ISSUE389|COMPUTER SHOPPER|JULY2020 109
VINYLDECALS
WHAT?
OpticaldriveswereonceanessentialcomponentofanyPC
andlaptop,untildigitaldownloadsandstreamingmadephysical
media–CDs,DVDsandthelike–increasinglylessappealing.
Nowadays,you’vegotabetterchanceofhavingabuilt-indisc
driveifyouinstallityourself.Thesamegoesformulti-card
readers,whichaddSD,CFIandSonyMemoryCardconnectivity;
thesewereneverascommon,butcanstillmakefora
usefulPCupgrade.
WHY?
AsPCcasesonlyveryrarelyhaveintegra
microSDslots,addingacardreaderoffe
functionality and convenience.Avid
photographers, forinstance,won’t
have to fish acable adaptor out of the
drawer to get their pictures on to their
PC: theycan simply take out the SD
card and slide it intothe reader.
EvenCDandDVD-RWdrivescanhavetheiruses,suchasfor
digitisingaCD-basedmusiccollection.YoucouldevenaddaBlu-ray
driveandturnyourdesktopintoamodernhomeentertainmentPC.
HOW?
Thebigcatchhereisthattoaddthesedevices,yourcasewillneed
to have at least one empty 5.25in drive bayatthe front, and this is
afairly rare featurein2020. At least, it is on the mid-tower cases
ll dalot of budget cases and larger full
emodels still have such bays, so
keep that in mind if you’re either
building from scratch or willing to
change the entire chassis.
Otherwise,installation is nice and
straightforward. Slide the optical drive
or card reader intothe slot from the
nt, and secure it with either the case’s
ws or toolless clamps. Then, connect
eofthe PSU’s L-shaped power
s, as well as to the motherboard with
ATAcable.
atedSDor
rs both
weusuallyrecommend;a
tower-style
k
o
fron
screw
ittoone
connectors
➡Acardreader is areal boon for photographers astandard SA
WHAT?
Thepossibilitiesfordecoratingtheexteriorof
your case –asopposed to adding lighting and
mounting brackets to the interior –are vast,
but not everyone is an expert artist, and
plastering on cheap paper stickers will look a
bit rubbish. Vinyl decals are amore grown-up
option, balancing infinitecustomisation
potential with asmart finish that doesn’t look
out of place on ametal desktop.
WHY?
Decals are perfect forpersonalisation and for
making your PC look and feel even more
one-of-a-kind. There are numerous online
suppliers that will print whatever designs
you want, whether it’s the emblem of your
favouritesports team,component maker
logos or just your initials. Youcan even
get large ‘wrap’designs that cover the entire case,though these are
more difficult to apply.
HOW?
Ifyou’rebuyingpre-madedecals,firstclean
theareayou’regoingtobesticking them
to,then carefully peel the application tape
from the backing paper,discarding the latter.
Start applying by sticking one edge of the tape
on to the case,then, slowly and gradually,lay
the rest down. There shouldn’t be any air
bubbles leftunderneath,sorub the back of
the tape with apiece of card as you layit
down. Press down on the decal itself to
make sure it sticks, then peel back the tape,
leaving the decal on the case.
But what if you want to createyour own
decals at home? This is tricky, but doable:
first, print out the design on standard paper,
then carefully cut out empty spaces to create
astencil. Use this to draw the design on to
some adhesive vinyl, then cut out your
finisheddecal. Remove the backing tape and stick it directly on to
the case,again doing so gradually to avoid air bubbles.
⬆Vinyl decals can give the outside of your
system areal personal touch
OPTICALDRIVES AND CARDREADERS
