Casetek CS-1007 solves space-time conundrum

I'D BEEN LOOKING around for a MicroATX case to store a Pentium M desktop motherboard for a few weeks when Nanopoint contacted the INQ out of the blue.

The firm sent me a mini-tower/small desktop system and I've now had a chance to install my board and put this case through its paces.

The CS-1007 comes as standard with a multifunction display on the front which will show temperatures, power on, status of your hard drive and a fan indicator. It also offers front access for Firewire connectors, two USB ports, and audio.

The case also comes with a 200 watt SFX power supply with active PFC. A bundle of cables are included to make the necessary connections to board jumpers and to connect the front sockets to Firewire, USB and audio.

The body of the metal case is finished in black, while the front of the case, including hatches for the CD and floppy drives, is plastic, finished in silver.

The case can be used as either a small desktop or as a mini tower machine, with a sliding panel, secured by two thumbscrews, allowing access to the inside of the case.

While I've built many a PC in my time I always found it to be as fiddly as putting together a Lego AMD Ferrari model, and these days I do my best to avoid messing about with the innards of a machine as much as possible. Not for me this water cooling stuff or giant fan/cooling systems for tiny CPUs, thank you very much.

But I really did find this Nanopoint case was simple to work with and it didn't take me long at all to put a system together.

The prime reason for this is that this case has two units for hard drives and for a CD-ROM which really are easy to work with. The hard drive caddy swivels and can be easily lifted out, while the CD-ROM caddy is secured to the chassis by two small screws. That means that when and if you need to make adjustments to a motherboard, or swap out the storage units, it really is a piece of cake.

The cables for the inside of the unit are all marked with their functions, so it's a simple job just to plug them into their relative places.

I was pleasantly surprised by the ease of use, the build and the general features of this case. It's easy to work with, looks pretty good, only weighs about six kilogrammes, and all in all, I like it. µ

L'INQ
Nanopoint UK

PICS

Front panel access to Firewire, USB, audio

Shows CD bay and hatch for floppy, LCD display

Spaghetti junction. The hard drive caddy (top left) swivels out, the CD caddy is not yet back in the system