APEX MI-100 Black / Mirror finish Computer Case

Comment:
Effectively constructed. "Feels" like a good quality case. The mirror finish on the front is a nice touch and comes protected with peel off plastic. Properly, the complete black gloss finish of the case is protected with peel-off plastic on each and every side. A really nice touch if you ask me. Front Panel connectors are nicely labeled and the power LED is split to accommodate any header. a lot of cable length on anything. Smaller, but not tiny. When on its side, its short and narrow, but its depth is longer than expected. The supplied 250W PSU is smaller than regular, but nonetheless too major to use if you have a long DVD or CD-ROM drive. I removed mine and replaced it with a 60W DC-DC power board and external power brick. This now signifies there are NO FANS in my case, which stinks. The gloss paint job is fairly but shows fingerprints extremely easily. When it comes down to it, the cost is just a bit high for what you get IMO. Overall, this is a greater than typical case. I've seen some actual dogs, and seen some exceptional examples. This is neither. Just a fantastic case. I too believed it was a silly design to have good ventilation on the side but then put the challenging drive mount there so it blocks it almost entirely. Also, dont assume like I did that you can just mount the HDD in the floppy bay, since you cant. Just not adequate clearance there for it. I tried numerous distinct approaches but ended up getting to mount the HDD in the supplied rails and mounted on the side covering the vent.

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I have nothing to say as they sent me a applied & scratched up case scratched up case The protective plastic was pulled off & the Mirror finish was all scratched up!

Comment:
Mini ITX case, 250 W PSULess expensive than other mini ITX situationsTakes normal size DVD / CD drive Poor ventilation. The chassis holes are blocked by the hard drive and there is no place to mount a case fan. Not appropriate for the new Intel DG45FC mini ITX board with Core2Duo processor due to poor ventilation and probabilities of overheating

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little no vents need to have vents

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Compact, but enough space for cables and fingers. I pulled the PS to make the install less complicated but I could in all probability have worked about it. Ventilation sufficient for the Zotac IconITX 1.6GHz mobo I put in there, including the 4GB memory. I use it for streaming audio and playing flaacs only. Took Ubuntu Karmic with no a hitch. Looks clean in my media center. Very quiet and I like the low power consumption (reporting 37 watts at idle with every little thing hooked up). The bezel was flimsy and didn't fit tight, causing the DVD door to occasionally not open. Not a deal breaker but the style could have been executed far better. I employed a couple of old plastic case fan screws by way of the guides on the bezel/case to fasten the bezel down and the DVD door functions perfectly now.I (stupidly) reinstalled the power supply upside down so it didn't vent CPU heat. As soon as I fixed that the CPU reported about 76 degrees right after an hour.

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I built an atom 330 system in this case and the complete install went seamlessly. I love the appear of this case with the mirror front; incredibly classy. The cost was my greatest "pro" as it was the cheapest mini-itx offered at time of purchase. none; it serves its purpose perfectly. This case is a great obtain. On sale or not, it's worth it.

Comment:
Sturdy, Quiet, A lot of space. Two HDDs. One the side HDD space and one in the 5.25 bay. 3.25 bay not drilled for HDD. Only 1 SATA power, but a IDE/SATA energy adapter cable fixes that. Front panel LEDs hard to see. Surface show fingerprints quickly. Front panel susceptible to scratching. Not all CD/DVDs will fit, but shorter ones are easily offered. (I don't need 1). Front bezel had broken tab. Get rid of PSU initially, put back last.

