14 DAY TRIAL // A computer chassis is not only designed to protect the hardware components that it houses but also to assure there is a good air flow in order to cool them and provide an easy access way to all components if the need arises to service or replace one of them. While traditionally the most sought after computer cases are the medium height towers, there is now a trend to build computers using micro ATX mainboards that can fit nicely into some smaller cases like the mini tower chassis from Asus, the TM-22.
A mini tower case may not provide a computer with lots and lots of space, so it may not be particularly well suited for a high end machine, but for the casual gamer and average computer user, a mini tower can save space. Asus announced a new such mini tower computer chassis, the TM-22 series, which features a stylish looking casing and offers high performance alongside the usual sturdiness of all branded computer cases. The TM-22 is built as a continuation of the design lines found on the TM-21 series and it comes with some small design changes and improvements, while maintaining a minimalistic design and implementing some thermal innovation to enable high-performance computing.
The design lines of the Tm-22 series feature a mirror-polished finishing over the entire casing including the drive bays and front input/output ports in order to deliver a smooth and elegant outlook, while the silver framing of the case provides contrast with the blue LED power indicator and hard disk drive indicator light. For the best air cooling of the housed computer hardware parts, the Asus TM-22 comes with several flexible fan options like the space for an 80mm rear facing fan which can also accommodate a bigger 90mm cooler as well as an 80mm front facing one. Passive airflow is encouraged by the presence of big rear and bottom venting holes, so the heat dissipation is increased, maintaining the system temperature at optimal operational levels.
For a mini tower computer chassis the Asus TM-22 case offers plenty of space, the drive bay area being large enough to accommodate three 3.5 inch hard disk drives as well as the input/output ports, while the upper part of the casing offers room for another two 3.5 inch drives and two 5.25 inch optical devices. Alongside these storage options the new Asus case comes with a data security lock, USB and IEEE 1394, which provides scalability for future upgrades.