Product ReviewsBitfenix Prodigy mITX Mini-ITX Tower Case Arctic White 1X5.25EXT 5X3.5INT No PS Top USB3.0 HD Audio
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With 18 User Reviews
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 Rating: Review Date: 02/25/14  |
Cons: Bit too wide
Pros: Its small and convenient |
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Rating: Review Date: 07/14/13 |
Cons: - Power supply size limitations.
Pros: - Looks very slick.- Capable of fitting beefy hardware.- Carrying handles.- Very customizable. Comment:
This is my first Mini-ITX case and I'm loving it. Despite its size, you're still able to build yourself one heck of a gaming rig. The only thing I don't like about this case is how hard it was for me to fit my Corsair AX650 power supply. It's in there now, but it took quite a bit of effort to get it mounted. Be sure to check the Prodigy's PSU bay dimensions beforehand. Otherwise, I'm very happy with this case. It fits my EVGA GTX 670, Corsair H80i liquid cooler and my two hard drives without any issues. |
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Rating: Review Date: 05/08/13 |
Cons: none
Pros: colorusb 3.0look Comment:
nice case for 60$. looking very nice , good build |
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Rating: Review Date: 04/25/13 |
Cons: -wobbly
Pros: -can fit a lot of stuff-solidly built-well laid out Comment:
Pretty good itx chassis. endless opportunities to mod though |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/22/13 |
Cons: BIG (for mITX), plastic-feeling handles, bad PSU area design.
Pros: Nice-looking Comment:
I have a Shuttle mITX system and bought this second foray into mITX because I wanted a case that would last longer than the motherboard, and the Shuttle case is so tailored to its motherboards, I'm not certain an alternate mITX board will fit in it when the time comes. I'm not entirely happy with this new case, however.1. It's BIG. I was shocked when I compared it to an old mid tower case - though it is shorter, it is also much wider (to accommodate the mITX board horizontally) and almost as deep. In volume it is almost mid-tower sized and actually takes up more desk/floor space than the tower! Compared to the Shuttle it's monstrous. I like the case, but if you are looking for a mini case (as opposed to a case that accommodates a mITX board) this may not be the one.2. Even with all that space, the PSU area is too tight for a 160mm deep power supply. The opening at the back is offset so the cables can't be run straight through. So there is no choice but to bend the PSU wiring at 90 degrees within less than an inch of space and run then out the sides. A Bitfenix video shows this, explaining that "It's OK the severely bend the cables." That sounds like a patch - the PSU area should have enough space for a decent PSU (especially since you can load the case up with more than a half a dozen HDs.)3. The plastic "handles" at the top seem flimsy. If you do load this up with HDs, video card and a cooler, it's going to be pretty heavy, and I don't get the feeling the "handles" will hold up. If Bitfenix were to argue they are not handles, I'd say they should be, and should be designed as such. It's just too tempting to pick up the box that way.In short, nice case, but not really a small case, and feels a bit beta. |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/07/13 |
Cons: none
Pros: Looks great, works great Comment:
Looks great, works great. Could use some more space though. |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/06/13 |
Cons: None
Pros: Sexy as hell Comment:
This is a very nice looking case with many options for cooling. The internal cable management is decent but the space is limited for the Power Supply Unit and any modular Power Supply Unit would be a tight fit. Aside from that, the case may be slightly wobbly if not sitting on a hard surface. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/13/13 |
Cons: none
Pros: Nice design, handles, removable HDD tray Comment:
Bought to built a ITX machine as my stowm scout was too heavy and hard to travel in LAN party. Removable mesh on top makes it easy to screw motherboard to the case, nice placement of PSU and there is hole on the floor to screw your SSD there and still have place for 2 HDD in case you remove the HDD tray (when you put a decent GPU) |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/30/13 |
Cons: There could be some improvements, though nothing worth to mention if you are a casual user
Pros: A very good product, worth the pricing Comment:
This product is worth your money, I really recommend it, never regret buying it! |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/27/13 |
Cons: Tight fit for any modular PSU, slightly wobbly
Pros: Appearance, Cooling options, Cable management Comment:
This is one good looking case with many options for cooling. The internal cable management is decent but the space is limited for the PSU and any modular PSU would be a tight fit. Aside from that, the case may be slightly wobbly if not sitting on a hard surface. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/04/13 |
Cons: The build quality was not up to snuff with other competitors like coolermaster or antec-Case rivets protruded out too much at places and were quite sharp.-The rubberized "handles" make it quite uncomfortable to carry.
