ClearPC Case Review - PAGE 1

PC consumers nowadays look for quite a few specific elements in a case before they are ready to buy. There are the esthetics of the case, i.e. the look, as well as the features that the case has to offers inside. The ClearPC Case offers the consumer a flashy look, but does it stand up inside the box?

Before starting any review, I like looking at who the manufacturer is trying to target with the product in question. No use rating a product for use in one domain when it is actually meant for a completely different audience. Now, with the ClearPC case, I believe that ClearPC, (a manufacturer from just down the road – Victoria, BC) wishes to market this case to the more advanced PC user, and as well to an educational market to be used in schools, trade shows, or other demonstration environments. I say that it is more geared towards the more advanced PC user since most retailers for the case do not sell complete systems. The consumer would need to know how to disassemble their current system, and shove all of the internal workings of their system into the clear case. This requires quite a lot more knowledge than the average PC user. In terms of an educational environment, I see this case being used in schools to teach students the components, and the workings of a system. Most cases do not allow one to see all the different parts of a computer without opening it up, and even then, one cannot see all the parts from every angle. Companies are now starting to pick up on the ClearPC design in order to better demonstrate their internal PC parts. Intel, the largest manufacturer of computer processors, and MSI, a large manufacturer of computer motherboards are both starting to use the ClearPC for this use.

Contents of the Box from ClearPC:

Hard Disk Drive (x 4 pieces)

Box Contents

Right off the bat, taking a look at the parts that come with the case, I have a few concerns. I see that the case is equipped to fit one power button.. most people like having a reset button as well as the Power switch. Even though it isn’t really necessary to have one, you may need it for the occasional blue screen of death.. Another concern lies in the number of hard drive & Rom standoffs & screws. There are only enough standoffs & screws to fit one hard drive and one Rom. Most people I know have a burner. Since this is the case, they may have the need for either an extra CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM for disk to disk copying. Although these days, most people do not require the need for a secondary hard drive, it would be nice to be able to support another in case you run a RAID setup. I am guessing that ClearPC would like to sell additional parts such as these standoffs, screws, and individual 5.25” Clear Drive covers separately. There is a clear cover which comes with the case. It takes over three 5.25” slots, making it impossible to install a second Drive without removing the cover first. If you were to install two 5.25” drives, the guard/cover would be useless. You would need to buy two individual clear covers unless you want to leave two front slots open (not recommended).