ID Cooling T60 SFX Case Review

Conclusion

328mm deep, 251mm high and 160mm wide.  We don’t usually start a conclusion by stating the dimensions at you, but in the case of the T60-SFX from ID Cooling we’ve done so as it’s something we need you to grasp immediately.  This case is small, very small indeed.  It’s also perfectly formed, being made entirely from Aluminium panels which appear to seamlessly locate into each other without the need for screws, rivets or for that matter a conventional frame chassis meaning that should you choose not to be swayed by what ID Cooling call “gamer themed”  colouring it would be an easy enough job to dismantle and change.  To be honest though, we quite like the deep red and black colours that the case is presented in, along with the slightly parallelogram shape it presents on the desk beside you.

The Aluminium side panels are removed by utilitarian but none the less aesthetic thumb screws, opening up the interior.  As the name of the case suggests, the T60-SFX doesn’t accept the larger standard ATX PSU, instead it requires you to have an SFX unit to hand.  Now years ago this would have been a major failing, however the growth of the SFF market has seen the dearth of SFX PSUs blossom with good units available for the same sort of money as full size ATX units.  It’s also no surprise that the T60 supports only the M-ITX motherboard format, having it mounted on the side of the interior, giving a maximum CPU cooler headroom of 125mm.  Not great we admit, but in a case this small, that’s only 160mm wide you can hardly expect to have room to fit a full size tower cooler, and before you get any ideas about whacking in a 120mm AIO into the rear fan position you’ll want to remind yourself that it’ll only take a 92mm fan back there so that’s also a bit of a non-starter.  Storage is also on the light side with the T60 thankfully eschewing the need to house a 5.25″ dive they have still seen fit to include room in the roof for a 3.5″ with space for a brace of 2.5″ drives on a removable cross brace up the side of the interior.  Mounting drives on this will of course reduce the available CPU cooler height accordingly, but as it’s quite likely you’re going to already be using an ultra-low profile cooler this shouldn’t be too much of an issue.

Where ID Cooling have been very generous is in the amount of airflow they’ve afforded the GPU area of the case.  With a fully ventilated floor, and large cuts along the case sides any dual slot card up to 263mm in length should have plenty of room to breathe, so if gaming’s your thing, and you can get enough cooling onto the CPU to prevent it hobbling then you should have no trouble building a corking little gaming power house into the T60.

So what’s not to like?  Well not a lot really. Ok, so there’s no cable management to speak of, but come on, seriously, in a case this small were we really expecting rubber grommeted cable management holes and plenty of space in the rear?  Possibly cooling is the only area where things could be improved.  Granted the Aluminium chassis should help heat be conducted out, and there are certainly a good amount of ventilation cuts in the sides, front and base of the case, but we think what we would really like to have seen is the option of removing the roof 3.5″ drive rack and having a 120mm vent added in the roof.  This vent, if correctly placed would have made it possible to utilise one of the many 120mm AIOs on the market.  But we really are being picky here, we like the T60, we like it a lot.

We think if correctly priced, (now confirmed as $79 MSRP)  the T60-SFX will go down a storm.  Whether you choose to use it as a petit main rig, a LAN box, something for the lounge, or a dorm room gaming machine that can easily be transported back home in the hols, we think you’ll find it up to the job.  Just be prepared for some inventive cable management. 

    

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