Size Comparison:
So what about the size? Let's compare it to two different cases. The first is a MSI Mega 180 SFF system, and the second is the HEC Group 6C28 ATX Case, used in a previous review.
 
As you can see, the Ultra Products MicroFly case is considerably bigger than the MSI Mega 180 SFF system. This is probably a good thing, as trying to keep the MSI Mega cool seems to be impossible.
 
When comparing to the HEC case we can see that the MicroFly is much smaller, in both height and length, however it is also much wider. So while you lose height and length, you gain width.
Testing:
Finally, I will be taking a look at the temperatures inside the case. One of the biggest problems in small cases is that they tend to not move enough air to keep the components cool. Ultra Products realizes this and is why they included both a 80mm intake fan and a 120mm exhaust fan. Again, having the extra PSU fan though would have been nice. So let's take a look at how that same system ran in both the HEC and the Ultra Products cases. To be fair, the HEC has one intake and one exhaust 92mm, 38CFM fans.
Here we can see that over all the case does a pretty good job, it does add several degrees to the CPU and video card temperatures when under load, however oddly not the system temps!?! You can also see that the ambient temperatures seem to have gone up slightly on the Ultra Products case, so this would explain at least some of the heat gains. But over all, the Ultra Products case did a really good job. Still, it would actually be nice to have maybe a little higher CFM fan, but one that is still quiet. Speaking of quiet, the Ultra Products case with the 120mm and 80mm fans are no more noisy than the 92mm fans that were in the HEC case. This leads me to believe that they are right around the 25db level.
The Ultra Products case also includes a carrying handle, allowing you to easily pick up the system and move it, or take it to your local LAN party. When I carried the case around by the handle, it didn't feel right. I can't say for sure what the problem is, but it made me nervous to carry around my computer by the included handle. The handle appears to be made of plenty thick hard plastic that I don't think would break, and I have no reason to believe that it would come off from the rest of the case. However, I just didn't feel safe carrying it by the handle.
|
|