Pros: ITX Case With large sizeHighly modularGreat coolingDust filtersPlenty of SSD mouting options Comment:
This is a slick mini ITX case with a lot of rig options. It was a challenge to manage the cables and ensure all of the haddrives could be hooked up properly. Overall, I'm very impressed with the case aside from the few cons.I wish the handles were more comfortable for the hands for carrying for LAN parties etc.I am looking forward to Bitfenix's second version of this case! |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/24/12 |
Cons: -wobbly feet but wont tip over-kinda heavy for its size
Pros: -metal and plastic is matched very nicely Comment:
Note to buyers. if you are putting this on a hard surface, please make sure that you dont move it much since it does wobble quite a bit |
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Rating: Review Date: 11/29/12 |
Cons: A little bigger in terms of mini-ITX computer case.
Pros: Perfect design, good quality, competitive price. Comment:
Shell is covered by kind of tech skin material, feels good.Inside space design is perfect, many frames for 2.5' harddisk drivers, and enough frames for 3.5'. Additional fan & cooling installation for heat control is easy. Perfect for DIY. |
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Rating: Review Date: 10/14/12 |
Cons: Somewhat largeairflow could be bettercould have better acoustics
Pros: Handleseasy to work inNo compromisefairly modular Comment:
Basically, one of the only ITX cases that allows use of full size graphics card and tower heatsink or watercooling.Airflow for the white version is quite a lot worse than the black version, despite what bitfenix says.Acoustics are also not very good. There are some lose panels that seem to rattle and the top blow hole seems to let a lot of noise through. I would say they are acceptable for a case of this size.It is somewhat large. There are, in fact, smaller mATX cases from silverstone that offer slightly more flexibility.and actually, I think those silverstone cases are better, but this case is prettier and has handles.I would probably wait for version 2, because there are still quite a lot of bad things about this case that can be fixed. |
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Rating: Review Date: 09/17/12 |
Cons: wobblyno rubber feetpeeling soft touch coatingno hole at the back of mobohandles have sharp edges
Pros: lots of room insideplently of watercooling optionsgood airflow Comment:
This is the best mITX case I've used so far. It's a little big but there is lot of room inside to fit big coolers and watercooling gear. Soft Touch coating but because there is no rubber feet, the coating on that part is starting to peel. Top handles are peeling as well. Using this with an Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe, 3570K, Sapphire 7850 and a custom watercooling loop. http://forums.ncix.com/forums/?mode=showthread&forum=101&threadid=2523323&pagenumber=5&msgcount=125&subpage=1An issue I encountered was that there is no hole at the back of the mobo for the CPU backplate. The Swiftech Apogee HD backplate is too thick and does not fit without some modifications. A cutout at the back of the PSU case would have been nice too as there are issues with longer PSUS. An HX650 fits fine but longer ones like AX850 are trickier. |
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Rating: Review Date: 08/12/12 |
Cons: Front panel restricts airflow (Arctic White only)
Pros: Excellent build quality/craftmanship, sturdy despite the flexibility of the FyberFlex material Comment:
I considered every ATX, mATX, and mITX case offered on NCIX.com for use in assembling an HTPC. When I saw this I knew I had to own it. And wow! Am I ever happy with this case. It is amazing. Small, heavy, sturdy, with lots of room and options. $80 well-spent.Highly recommend. |
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Rating: Review Date: 08/12/12 |
Cons: Size can be troublesome at times.
