Group Test
BUDGET CASES
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For a start, it doesn’t look too bad. It’s a bit boxy and
utilitarian but it’s far from ugly and the whole interior
is painted, which isn’t always a given. Constructed
from thin steel, the build quality isn’t great, though.
This is also an impressively small case with a
useful modern layout. That is, while you do get an
optical drive bay, it’s very compact, and elsewhere
there are just two 3.5in hard drives that are hidden
in the closed off bottom section, along with the PSU.
This leaves plenty of space in the top section for
long graphics card coolers, hefty CPU heatsinks
and up to five 120mm fans. You can also squeeze in
three 3.5in drives.
But the default cooling is modest. There’s just
one small fan at the rear. Despite this, the Aerocool
performed well, with mid-table results for both CPU
and GPU temperatures. We believe this was largely
due to the ventilation grill in the side panel that
allowed hot air from the graphics card to
vent straight out the case. Overall, for
the price, this is a great case.AEROCOOL 300
http://www.aerocool.com.tw £30
As the latter gives away, this is a case with a modern
layout with no drive bays in the front section.
Instead, this area is dedicated solely to cooling
options, although unlike the top section, this is
covered by a plastic panel that’s solid at the front
and perforated at the sides.
That means you can’t fit any optical drives in
here and you’ve only got room for two 3.5in hard
drives and two 2.5in drives, all of which are mounted
on the back of the motherboard tray.
Like most such modern layout cases, the PSU is
installed from the back of the case. Combined with
the generally simple and tidy design, this makes for
a great looking case overall.
As for cooling performance, despite featuring
two fans and having all that ventilation, this case
didn’t do all that well in our tests, with it coming
second last for CPU temps and joint second last for
GPU temps. We’re only talking about a
couple of degrees, though, so this is still
a case that’s well worth considering.CORSAIR CARBIDE 270R
The Aerocool 300 was a real surprise. Just a few pounds
behind the BitFenix Nova as the cheapest case on test, we
weren’t expecting anything too clever. However, this case is
actually really well thought out and ideal for budget builds.
The Corsair 270R is a case that looks like it means business
when it comes to cooling. The whole top panel is perforated
with big hexagonal holes, and you can fit a 2x120mm radiator in
the top, as well as a 3x120mm radiator in the front.80 % 75 %
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