The iStar Nitro AX case is built a layout that goes back several years, and its an arrangement that has seen many tweaks and revisions over time. Internally, the Nitro AX has one of the best layouts in the industry; hard drives are immediately accessible in a fully installed system, optical drives slide in and out smoothly, and a good airflow path keep cool air entering the case and flowing over hot drives and components. The thermally responsive 120mm rear mounted fan is a nice touch, and one of the few measures iStar included to reduce noise generation. The rubber mounting pads under the hard drives being the only real other 'low noise' feature.

The fan duct which mounts to the side of the chassis and extends down right over the processor is a nice touch. With no provision for dust filtering between it and the side panel, we worry that great deal of dust may quickly accumulate on the CPU fan.

In terms of accessibility, the removable motherboard tray is great for smaller boards, allowing the full PC to be assembled on the test bench before it makes it into the iStar Nitro AX chassis. In practical terms though, with large full sized ATX motherboards it is just as easy to leave it in the case and do a standard system install.

The tooless PCI bracket retention mechanism is a great touch, and the tooless entry into the case makes a quick tune up a simple affair. With two spaces for large slow moving case intake fans, a vented side panel and quick release drive bays the iStar Nitro AX case has most of the bases covered.

The large aluminum plate on the front bezel really lacks the punch it might have had with CCFL back lighting, but at least its plain black appearance isn't tacky. The quick access flip down drive slot at the very top of the bezel means you can drop in a CD without opening up the front of the case, and this is something we especially liked. The front bezel door is stiff to open and close, but at least it doesn't swing about widely when fully opened up (it 'pauses' into an open position). We really liked how the door slides back along the side of the case, so it is completely out of the way and there is no chance of bashing into it if your case stays on the floor. The rotatable front panel data connectors are a nice touch too.

On the whole, the workmanship of the iStar Nitro AX case is good. This is pretty well known case frame with a few new front bezel treatments to make it stand out. Regardless if you like the bezel design or not, I think we can all agree it is pretty understated and not too flashy. This case could easily be at home in an office, and best of all because the internal layout is so standardized it is a pleasure to work with. Installing components is not frustrating, and we really like the ease of access that the 90 degree mounted hard drive rack provides. The full tower iStar Nitro AX case retails for $130 CDN ($115 USD, £65GBP), without a power supply.

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