Pros: Great cable management, compact, looks very nice. Comment:
Great case for the price but make sure you can fit all your parts into it before purchasing it. |
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Rating: Review Date: 08/12/12 |
Cons: Filthy, Shockingly poor QC. Bigger than a mITX case needed to be, pretty much a mid-tower but very tight and challenging to work in (expected). Plastic thumbscrews. Bent welded internal drive cage. Broken front panel clips, and on and on (full cons in review) which is really disappointing for such a hyped case.
Pros: Painted steel frame is rigid. Cosmetics are tasteful. Great thermal management and fan options. "Ridiculous" amounts of 2.5" drive bays. Spacious CPU cooler options. Comment:
I've used a wide range of mITX "gaming" chassis, as the segment is very interesting to me. If I were to sum up my experience thus far with this case it would be: "Way oversold with shockingly poor QC."First the Cons, so at least I don't end this on a sour note.- Cheap, cheap, cheap plastic thumbscrews and drive cages (really?!?)- No front panel 3.5" provision, also no stealth drive cover, which would have been more attractive on a white case.- No rubber foot strips to prevent skating- Poor alignment in disc drive holes. (2mm off on one side!)- Case arrived with broken front panel clip, minor but a harbinger i suppose.- Dirty fingerprints all over case, smears of dirt(?!) buried within the assembly. (I'm calling it dirt, but if you case is dirty, breach out the sanitizer...)- Upper drive cage prevents long videocards in stock position. If they moved it 2mm to the right, it would have worked in reverse mode.- Upper drive cage came welded with an offset of 2 degrees. I have never got a non-square drive cage in ANY computer case I have purchased. Ever. At least it flexes enough to still fit.- Power cables on side panel are a pain as access to that panel is greater than most cases, and taking it off requires unhooking a lot of pin headers. Good luck doing this without taking out the videocard.- PCI slot clamp design is clunky and a hassle to deal with. Better to have a simple plain screw bay than the one they came up with.Phew, what a pain. Now to the Pros. (thank god there are some, I bought 5 of these suckers, hope the rest arrive without QC issues)- Cavernous CPU cooler clearance- Above pro lends well to great "wind tunnel" design when Videocard is installed. Great front>Back airflow over all relevant components.- front grill allows 200mm fan, lower 120mm, or upper 140mm. I love the options it allows.- Removable top grill is a godsend during assembly.- Very attractive front panel design, white color is sharp.- Case aesthetics are top notch. A pretty case that matches brushed aluminum competently.- Well build (QC listed cons aside) with a solid feel and tight assembly. Painted steel is very well done.- Excessive and ridiculous amount of drive slots, 2.5" in particular. Gives a lot of flexibility to a builder.- All drive cages are removable. Handy for assembly and customization.- Handles are "handy"- Powersupply clearance might not be long, but with most normal PS you have enough middle clearance to use modulars.- Logical and competent wire cutouts (no sharp edges!) for cable management, glad to see a lot of thought went to this.- User Manual is better than industry norm, could be better still.- USB3 headers have old-style headers attached in case you mobo doesn't have USB3. DON'T PLUG IN BOTH!- Fits very long videocards, with air holes for intake. Works great with Gigabyte Windforce models.--------------No build review, as every stage had quirks and issues that I was shocked to come up against, and I haven't any patience left to step by to detail each one. Infer from the pro/cons if the product is right for you. For the price, if you get one not built on a Friday or after a washroom break, it's got a lot of pros. But QC can make or break a product, no matter how good it's design is.If you don't mind spending a little bit more, please consider the Lian-li PC-Q Series. http://www.ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=PC-QThey are much better built and smaller to boot! You just have to be more careful on videocard length, thermals, and they don't fit as many drives.Would I buy again? Not unless the next 4 i'm getting have no QC issues.Would I say it's a bad design? No.Would I say QC is a big concern here for Bitfenix to have a successful product? YES! |
Its a great product overall.. I would recommend it.