Bigger! Better! Nicer! - ATX cases roundup test

22 products related to this article

A+ Roma

With a weight of just 3.5 kilos, the A+ Roma is by far the lightest case in this test. Of course this is achieved by only using aluminum as the base material. The exterioir of the case is very slick: the target audience for this case is definitely not gamers and overclockers, but if you're building the a nice and powerful multimedia-PC this might be the case for you. Halfway the frontpanel A+ has integrated a LCD-display that shows the casetemperature and the speed of the casefans. With the buttons below the display you can alter the rotation speed of the fans. It's definitely not special that A+ has implemented frontpanel connectors in the top of the frontpanel, but what is exceptional is the presence of an eSATA connector among these. With a standard SATA cable this can be connected to one of the SATA-connectors on your mainboard. DVD-drives can be placed behind brackets with an integrated eject button. For this to work it's mandatory to use drives where this button sticks out a little. Inside the case we find room for two 12 cm fans, one in the front and one in the back. Unfortunately A+ omits to bundle either one of these fans. The case features a clever rails system for fitting the drives, which makes the use of a screwdriver unnhecessary. Further details on the inside are not very special. The retail price is not very high, especially when you consider that the case is 100% aluminum.

Pros: Extremely light with a stylish and sober design. eSATA connection on the front panel.
Cons: Aluminium used could have been a touch thicker to add some rigidy to the design.
Conclusion: A good starting point for a stylish and powerfull multimedia pc.