CoolerMaster MasterAccessory LED Partition Plate Review

Conclusion

Do you remember when you were a kid, and you might have done something wrong, or, like me you might have been totally innocent.  Either way,and whatever the circumstances, you knew you were in trouble if your mum ever called you by your full name.  So if the Mother of this product were to shout, “CoolerMaster MasterAccessory LED Partition Plate, get in here now”, how much trouble do you think that poor little LED panel would think it was in? My point her is that it’s a bit of a mouthful isn’t it, but then it does extend the brand and so what seems to be the current CoolerMaster trend of releasing a new product with the word “Master” indelicately woven into the nomenclature.

We are though being a little harsh, we’re just a little tickled by the marketing approach.  Just because something has a bit of an outlandish and extended name, doesn’t mean it’s an outlandish product.  What this product is though, is niche, very niche, very niche indeed.  You see, the Plate (We’re it’s mate so we’re allowed to call it “Plate”) is specifically designed to fit into the CoolerMaster MasterCase Pro3, and that case only.  Any other case?  Nope, any other CoolerMaster Case?  Nope.  Just the Pro3.  What it does do though is extend the number of free form modding options open to those that have succumbed to the marketing from CoolerMaster and selected a case that can be customised and modded by means of off the shelf items.  Actually, succumbed might lead you to think the marketing is false or missleading.  It’s not, the Pro3 is a cracking case and the amount of accessories available are really starting to mount up, We guess we’re still a little jaded from the original Pro5 release.  Let’s get this straight shall we, despite any machinations to the contrary, we love the Pro3 and welcome the prospect of even more accessories, ahem, sorry, “MasterAccessories” to further bolster the product line.  Sorry, We’ve done it again…

So what is the “Plate”.  Well in simple terms it’s a 4mm thick acrylic plate that is uniformly, and we mean, uniformly, illuminated by LEDs.  The plate is available in Red, Blue or White and although it might look complicated, thanks to the simple lateral nature of the instructions, it’s about as easy to fit as a case fan, and requires an equal number of screws.  It is designed to replace the metal floor plate that comes with the Pro3, but it should be recognised, that in doing so you will lose a pair of 2.5″ show off mounts and a grommeted management hole.  With the Plate in place what you have is a quite fantastic illuminated false floor panel that covers the PSU and the majority of the cables you may have stashed under there.

So the Plate is a wonderful product, and as far as we know, a one of a kind on the market at present.  So are there any issues with it?  Well, we’re pleased to say that all three samples worked perfectly, with no dead LEDs or failures to illuminate.  The level of light produced is just about right in that it illuminates the floor, without overly illuminating the rest of the case.  If you had it sitting on the desk beside you, you’d be pleased by the glow, and not wanting to turn it off or down because it was too bright or distracting.  The one thing we are struggling with though is the decision made by CoolerMaster to have the plate cover the same dimensions as the normal metal floor.  What we mean by this is that it stops short of the full floor area so that larger 360mm rads can still be accommodated, even if they do dip below the line of the case.  In a way we can understand that they wanted to leave the door open to those that wanted to fit a 360mm rad in the front and so would need the illuminated plate to stop short of full length.  On the other hand though, we think that this is a pure aesthetic accessory, and as such, most would want the plate to cover the whole floor area, and in exchange would be willing to sacrifice a little water cooling flexibility in return.

At this point in a review we’d usually be talking about the competition, and other similar items you could spend your money on.  Basically, there aren’t any.  Sure, if you had a Pro3 you could mod something yourself, but with a product as accomplished as this is, you’d be mad to do so.  So what of the price?  Well currently, we’ve only got it in Euros. but it’s most likely going to be about the same amount.  So £30 then.  That’s not too bad to be honest.  £20 would be great, and £40 would be way too much, so CoolerMaster have it priced a bout right.  If you’ve already got a Pro3 and are looking to pimp it up a bit, the Plate is a cracking option.  If though you’re in the market for a new M-ATX case, and like the look of the Pro3 then having this option is a great incitement.  Is the Plate too niche?  Well we guess CoolerMasters sales figures will tell the story, but that’s not your problem.  Aside from us wishing it covered the whole floor plate, we have to say the CoolerMaster MasterAccessory LED Partition Plate is a fantastic accessory and a welcome addition to the “Master” accessory line.

And so to the awards.  Well it’s a given that the LED Partition Plate gets a rarely earned Innovation award, as we’ve never seen anything quite like this in the retail domain before.  Had it covered the full case floor, we would have also pinned the Aesthetics award on its LED illuminated chest.  If, however this doesn’t bother you as much as it does us, then fill your boots and slap one in your Pro3. 

 
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