Experienced case maker Lian Li has unveiled a radical rethink of the
PC case, the new PC-100. The PC-100 is a long overdue redesign of the
traditional PC chassis that improves cooling, prolongs component life,
and saves space. This beautiful and compact mid tower case is roomy
enough for the longest graphics cards and largest E-ATX/XL-ATX/ATX
motherboards, thanks to its innovative layout. It is also remarkably
easy to assemble without tools. Lian Li’s innovative PC-100 is a breath
of fresh air for the stagnant PC case market.
Superior cooling helps CPUs and graphics cards run at maximum speed
without slowdowns or crashes due to overheating. This also means higher
speeds for overclockers, and extends the life of disk drives and
motherboards. However, traditional case layouts have two serious
barriers to optimal cooling, performance, and ease-of-use: firstly, they
block airflow with a wall of hard disk drives inside the front of the
case. Secondly, important ports and connectors are at the back, making
them difficult to access – a defect that manufacturers can only try to
address by adding a few front panel connectors.
The PC-100′s radical redesign solves both these problems. For the
first time, a case is available that provides a clear path for cool air
to flow unimpeded across the CPU, chipset, and voltage regulation
components, forcing heat out of the case with maximum efficiency. The
result is a dramatic improvement in cooling performance with standard PC
parts, and no extra cost. The PC-100 actually needs less space than
competing cases, but provides a less cramped interior, easier access to
external connectors, and a shorter, more direct path for airflow.
Two Lian Li innovations have made this breakthrough in cooling
possible. In the PC-100, the motherboard is rotated 180 degrees. So all
those hard-to-reach connectors at the back of traditional PCs are now
easily accessible at the front of the PC-100, and the graphics card is
much closer to cool air drawn in at the front. Meanwhile, the hard disk
drives are moved to the side of the case from their traditional location
at the front (similar to Lian Li’s recently released PC-90 chassis).
The airflow direction remains the same, from the front of the case to
the back, driven by two large, quiet 140mm fans filling the rear of the
case, and another 120mm fan at the front.
Despite this radical redesign, there’s less cable clutter. The front
panel keeps things neat, with a cable access door. If necessary, any
cable can still be routed to the rear or side internally through ducts,
so no extra cables protrude from the front of the case and the front
panel can be opened without unplugging cables.
The PC-100 also offers enhanced hard drive cooling. With the top side
of three hard drives now arranged flat against the outside of the case,
they are able to radiate heat directly to the outside over a bigger
surface area, instead of being crammed together in a stack as they are
in traditional cases. And there’s still unimpeded airflow moving across
every drive.
Unobstructed airflow reduces noise, as well as keeping the PC cooler.
To further control noise and vibration, there are rubber anti-vibration
pads under the case, and the disk drives are isolated with rubber
strips on the hard drive tray.
All the neat Lian Li features that buyers have come to expect are
still there, like washable air filters, a graphics card holder for
stability and protection, and water cooling ports.
There’s space for up to 8 full sized drives and 8 expansion slots.
For removable and optical drives, there are two bays at the front of the
case – at the top to avoid obstructing air flow.
Cool both inside and out, the PC-100′s classic black anodized
aluminum construction and smooth, rounded lines provide the perfect
understated complement to the technical wizardry concealed inside.
Days after a Google commissioned report
was released stating that Internet Explorer was the second most secure
browser – between Chrome and Firefox – a new study has been released by
risk consulting firm Projection Point claims that Internet Explorer
users have a “low risk intelligence”.
