Athenatech: 400 Series, Continued

06:00 - Wednesday 17 December 2003 by David Stellmack
Source: Tom's Hardware – Keywords: 2003, winter, case, review, part, 2

Table of content:
22 – Athenatech: 400 Series, Continued
  1. 1 – Introduction
  2. 2 – Bezel, Bezel... Match My Case!
  3. 3 – Bezel, Bezel... Match My Case!, Continued
  4. 4 – The Review Process
  5. 5 – Antec: Performance One Series P160
  6. 6 – Antec: Performance One Series P160, Continued
  7. 7 – Antec: Performance One Series P160, Continued
  8. 8 – Antec Solution Series: SLK3700-BQE
  9. 9 – Antec Solution Series: SLK3700-BQE, Continued
  10. 10 – Antec Solution Series: SLK3700-BQE, Continued
  11. 11 – AOpen A600 Series: A600B
  12. 12 – AOpen A600 Series: A600B, Continued
  13. 13 – AOpen A600 Series: A600B, Continued
  14. 14 – Aspire: X-Alien
  15. 15 – Aspire: X-Alien, Continued
  16. 16 – Aspire: X-Alien, Continued
  17. 17 – Aspire: X-Dreamer II
  18. 18 – Aspire: X-Dreamer II, Continued
  19. 19 – Aspire: X-Dreamer II, Continued
  20. 20 – Athenatech: 400 Series
  21. 21 – Athenatech: 400 Series, Continued
  22. 22 – Athenatech: 400 Series, Continued
  23. 23 – Athenatech: 7800 Series
  24. 24 – Athenatech: 7800 Series, Continued
  25. 25 – Athenatech: 7800 Series, Continued
  26. 26 – BeanTech: BT85
  27. 27 – BeanTech: BT85, Continued
  28. 28 – BeanTech: BT85, Continued
  29. 29 – BeanTech Igloo Series: IGLOO 12
  30. 30 – BeanTech Igloo Series: IGLOO 12, Continued
  31. 31 – BeanTech Igloo Series: IGLOO 12, Continued
  32. 32 – Casetek LAN PARTY Dreamer: CK1021
  33. 33 – Casetek LAN PARTY Dreamer: CK1021, Continued
  34. 34 – Casetek LAN PARTY Dreamer: CK1021, Continued
  35. 35 – Casetek LAN PARTY Dreamer: CK1021, Continued
  36. 36 – Cooler Master: ATC-201B-BXT
  37. 37 – Cooler Master: ATC-201B-BXT, Continued
  38. 38 – Cooler Master: ATC-201B-BXT, Continued
  39. 39 – Cooler Master: ATC-201B-BXT, Continued
  40. 40 – Cooler Master Wave Master: TAC-T01-EK
  41. 41 – Cooler Master Wave Master: TAC-T01-EK, Continued
  42. 42 – Cooler Master Wave Master: TAC-T01-EK, Continued
  43. 43 – Cooler Master Wave Master: TAC-T01-EK, Continued
  44. 44 – Enermax CS-5171LBFS-B
  45. 45 – Enermax CS-5171LBFS-B, Continued
  46. 46 – Enermax CS-5171LBFS-B, Continued
  47. 47 – Fong Kai FK-333ATX
  48. 48 – Fong Kai FK-333ATX, Continued
  49. 49 – Fong Kai FK-333ATX, Continued
  50. 50 – Inwin IW-S564G-ATX
  51. 51 – Inwin IW-S564G-ATX, Continued
  52. 52 – Inwin IW-S564G-ATX, Continued
  53. 53 – Inwin X Series IW-X710
  54. 54 – Inwin X Series IW-X710, Continued
  55. 55 – Inwin X Series IW-X710, Continued
  56. 56 – Jeantech Butterfly Series 2011
  57. 57 – Jeantech Butterfly Series 2011, Continued
  58. 58 – Jeantech Butterfly Series 2011, Continued
  59. 59 – Jeantech Butterfly Series JN424SB
  60. 60 – Jeantech Butterfly Series JN424SB, Continued
  61. 61 – Jeantech Butterfly Series JN424SB, Continued
  62. 62 – Lian Li PC-6077
  63. 63 – Lian Li PC-6077, Continued
  64. 64 – Lian Li PC-6077, Continued
  65. 65 – SilverStone Technology Lascala Series / SST-LC01
  66. 66 – SilverStone Technology Lascala Series / SST-LC01, Continued
  67. 67 – SilverStone Technology Lascala Series / SST-LC01, Continued
  68. 68 – SilverStone Technology Lascala Series / SST-LC01, Continued
  69. 69 – Superpower Superb Series KC2301B
  70. 70 – Superpower Superb Series KC2301B, Continued
  71. 71 – Superpower Superb Series KC2301B, Continued
  72. 72 – Thermaltake Xaser III Lanfire Series: VM2000AD
  73. 73 – Thermaltake Xaser III Lanfire Series: VM2000AD, Continued
  74. 74 – Thermaltake Xaser III Lanfire Series: VM2000AD, Continued
  75. 75 – Thermaltake Xaser III VM3000A: Skull Series
  76. 76 – Thermaltake Xaser III VM3000A: Skull Series, Continued
  77. 77 – Thermaltake Xaser III VM3000A: Skull Series, Continued
  78. 78 – Conclusion: An Extraordinary Number Of High-Scoring Cases Makes Picking ...
  79. 79 – Conclusion, Continued

Athenatech: 400 Series, Continued

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The door on the side-mounted port design just doesn't work. It is far too flimsy and will most likely get broken very quickly after purchase. Most buyers will just remove it.

The only special feature included with the 400 Series beyond the addition of the included side panel air guide is the side-mounted USB MIC and headphone ports. There was a knock-out for the 1394/Firewire port included, but Athenatech did not include cabling for this port. More troubling was the removal of the thin, flimsy plastic piece that covers the side-mounted ports. Upon tugging slightly on the plastic door to expose the ports, the port door detached and went flying across the room. It would appear that this cover should not be used to open and close the door, but is instead a filler to cover the ports, should you opt not to install/use them.

We have certainly seen cases that are worse than the 400 Series from Athenatech, but it is difficult to compare these lower cost models versus the higher- end offerings seen elsewhere in this review. It is certain that there is a market space that wants only a place to house their computer with as much style and as for as cheaply as possible. While the 400 Series can get the job completed for its market segment, it certainly would not be our first choice from the cases in this review. It is not the worst value solution that we have seen, but it is not the best, either.


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