Antec Mini P180 Micro-ATX Case Review
- Thursday, August 27, 2009, 14:13
- Cases, Reviews
- 21,315 views
- 11 comments
| Next Page » |
Introduction
Antec’s Performance One chassis range has evolved greatly over the years from the original P180 which has then taken on a series of updates, revisions and improvements with the latest edition being the P183.
Due to these cases being compatible with all form factor motherboards up to and including ATX, the chassis are understandably large and spacious. With this in mind, Antec created the mini P180 aimed at the more niche market – users with micro-ATX rigs.
Featuring a similar, yet smaller, layout to the larger chassis’ in the range, the mini P180 is marketed as being an excellent gaming enclosure as well as easy to transport. On paper everything sounds rosy so let’s see how it shapes up as we look a little closer….
Antec’s Take on Mini P180
The reliability, performance, and versatility of the Antec Performance One series is now available in a stylishly small enclosure, perfect for gamers on the move. The Mini P180 boasts a heat-reducing dual chamber design with room for your microATX motherboard, power supply, and up to 5 hard drives. Sound-deadening multi-layer side panels and silicone grommets ensure quiet computing, while 120 mm and 200 mm fans provide optimal cooling. Top it off with a sleek interior black finish and front USB, audio, and eSATA ports, and you won’t believe the quality we’ve fit into this petite portable case.
Features
- Unique upper and lower chamber structure: the power supply resides in a separate chamber to isolate heat from the system and lower system noise.
- Stylish black interior
- No power supply included: to optimize the performance of your Mini P180, your choice of power supply is crucial. Antec strongly recommends choosing from our Signature or TruePower series.
- Configurable to accommodate graphics cards with full length PCBs
- 8 Drive Bays
• External 3 x 5.25″; 1 x 3.5″
• Internal 5 x 3.5″ for HDD - Cable organization for added convenience and better airflow
- Innovative three-layer side panel (aluminium, plastic, aluminium) dampens system generated noise, making this one of the quietest cases available
- Cooling System:
• 1 rear (standard) 120mm x 25mm TriCool Fan
• 1 top (standard) 200mm x 25mm TriCool fan
• 2 front chamber (optional) 120mm Fan
• Exterior speed control switches - Compatible Motherboards: up to microATX
- 4 Expansion Slots
- Double hinge door designed to open up to 270°
- Front ports:
• 2 x USB 2.0
• 1 x eSATA
• Audio In and Out (AC’ 97 and HDA) - 0.8mm cold rolled steel for durability through the majority of chassis
- Unit dimensions:
• 17.1″(H) x 8.3″(W) x 17.2″(D)
• 43.5cm(H) x 21.2cm(W) x 43.6cm(D) - Package dimensions:
• 20″(H) x 11.1″(W) x 20.3″(D)
• 51.0cm(H) x 28.3cm(W) x 51.5cm(D) - Weight:
• Net: 20.9 lbs / 9.5 kg
• Gross: 24.4 lbs / 11.1 kg
| Next Page » |
(No Ratings Yet)- Share
- Printable version
About the Author
Joe has written 336 stories on this site.
11 Comments on “Antec Mini P180 Micro-ATX Case Review”
Trackbacks
- Antec Mini P180 Micro-ATX Case Review @ Verdis Reviews - TestFreaks Forum - Geeky discussions about Consumer Electronics
- Daily Technology News | moddersguide
- It’s A Case Extravaganza! | MEGATechNews :: Mega Techie Goodness For the Masses
Write a Comment
Gravatars are small images that can show your personality. You can get your gravatar for free today!
If you put the Hard drives in the top removable bay and removr the bottom removable hard driver bay there is plenty of room for even the largest Video card. See picture on this forum
http://www.silentpcreview.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=46848&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=60&sid=bb5cf8091c4894e75091e038307ff3a4
Yes this is a good point but i still feel it would have been better to make the main chamber a little wider in order to accodomodate larger graphics cards if users have mutliple HDDs.
The Top Removable Hard drive tray holds 3 hard drives and if you wish you can put 2 more in the front bays in the Power supply section. With 1T drives being so cheap, I am not sure you need even 3 let alone many more unless you are a P0rn Collector
Joe, if they made the case any wider it would be full atx size. My only quibble is that it would be nice if the hard disk cages were rotated 90 degrees so that the ends of the hard disk are pointed towards the side of the case making them easier to swap out and connect, have seen this feature on other cases and it is very handy.
Grayson, yes this is a very good point and it would also make connecting up the power and SATA cables to the hard drives much easier as you are not having to contend with PCI devices making it quite fiddly to get everything plugged in.
This series of cases P1xx all have the drives facing the front instead of the side. Probably because the entire front is the air intake and rotating them sideways would block the airflow with the side of the HD cage.
This is a very nice case, the problem I have with it is that it is the same size as some mid-tower ATX sizes, and the whole point of moving to mATX is to have a smaller build (at least it is for me).
Cooler Master cases typically have the drives sideways. They are easier to install but you get almost no airflow into the main portion of the case.