MONTECH, an innovative PC components and peripherals brand, is proud to release the AIR 100 ARGB and AIR 100 Lite, MONTECH's first compact Micro-ATX cases. A continuation of the AIR series DNA of exceptional cooling performance, MONTECH sets a new standard for Micro-ATX cases. Its dustproof and large front mesh panel, swivel-open tempered glass panel, and hardware compatibility make it ideal for users looking for an elegant compact case for building a high-performance system.

A large front panel with super fine mesh allows cool air to flow, ensuring the optimal heat dissipation of the components inside. With its magnetic quick-release mounting mechanism, removing the mesh panel for cleaning is easy.

In response to reports of the PCIe riser cable of its H1 case posing a fire hazard, NZXT in February 2021 instituted a recall of the case in the U.S. and Canada. The flaw in the component's design came to light in early-2020, but it was only by November that it responded to the issue. In its original design, the PCIe riser component was improperly grounded, and a short-circuit could result in a fire. NZXT's first response to this was sending out non-conductive Nylon screws for the users to replace the metal ones the part originally shipped with. This solution wasn't found to be effective, and resulted in a product recall this February. Regulators in the U.S. and Canada directed NZXT to send out free repair kits to existing owners of the H1, along with disposal instructions for the entire case, if the user wishes to discontinue use. We got our Repair Kit, and decided to go hands-on.

The NZXT Repair Kit, and replacement riser card appears to be one of the most solidly built PCIe risers in the market. Thanks to the crypto-mining boom, the market is flooded with PCIe risers of all shapes and sizes, and the NZXT riser looks to be among the better designed ones. What sets this apart from the original design is that now, the downstream (female end) of the riser comes with grounding rings around the mounting holes, similar to motherboards. These are bits of exposed copper that facilitate contact between the ground layer of the PCB, with the sheet-metal of the case. The original design lacked grounding pads on either side of the PCB, and when installed with metal screws, certain PCB traces could get shorted, causing them to heat up and start a fire. NZXT's first solution to this problem was non-conductive Nylon screws. End users with an H1 case, can request this riser cable from here.

Thermaltake, the leading PC DIY premium brand for Cooling, Gaming Gear, and Enthusiast Memory solutions, is thrilled to bring out a new power supplies series to the market - Toughpower SFX 450 W/550 W/650 W Gold - TT Premium Edition. This series is an upgraded version of our previous SFX power supplies, which aims at giving users a more stable and reliable work environment. The Toughpower SFX series power supplies are 125 mm in width, 100 mm in-depth, and 63.5 mm in height, and they also adapt high quality Japanese main capacitors, which improves durability and offers high stability.

This PSU is equipped with a SFX to ATX adapter bracket that allows users to have more options selecting their ideal case. Other than that, the PSU is designed with a 90 mm Hydraulic Bearing Fan, which enables better performance by taking in more air to cool down the power supply compared to previous Thermaltake SFX series with 82 mm fans. What's more, there are two highlights which cannot be neglected: firstly, all ripples are lower than 30 mV on +12V, +5V or +3.3 from 0% to 100% load to provide steadier operation. Secondly, in order to meet the highest performance, the voltage regulation is set to no more than ±2% for major rails and is stricter than Intel's standard of ±5%. If you're looking for a PSU with favorable features, especially for those who are using Mini ITX cases or other compact cases, Toughpower SFX 450 W/550 W/650 W Gold - TT Premium Edition will be your right fit!

CHIEFTEC, a globally established brand for reliable PC chassis and power supplies, is announcing the release of three new models to its successful 80 Plus Gold Polaris series of power-supplies. The models with 850 and 1050 watts will be available in May, with the 1250 watts version planned for availability in Q3 2021.

Building on the same technical features of the existing Polaris models, the models come with LLC half-bridge converters with DC-DC technology, while fully modular cable management ensures a clean and organized build process. 650 mm long CPU and Mainboard cables ensure these power-supplies also work well with larger systems.

be quiet!, the market leader for PC power supplies in Germany since 2007, is announcing three new power supply series. The Pure Power 11 FM is a fully modular version of the Pure Power 11, available in 550, 650, and 750 watts and aimed at mainstream computer users who appreciate the versatility of modular cables and 80 PLUS Gold efficiency up to 93.9 percent. Fans of small form factor builds can now upgrade their systems with the SFX Power 3 or TFX Power 3, which offer high performance in compact SFX and TFX form factors.

At be quiet!, Pure Power stands for peerless dependability and a comprehensive feature set at a competitive price point. The Pure Power 11 FM series is no exception: by exclusively using fully modular instead of fixed cables, only cables that serve a purpose are installed, resulting in a smoother airflow, lower temperatures, and easier handling inside the case. Pure Power 11 FM comes equipped with black flat cables for all common connections and a black sleeved 20+4-pin ATX power cable. With two independent 12 V rails for signal stability and up to four PCI-Express connectors (two for the 550 W model), Pure Power 11 FM is fully suited for silent PC configurations, workstations or even gaming systems with a powerful graphics card.

