Building upon the immense success Chenbro enjoyed with the release of the Gaming Bomb/Xpider they have released the Xpider II. This new case is built on an updated version of the chassis used for the Gaming Bomb/Xpider and features some cosmetic and some practical improvements.
The Xpider II is available in a standard (rrp of US$89.99) and plus (rrp of $129.99) configurations. The standard version comes with the back 120mm fan included while the plus version adds a front 92mm fan (rrp of US$17.99) and an FSP Group Aurora 350W PSU (rrp of US$55). Today I will be reviewing the plus version.
Before I delve into the Xpider II’s many features, I would like to direct you all to my review of the original Gaming Bomb/Xpider. In this review, I will not cover the basic chassis design, but rather focus on the improvements and enhancements over the original design.
Chenbro Gaming Bomb/Xpider Review
Front Facia:
The design of the front facia has been completely revamped and plays upon the allusion to spiders in the name Xpider. The bottom quarter of the facia has a web design with a removable 3D metal spider in the centre. This is certainly a very aggressive design and will not appeal to all.
The grill continues the excellent mesh design of the original case and is very unrestrictive in regards to airflow. Behind this mesh is a dust filter which can be easily and toollessly clipped off for cleaning.
The Xpider II adds additional expandability by providing two 3.5” external drive bays over the single one that featured on the Gaming Bomb/Xpider. This may be important for some but we have recently seen external 3.5” drives being phased out in favour of 5.25” drives. The top two 5.25” covers are actually stealth bezels to hide unsightly drives that don’t match the case.
In addition, present on the case is a reset button which is well designed in that it cannot be inadvertently pressed but at the same time can be used without having to reach for a pen.
The bottom of the facia, where the spider is located is actually a door hiding the case’s front ports. To release it simply push it inwards. Closing is just as easy and merely requires pulling it back into its original position. Behind the door are the previously present two USB2.0 ports and the audio and microphone ports as well as a single 1394/firewire 400 port. A very useful addition for those using DV cameras, external HDDs and other such equipment that often connects to the computer using a firewire port.
