Transparent tech is such a throwback that I can't help but feel nostalgic when I see it. Sure, we have fish tank cases these days, but that's more to display our neat and tidy, cable-free interiors than to proudly display all those circuits and cables. So when I see a fully transparent PSU like this one, a Redditor just bought off eBay, I can't help but feel more than a twinge of nostalgia.
The power supply in question is a Logisys PS550AC Clear Acrylic ATX 550 W, an early 2000s-era PSU that not only lays its guts bare but also lights up blue. I asked why the Redditor chose to get one, and they said they've just always liked how transparent electronics look. You and me both—ever since my translucent Glacier Blue Game Boy Advance.
Came in the mail from ebay today from r/pcmasterrace
I must say, though, it does bring upon me a certain amount of the nervous sweats. There's something about seeing the insides of a power supply, in particular, that makes me nervous.
That bit of potentially very burny and sparky hardware is much easier to rest content with when all its voltage regulation is going on in the dark: Out of sight, out of mind.
A transparent or translucent power supply isn't something that's relegated to the past, either. Earlier this year, our Jacob Ridley got to lay his very own retinas on a new one in the form of the Corsair HX1000i Shift presented at Computex 2025.
That one certainly does lose the retro factor, though, with its tidy, coiled and cylindrical interior bits and bobs. Plus, it's only a prototype (come on, Corsair, give the fans what they want).
Made my own case back in 2003 from r/pcmasterrace
What sprang to mind regarding the Logisys PSU, though, and to further demonstrate its retro credentials, is how nicely it would suit this other Redditor's old PC build I remembered spotting a while back.
That's a gaming PC build from back in 2003, featuring an AMD Athlon XP CPU and ATI Radeon 9700 Pro GPU. Most impressively, though, the Redditor says the case is bespoke, made from 12 mm thick acrylic panels.
You know, PSU innard heebie jeebies be damned, I'm sold on all this retro transparency stuff. I'd slap one of those on my desk in a heartbeat. And crank that blue power supply RGB up to max, too.
1. Best overall: Noctua NF-A12x25 G2
2. Best midrange:Noctua NF-P12 redux-1700
3. Best budget: Arctic P12 PWM PST
4. Best RGB:Corsair iCUE LINK QX120 RGB
5. Best budget RGB:NZXT F120 RGB Duo
6. Best for radiatorsArctic P12 Pro
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