AeroCool this week debuted the Dorado line of mid-range power-supplies. These PSUs come with fixed cabling, but RGB-illuminated fans, and 80 Plus Gold efficiency, putting them in a sub-segment of their own. The AeroCool Dorado comes 550 W, 650 W, and 750 W capacities, all three of which include two 4+4 pin EPS connectors (including the 550 W model). Designed for single GPU builds, the 750 W model comes with three 6+2 pin PCIe connectors; while the 650 W and 550 W models come with two.

The AeroCool Dorado uses a 120 mm "high pressure" fan with addressable RGB LED illumination. An internal controller lets you cycle between 13 lighting presets, or you can sync the lighting to any ARGB source through a standard 3-pin header. The fan maintains 800 RPM (10 dBA claimed) operation up to 50% load. Under the hood, the Dorado comes with a single +12 V rail design, active PFC, DC-to-DC switching, Japanese main capacitors, and most common electrical protections. The fixed cabling on these PSUs are flat, ribbon-type, including for the 24-pin connector. The company didn't reveal pricing.

Cougar today rolled out the VTE X2 ARGB line of mid-range power supplies targeted at e-Sports gaming PC builds, particularly those who value a lot of RGB bling in their PCs. This PSU is characterized by a 120 mm addressable RGB LED-illuminated fan, and an ARGB-illuminated Cougar logo along one of the sides (the other having the power distribution and regulatory stickers). The PSU features an internal ARGB controller, and a button near the AC receptacle lets you cycle between presets. You can also sync the PSU to your build's lighting through a 3-pin ARGB connector.

The Cougar VTE X2 ARGB comes in 550 W, 650 W, and 750 W capacities, and offers fixed cabling. Under the hood, you get a single +12 V rail design with 80 Plus Bronze efficiency, up to 99% power factor, Japanese standby capacitors, DC-to-DC switching, and most common electrical protections. All three models come with one 4+4 pin EPS connector. The 550 W and 650 W models include two 6+2 pin PCIe power connectors, while the 750 W model comes with four. The 550 W model comes with five SATA power connectors, while the others have eight. The company didn't reveal pricing.

Cougar today updated its GEX line of full-modular premium PSUs, with a new 1050 W model. The lineup, until now, only had 650 W, 750 W, and 850 W models. The GEX1050 comes with a 135 mm hydro-dynamic bearing fan that stays completely off when the load is under 41%. This means that the PSU is practically fanless as long as your machine is pulling under 420 W.

Under the hood, the Cougar GEX1050 features a single +12 V rail design with 80 Plus Gold efficiency, LLC resonant converters, DC-to-DC switching, and most common electrical protections, against over/under-voltage, overheat, overload, and short-circuit. Connectors included with the GEX1050 are one 24-pin, two 8+8 pin EPS, eight 6+2 pin PCIe power, twelve SATA power, three Molex, and one Berg. The company didn't reveal pricing.

Corsair on Wednesday refreshed its RMx series premium power-supply series with new 2021 models. Available in capacities of 1000 W, 850 W, 750 W, 650 W, and 550 W, these PSUs succeed the previous generation RMx series by featuring a new 135 mm "Magnetic Levitation" bearing fan that's designed for extremely high durability. This design change, along with other minor updates to the internals, allow Corsair to give these PSUs 10-year warranties. The PSUs continue to offer Cybenetics Gold switching efficiency with Acoustic A- rating, full modular cabling, and include two 4+4 pin EPS connectors on all models except 550 W. Prices should be on-par with the outgoing RMx series.

ASRock Rack, a division of ASRock dedicated to server/enterprise products, has today quietly launched a 1U short depth server, equipped with AMD's X570 motherboards, able to accommodate AMD Ryzen 5000 series of processors. The 1U2-X570/2T, as ASRock calls it, features an X570D4I-2T motherboard that is capable of housing any AMD Ryzen and Ryzen Pro 5000 series processor with TDP up to 105 Watts, paired with up to four SO-DIMMs of DDR4 ECC memory. Being a remote desktop/server type of build, the 1U case is not designed to be equipped with any powerful discrete graphics card. There is room for the motherboard, the power supply, and the HDDs located next to the motherboard.

Equipped with an 80-Plus Bronze 265 Watt PSU, the system can handle almost any CPU it is equipped with, two 3.5" drives and two 2.5" 7 mm drives. The motherboard also supports M.2 2280 SSD with PCIe 4.0 protocol support. When it comes to basic graphics output, ASRock Rack has installed an ASPEED AST2500 graphics controller to handle basic video output and display the command line, so you can operate with your server with ease. When it comes to networking, it is equipped with dual RJ45 10 GbE connectors, coming from an Intel X550-AT2 Ethernet controller. For more details, head over to the ASRock Rack 1U2-X570/2T product page.