Comment:
-It is a case and the energy supply worked. -Flimsy case with vent holes only on 1 side of case-Flimsy low-cost plastic spring loaded/hinged front plates-Low cost "metallic mirror" finish on front that chip/break.Bottom-line:-Too a lot fake "sizzle" and not enough meat. I purchased this case to deliver a Xmas gift PC for a relative that desperately required a price-helpful upgrade. Becoming a gift, I didn't want to give them a shotty unit that reflected poorly on my selection, but that is specifically what I got in this case. You cannot tell immediately from the pictures that this case tries to be a small too "cute" and juvenile in style and nature. Those aren't faceplates on the front but "k-rad" spring doors and hinged port covers. It is a wonderful deal tacky with incredibly low cost develop plastic and even comes with "shiny fake metallic mirror" finish....I merely longed for a decent case that was effectively sized and priced for a Mini-ITX build, absolutely nothing far more, nothing less. Certainly this case was not it. As a skilled Cisco CCIE engineer, I have significantly encounter on the technical front as properly as constructing PCs given that the mid 80s, so I have a lot of genuine-world rig making expertise. It is just sad that today there is so a lot accurate junk out there.

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This case is the least expensive uITX case I could find but thinking about the price, the construct top quality was great. The 250W PS has a lot more than enough connectors and included a SATA energy connector. This case is HOT!! The PS fan is the only source of air movement and I guess sound was much more important than coolness since the PS fan is so slow it is incredibly very but doesn't move any air. So this makes the case hot. I had a issue with the energy button being too lengthy which triggered the power button to be partly depressed when the front face was put on. This brought on the computer to periodically energy up and down as the face of the case was hit. This was resolved with a little function from a sharp knife. I'm employing this case to contain my residence server/NAS which was a Intel D945GCLF2 with the Atom 330 for a processor along with a 2GB stick of GSKILL memory and a WD 1TB HD. The whole setup operates well with Ubunut linux.

Comment:
PCI expansion slot, quiet fan on power provide, room for second SATA drive, 2x USB and audio in/out on front panel. Nice finish on the case, but if I was ordering once again, I would get the MI-08 with the black front instead of mirrored. Hard drive mounting holes weren't placed appropriately (or bracket was bent improperly); new holes had to be drilled to secure the HDD. Some optical drives will not fit (like the Panasonic 107), mainly because they are too lengthy; this is most likely only an concern with older drives. This was my first household-built personal computer. A Mini-ITX Hackintosh is almost certainly not the very best location to start developing, but I'm adventurous like that. I had no complications assembling everything, but space is extremely tight (as it will be with any Mini-ITX program).

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Cheap, very good seeking, easy to operate with, and effectively produced for its cost point. The front is WAY to shiny. It's been pointed out several occasions here, but I have to agree. Let me put it like this. Plain and basic, its just a mirror. Apex built the case with a mirror for the front. It's alos a plastic mirror that attracts prints and dust like you wouldnt think.An additional con are the feet. The rubber feet are fine for when the unit is horizontal. But when the case is vertical (as in the images) the feet are so small that the leave little space for air. See, the side of the case is where the vent holes are situated. When in the vertical position, the side becomes the bottme and the vent has extremely restricted clearance. Two sets of feet would solve this. 1 thicker for vertical and the thinner feet for the horizontal position. Each this case and it's older brother the Apex MI-008 are the identical. Only the outer shell is diverse. They will accecpt socket AM2 or 775 sort ITX mobo's but cooling can be an concern. The ATOM and By way of based mobos will not have cooling issues at all. Either case is good looking, quiet and easy to perform with. The PSU is truly cheap and of dubious good quality. It'll get the job carried out, but you risk your rig. I've utilised a few of these now and I feel the threat is worth the cost. If you want to add ฮ+ for a better PSU then you may well as nicely skip this and get a far better case appropriate from the get go.

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Sturdy, modest, and typically nicely thought out. Looks wonderful. Can't have two devices on the IDE connector. Ought to use at least 1 SATA.

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Pretty good case at a excellent price. I just thought I'd mention that the PSU now has a SATA connection. I paired it with a Intel D945GCLF and it's a nice combo. None truly. cable routing is difficult but that's true of any mini-itx case.

Comment:
Very affordable. It has a modest footprint. Front panel hinges are extremely weak and the standoffs are portion of the case mold. They still function. I just prefer the genuine screw in ones. There is nor room to tie off excess cable length. The cables included with the case require a lot more room than what is given. Worth the cash. Get what you pay for.

