Cooltek W1 Review

[section_title title=Introduction]Introduction

Brand: Cooltek Powered by Jonsbo
Model: W1
RRP: £94.99

Since 2003, Cooltek have been offering high quality products at very competitive prices. The focus of their product range is high quality PC cases which always combine exceptional functionality, an attractive design and excellent product quality, especially in their respective price range.

From compact HTPC solutions, such as the award-winning CoolCube family, to appealing to midi towers which offer extensive features at very reasonable prices, Cooltek offer a suitable model for almost any purpose. Recently we have also seen Cooltek delve into the cooler domain, releasing a handful of small CPU coolers to complement their range of chassis under the CoolForce name.

Today I am taking a look at the W1, their latest chassis to emerge from the Cooltek skunkworks. Featuring a lightweight but attractive brushed aluminium construction, spacious interior and LianLi-esque styling, Cooltek look to have made a very good and competitive case. As we know all too well now, its one thing quoting figures from paper, but what we are all interested in is real world use so without further ado, its on to the testing.

What Cooltek have to say about the W1:

Under the label “Cooltek – powered by Jonsbo” we present high-quality housing for demanding users. The “W1” is aimed at customers who want to create a compact Mini-ITX base a powerful gaming system. Here, the W1 offers a timeless design line with a an attractive, classic exterior in aluminum. The case is black and silver in color variations. The front of the W1 is kept very simple – only the slot-in bay for an optical drive in slim design stands out. The angular design “banished” the power and reset button, as well as the I / O panel on the right side of the case in order to preserve the uniform simple design line The chassis of the W1 is made of high quality 0.8 – made of 1 mm thick SGCC steel and gives the case maximum stability. The front consists of brushed, 1.5 mm thick aluminum, sides and lid even from 2.0 mm thick aluminum. Air intakes in the left side panel and under the lid allow optimal air exchange.

 The real strength of W1 is revealed when the side and top to be removed: The internal structure is designed for maximum compatibility and allows the installation of most efficient components. The interior of W1 is twofold: On the lower level high-end power supplies can be installed without space restriction. In addition, “SSD are easily installed. Up to two 2.5 on the housing bottom if necessary In the upper part there is the HDD cage for the decoupled mounting of up to four 3.5 “is geared drives. The hard drives are here simply provided with vibration-decoupled and screws inserted into the existing manholes. Installation is incredibly easy and guaranteed alike that disturbing vibrations are damped. Above the HDD cage to place the mounting frame which accommodates a 5.25 “slot-in drive in slimline format. Assembly of the mainboard is done in W1 lying on the mainboard support above the power supply. This configuration offers several advantages:

 Firstly, has the W1 as two separate thermal zones – the area of the power supply is separated from the upper part of the motherboard, video card and CPU cooler.  In addition, thus high-end graphics cards with a maximum of 320 mm in length, and CPU cooler with an installation height of up to 215 mm can be accommodated in W1. ‘s ventilation system of W1 is also designed for maximum performance. In order to ventilate the upper portion of the interior perfectly, each one 140 mm fan is installed behind both the front and on the rear panel. The front fan ensures perfect cooling of the installed hard drives, the fan on the rear panel carries the heated air of the CPU cooler and graphics card from efficient. Air intakes in the left part guarantee that even powerful graphics cards can suck in enough fresh air. And the lid is a large area provided with air holes. 

If necessary, this can be two 120 or 140 mm fan installed. Dust filters in the front of the housing, under the floor, on the back wall and in the lid prevent dust from outside entering the enclosure. Also, we have accommodated support for compact water cooling solutions from other manufacturers. If desired, can be under the cover of 240 mm Slim radiators install – or compact 120/140 mm models. An enclosed frame exchange, which replaces the the optical drive bracket, can be used in the installation of appropriate length radiators to provide the necessary space. Please note that the use of 240 mm radiators no optical drive more can be mounted. To simplify the installation of external water cooling components has the W1 has two rubberised passages in the rear wall. The housing perched on vibration-decoupled case feet. Externally, the user has two USB 3.0 “Super Speed” ports. Thus, external drives or USB flash drives can be connected quickly and easily.