Page 1: Intro, Box, Parts
Intro:
Antec makes superb computer cases for all types of situations. One of the latest markets of custom cases is the entertainment PC. There are specific requirements for a PC that fits with a home theater setup including good cooling and a small A/V form factor. Antec has a new case called the Micro Fusion Remote 350 which targets this exact market.
Packaging:
Antec usually does a nice job packaging their products even when shipped. The box is sturdy and the case is well protected with foam. This is pretty standard stuff today.
Parts:
Other than the case, you get a few parts including screws, stand offs, a power cable, instructions, and a remote for use with media center functionality.
Micro Fusion:
The case itself is black with nice silver accents. This color scheme fits nicely with current A/V components and would look fine in a living room. One thing you will see when using this case is its attention to cooling. There are many fans that or controllable to keep the noise down. The worst thing about an entertainment PC is the noise and thankfully, Antec thought of that with this case.
The front of the case houses a built-in LCD and a stealthed optical drive bay. The bottom front has the power and reset buttons and a few ports including eSATA. eSATA is increasingly being used in high bandwidth external block devices (like external hard drive) and it is nice to see included on the front of this unit. The bottom left of the unit contains the subtle Antec logo in white.
Cooling is an important factor in picking a case to use especially when you need to have a quiet system as well. There are a few ways to get good cooling. We'll go over them when looking at the internal parts of the case. The front vent houses a fan and the back vent is for the power supply vent.
The back of the case contains the motherboard I/O as well as the half height add on slots. Remember that you need to use half height (also known as low profile) cards in this case and there are many varieties of cards than have this form factor. The PSU is a small form factor variant seen on the right.
The right side of the case features two fans that vent over the motherboard for good cooling. One of the minuses of a smaller case is that you need to use smaller fans. Antec makes up for this by including many small fans. That in turn has another minus which we'll get to later.
There are two different type of feet on this case. The front feet have a nice shiny metallic exterior and the rear feet have the all rubber look. The front feet are visible and the back aren't which is why there is a difference. This is also a cost cutting measure and with the economy what it is today, we need all the help we can get.
Antec makes superb computer cases for all types of situations. One of the latest markets of custom cases is the entertainment PC. There are specific requirements for a PC that fits with a home theater setup including good cooling and a small A/V form factor. Antec has a new case called the Micro Fusion Remote 350 which targets this exact market.
Packaging:
Antec usually does a nice job packaging their products even when shipped. The box is sturdy and the case is well protected with foam. This is pretty standard stuff today.
Parts:
Other than the case, you get a few parts including screws, stand offs, a power cable, instructions, and a remote for use with media center functionality.
Micro Fusion:
The case itself is black with nice silver accents. This color scheme fits nicely with current A/V components and would look fine in a living room. One thing you will see when using this case is its attention to cooling. There are many fans that or controllable to keep the noise down. The worst thing about an entertainment PC is the noise and thankfully, Antec thought of that with this case.
The front of the case houses a built-in LCD and a stealthed optical drive bay. The bottom front has the power and reset buttons and a few ports including eSATA. eSATA is increasingly being used in high bandwidth external block devices (like external hard drive) and it is nice to see included on the front of this unit. The bottom left of the unit contains the subtle Antec logo in white.
Cooling is an important factor in picking a case to use especially when you need to have a quiet system as well. There are a few ways to get good cooling. We'll go over them when looking at the internal parts of the case. The front vent houses a fan and the back vent is for the power supply vent.
The back of the case contains the motherboard I/O as well as the half height add on slots. Remember that you need to use half height (also known as low profile) cards in this case and there are many varieties of cards than have this form factor. The PSU is a small form factor variant seen on the right.
The right side of the case features two fans that vent over the motherboard for good cooling. One of the minuses of a smaller case is that you need to use smaller fans. Antec makes up for this by including many small fans. That in turn has another minus which we'll get to later.
There are two different type of feet on this case. The front feet have a nice shiny metallic exterior and the rear feet have the all rubber look. The front feet are visible and the back aren't which is why there is a difference. This is also a cost cutting measure and with the economy what it is today, we need all the help we can get.