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All the components fit (eventually), the power supply worked (mostly) and it does appear good. Fitting components was a bit problematic. I installed the ZOTAC NF630I-D-E LGA 775 board with a single core Celeron Conroe. Even although this CPU comes with the smallest cooler that Intel supplies, the fan was not only in physical contact with the PSU casing, the bottom-mounted fan was opposing the CPU fan resulting in poor cooling. I replaced the stock cooler with a 1U server cooler and clearance is considerably much better, although it is also louder. I didn't expect to mod a stock case just to fit the components and my create was costlier than desired. For the cost I wasn't expecting considerably...and neither really should you. While the shiny finish looks very good, the metal is a bit flimsy. Make confident to check cooler clearances cautiously.

Comment:
Sharp design, overall nice visual presentation. Case is quite tiny, but fits every little thing you will need inside. Some of the critiques below this one recommend that the CD/DVD drive is too major to fit, but these people did not get rid of the front panel prior to sliding in the drive. It's detachable, you have to eliminate it prior to adding in internal drives, even the hdd is easier to install by removing the front. I applied the case for a media/emulate box for my tv. Works great. Note: don't forget to get rid of the plastic on the front silver portion of the case, it appears you can't get rid of it, but you can. Small has its limits, but its nothing compared to the convenience of a tiny case, depending on what you use it for. Fingerprints will show on slick case, but absolutely nothing that can't be cleaned off. No fans on case, don't see room for one either. Low power mobo, and proc in all probability don't need to have the added exhaust anyways. No complications as a result far. Good get, would recommend it to pals, and would acquire once more.

Comment:
Well constructed case with a good finish, quite attractive and pretty smaller. Makes it possible for for use of full sized optical and challenging drives, as well as a 3.5 inch external expansion. Have not had any issues with the power supply, accept with the length of cabling. Had a small valley itx 220 celeron board in here, and it was operating at 70-72 degrees Celsius. In open air it runs at about 30... Difficult drive was in between 55 and 60C, ahead of I noticed and shut every thing down for dis-assembly.Not certain I'm definitely surprised, there are Zero fans in this case (unless you can't the PSU, which I don't) and 1 air intake vent, which is nearly entirely blocked when you install a tough drive.There are no obvious or practical approaches to increase upon this situation except maybe the one I have discovered below.If you already own this case, or the black version read on... Otherwise I would advise simply buying a shuttle barebones. Shuttles just aren't substantially much more high-priced than this box and a board (bought 3 for 50-100 bucks every single right after rebate last month), plus they have much better cooling and power supplies, and newer models are roughly this size. Have had this box for about a year, and simply have not wanted to put anything else in it to bake to death. Though deciding no matter whether to recycle it, I took it apart and realized that a 120mm fan can be popped into place exactly where the Challenging drive is supposed to be.It takes some force, and some adjustment to ensure the fan can spin, but soon after wards it works rather nicely.With a 120mm fan blowing in from the vent, and a pci-slot exhaust fan in the 1 expansion slot, temperatures increase significantly. The exact same board which was running over 70C is now below 35C, and it encouraged me to acquire a greater board/CPU to lug around in this box. Only dilemma now is exactly where to put the HDD, at the moment it's velcro'd to the bottom under the three.five" external bay.Now have an e7200 in this box with a stock cooler (applied with MX-2 thermal paste), and idle temperatures are now about 25C, which is room temp. Only down side getting the boost in noise, which will vary significantly on which fans you make a decision to

Comment:
Components fit nicely in case, and the included power supply is quiet and has 3 molex and 1 sata connectors for you to use. Case looks wonderful!!! None This case is the proud new property of a Intel D945GCLF2 technique with pqi TURBO 2GB DDR2 memory, Powercolor Radeon HD 2400Pro PCI card, 500GB HDD, and a Optiarc DVD Burner operating Vista Household Premium 64-Bit like a champ!!!

