Raidmax Scorpio Silver Aluminum Case
Remember back in the mid-80's, an animated show
called Voltron? Well, every time I glance at the brilliantly-blue backlit "Z" on the front
of the Raidmax Scorpio case that is the first thing that pops
into my head...
So let's just get this next part out of the way quickly; like it or hate it,
the chromed "Z" is what defines the Scorpio case the most, and while it
reminds me of a dead-end in case design evolution, let's not be too quick to
damn the rest of Raidmax's mid-tower case.
The all-aluminum Scorpio Silver has two important
design features that should get the gamer in your family salivating; the first
is the classic "Z" on the front 5.25" bay cover door, and the second is a
pre-installed clear plastic window on the side, complete with an 80mm
coloured-LED fan. A fashionable chromed fan grill covers the
side intake fan, which also glows nicely in a darkened room.
While the Raidmax case doesn't come with any powersupply,
retailing for just $80USD makes this fully aluminum case pretty affordable - and
hey you don't have to swap out the generic 300W PSU that would have
been
bundled! The lack of a bundled powersupply may seem like a shortcoming, but
since Raidmax are going for the gamer crowd, this allows the user
to customize the case with a powersupply suited to their needs.
There are plenty of PSUs
to choose from, some with LED fans, some with ultra-quiet fans for low noise
applications, or some that are renown for their stable voltages and dependable
power transformation. The choice may seem daunting, but PCstats has a whole
section of powersupplies we've tested, so feel free to have a look.
The Raidmax Scorpio comes
in a coat of metallic silver paint, and features a set of USB ports up front behind a secret flap.
The USB
ports can be hooked up to any motherboard for either USB1.1 or USB 2.0 support. While there is space for a few other
jacks in in this area, the Scorpio is strangely empty - other
cases we've seen that followed this design had Firewire or even audio jacks here which would have been equally as useful.
Add to that removable HDD bays, quick change 5.25" bay
rails, exhaust and intake fans, you can see why this case design has
become one of the most popular ever. If you have a bland white "white box" there's no excuse anymore!