-ITX
Price: $60 (£50)
Fractal Design's typical elegance, applied to a small form factor case. It can only fit a mini-ITX motherboard, but there's plenty of room for just about everything else, including 310 mm graphics cards, ATX power supplies, and a top-mounted 280 mm watercooler. I wrote in more detail about the Core 500 here, if you want to see the full spec list.
Antec Signature S10
Size: Full tower
Price: $500
The Signature S10 is a big deal for Antec, which hasn't had a breakout case on the market in several years. Antec brought a small fleet of S10 cases to Computex 2015 to show off, and certainly made some waves. The giant full tower S10 separates its power area, motherboard area and storage area into completely independent compartments, each with their own airflow. In keeping with its luxury design, the S10 features swing-open side doors instead of thumbscrew panels. Those doors will be available in aluminum and tempered glass.