Comment:
I was seeking for a modest case. I was surprised at how smaller this thing really ended up becoming. I was able to fit DVD+R, & HDD along with the MB, RAM, and CPU in the case with little interference from the included PSU.The case design appears quite solid. All screws lined up perfectly.Powerful energy supply compared to similarly sized instances. There is a incredibly tight fit. I couldn't basically screw the HDD in spot since it wouldn't have fit that far back. It would have been blocking the memory slots. The PSU and CPU fans are extremely close. In reality, they are touching. This causes the machine to run hotter than I would like, but not so hot that it's of any concern.Some of the motherboard mounting screws were difficult to access because they had been directly under one of the support bars. I was looking for a little case to use for a HTPC. This one worked out nicely for me. There had been some tight space constraints, but I think many of these could have been worked out by a distinct motherboard layout. Often attaching cables was tricky, but I think that ought to be expected with a case this little. This is probably additional a result of my fat fingers than the small case. I would suggest this case to any individual who required a laptop or computer to fit in a small space.

Comment:
Solid chassis, doesn't rely on outer case for stability. Comes with an ample power supply. You virtually have to be seeking appropriate at the energy and hdd lights to see if they are on. The internal SFX energy supply is nice to have, particularly because most mini-itx cases come with a 60W external energy brick, which reportedly can\'t often energy on the Intel 945CG motherboard.For the folks having issues fitting an optical drive, the LITE-ON iHAS120-04 fits with about an inch and a half of space between the drive and the power supply.For any individual purchasing this with an Intel 945CG, the noise is commonly coming from the Intel's northbridge chipset fan, not the power supply.

Comment:
Incredibly good top quality for the price, front USB and audio ports. No issue in fitting the MB and the HDD (I have not installed an optical drive or floppy). Primarily the noise. Not positive if it's the MB fan (an Intel D945GCLF, really nice board by the way) or the PSU although. It is not genuinely loud, but if you keep the pc near you it can grow to be a bit irritating. If you are seeking for something fully silent, you may appear for a case that has an external PSU (but they seem to be a lot more expensive). The case is bigger than I thought (like a huge shoe box). For a PC with not optical or floppy drives this is perhaps not the finest space saver. My PSU comes with a SATA connector.

Comment:
Small case internal psu, easy mounting of 3.5" hdds. Psu unit sits right ontop of cpu. I am employing with cel 430 and stock cooler. The psu touches the top of the cooler and worse yet vents hot air correct on the cpu. Dont purchase if your preparing to use with anything other then atom or 35w processors otherwise cooling will be a massive challenge. My cel runs at 40-60c because of the psu vent. i removed the psu and it ran 20-25c.

Comment:
Not really high-priced. Acceptable create quality. Enough space for 2xHDD and 1xDVD-drive, or 3x HDD, but 1-two disks will be "freely" hanging (only 1 dedicated 3.5" HDD slot). The DVD-drive slot is 5,25" sized. Rather a lot of space inside. Works with Intel D201GLY2 board nicely. The DVD-drive 5,25" slot is not totally usable for something else than DVD (or internal disk), as the opening to outside has space only for the DVD/CD tray. Can\'t mount a display etc in that. The power-supply fan is not sufficient to cool the D201GLY2. I installed a different fan in the case temporarily and underpowered it to 5V (to minimize noise). Works OK considering that then.I have 2xHDD in the box, no DVD-drive, plus the D201GLY2 board (home file/web server) The power-supply seems to be OK with that. I'm not certain if I could add something additional 鳖W). Not a challenge although.

Comment:
Glossy paint, mirror completed, take full size DVD drives and PCI hardwares, 250W power supply included. No actual place to mount fan for air flow (must be creative in order to add 1). This case does gets hot. For some reason my power supply screams like a jet, even my wife got annoyed of it. I'm thinking about purchasing a different case at the mean time. If you want to install a 45nm Intel CPU in this case, the power supply will be resting on best of the fan. I'm thinking having a C2D 45nm CPU and a Zotac board may trigger high heat and loud sounds. Trigger some individuals here stated that theirs are quiet.

Comment:
It's been running continuously for more than 2 weeks now with no overheating. I put in an intel mobo with celeron 3300 CPU. I haven't installed a fan in the side as others have and no issues. It is very quiet. I would buy another.