NZXT H700i

VERDICT

Amassively expensive but beautifully made PC chassis, with ultimately superfluous fan-controlling tech

- James Archer

NZXT HAS DELIVERED a massive update to its H series of premium cases, perhaps most recognisably represented by the curvy-edged H440 (Shopper 317). The H700i is a mid-tower that can take full ATX, microATX and Mini-ITX motherboards, but has found a little extra space for bigger EATX boards as well.

Nonetheless, out of all of NZXT’s output, this chassis seems to have more in common with the borderline-compact Source 340 Elite (Shopper 351) than the H440. The corners are sharper, there’s a similar tempered glass window covering the entirety of the left side, a wire-obscuring cable bar now runs down alongside the motherboard bay, and the H440’s top-to-bottom stack of 3.5in drive bays has been replaced with the Source series’ two-bay cage, hidden under the PSU shroud.

SMART AND SOUL

It’s a comprehensive overhaul, then, but the headline feature is something new entirely. NZXT calls it the ‘smart device’, a small box resembling a fan hub perched just above the main vertical cable routing channel; this joins forces with a downloadable software utility, CAM, to measure fan speeds and temperature levels, then dynamically raises and lowers cooling intensity according to the PC’s load.