14 DAY TRIAL // Even though news is always in short supply around the holidays, some companies take advantage of this to grab the last bits of spotlight by introducing a product at the last minute. Gigabyte, for instance, chose to set up a microsite dedicated to the USB 3.0 and NVIDIA disclosed a bit more on its upcoming next-generation ION chip in order to keep consumer interest high. Cooler Master, on the other hand, went for a more traditional approach and revealed a new mid-tower chassis capable of housing the latest 300mm graphics card models.
The steel chassis is able to accommodate the aforementioned 300mm cards thanks to its wide body design, with the actual dimensions being 214 (W) x 483 (H) x 508 (D) mm. The case is compatible with mATX and ATX motherboards, has four exposed 5.25-inch drive bays, one exposed 3.5-inch bay and has enough room for CPU coolers as high as 165mm. Also, the USP has its interior designed in such a way as to provide quite a bit of room behind the motherboard tray for easy cable routing. The board tray also features a cutout for easier CPU cooler installation.
Inside airflow is enabled by just one 120mm intake fan with a red LED light. Exhaust fans are optional but may come in multiple sizes, namely of 80mm, 90mm and 120mm. Not exactly the most impressive of cooling solutions but neither is cutting-edge cooling required for mid-end configurations. Among extra features of the USP 100 mid-tower are built-in front air filters and an all-mesh front panel.
In order to keep any system up and running, the case is bundled with a 550W power supply belonging to the Extreme Power Plus series. This PSU, although not exactly the most efficient (70%), has a mean time before failure (MTBF) of 100,000 hours.
Unfortunately, the product will only be available in North America, Mexico, Canada and Latin America, with no mention being made of availability in UK or anywhere else. Still, consumers who do have access to the case will be rather pleased with the retail price of only $99, especially considering that the PSU alone costs $65 in retail shops.