FSP, the world's leading power supply manufacturer, has announced the launch of its new Twins PRO Series power supply. It is available in three different wattages: 500 W, 700 W, and 900 W. The Twins PRO is a redundant power supply mainly designed for the standard ATX or PS2 chassis. The Twins PRO Series does not require a front-end bracket, which makes it an ideal power supply for home cloud server systems or web/mail server systems, and for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Thanks to the over current protection, short circuit protection, over voltage protection, and fan failure protection, the Twins PRO Series PSU maintains stable power at all times. The Twins PRO Series' two modules share the load for optimum efficiency during normal operation. This means users do not need to worry about their servers or PCs unexpectedly powering off. If one module fails, the second functioning module will take the additional load immediately to guarantee system stability.

Huntkey, a leading provider of power solutions, has recently upgraded and released its GS Series power supply units. Four models, including the GS500, GS550, GS600 and GS700, are optimized from the inside structure and packed with a new colorful paper box. The GS Series power supply units were launched around three years ago, and now they are upgraded to better meet the players' gaming demands. They have been hot sellers in the southeast and middle Asia markets since their launch in 2017. They are equipped with choicest components to provide power outputs from 350 watts to 600 watts. Their main features are as follows.

be quiet!, market leader for PC power supplies in Germany since 2007, introduces the Dark Power 12 series. This high-end power supply series consists of three models with 750, 850, and 1000 watts. They are positioned directly beneath the award-winning Dark Power Pro 12 series, starting at 1200 watts. Dark Power 12 features an extraordinary 80 PLUS Titanium certification, an advanced topology, and a proven cooling concept for the perfect balance between efficiency, performance, and silence. An Overclocking Key lets users combine the four 12 V rails into one with high power output, ideal for overclocked processors or graphics cards. be quiet! has combined these high-end technical specifications with fully modular black sleeved cables.

Dark Power 12 features 80 PLUS Titanium certification. be quiet! has achieved this high-efficiency factor by implementing the advanced "Active Rectifier + Full Bridge LLC + SR + DC-DC" topology and a wire-free interior design on the DC side. Unlike the Pro models, Dark Power 12 does not rely on digital regulation: the active rectifier helps its topology achieve a high efficiency rating on Titanium level. For maximum reliability and signal quality from the four 12 V rails, Dark Power 12 relies exclusively on premium components such as long-lasting Japanese 105°C capacitors.

With NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 30-series lineup of GPUs, laptop manufacturers are offered a wide variety of GPU SKUs that internally differ simply by having different Total Graphics Power (TGP), which in turn results in different clock speeds and thus different performance. ASUS uses NVIDIA's variant of GeForce RTX 3080 mobile GPU inside the company's ROG Zephyrus Duo (GX551QS) with a TGP of 115 Watts, and Dynamic Boost technology that can ramp up the card to 130 Watts. However, this doesn't represent the maximum for RTX 3080 mobile graphics card. The maximum TGP for RTX 3080 mobile goes up to 150 Watts, which is a big improvement that lets the GPU reach higher frequencies and more performance.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you manually applied vBIOS that allows the card to use more power? Well, Baidu forum users are reporting a successful experiment of transforming their 115 W RTX 3080 to 150 W TGP card. Using GPU vBIOS from MSI Leopard G76, which features a 150 W power limit, and applying it to the ROG's Zephyrus Duo power-limited RTX 3080 cards is giving results. Users have successfully used this vBIOS to squeeze out more performance from their laptops. As seen on the 3D Mark Time Spy rank list, the entries are now dominated solely by modified laptops. Performance improvement is, of course, present and it reaches up to a 20% increase.

AeroCool today introduced the LUX RGB 850M power supply. This PSU delivers a high capacity of 850 W, and looks premium thanks to its addressable-RGB LED lighting elements, but packs some mid-tier specs. The PSU offers 80 Plus Bronze efficiency under 230 V EU conditions. It also features active PFC and offers most common electrical protections, against over/under-voltage, overload, overheat, and short-circuit; and uses a 120 mm fan to keep cool.

The AeroCool LUX RGB 850M features a addressable-RGB diffusers along the sides. You can toggle between 13 lighting presets by pressing a button near the AC receptacle; or connect the PSU to a 3-pin ARGB header for control using software or an ARGB controller. The LUX RGB 850M offers partially modular cabling. Fixed connectors include 24-pin ATX, one 4+4 pin EPS, and a pair of 6+2 pin PCIe power connectors. Modular connectors include an additional pair of 6+2 pin PCIe power, a cable with four SATA power connectors, and another with two each of SATA power and 4-pin Molex. Both the fixed- and modular-cables are black, flat, ribbon-type. The company didn't reveal pricing.

EVGA has recently released the SuperNova 1300 M1 mining power supply for cryptocurrency mining rigs. The new fully modular power supply is rated at 80+ Gold efficiency and can support six GPUs. The power supply includes a single 4+4 pin CPU interface along with six VGA power cables which each include a 6+2 pin and 6 pin connector for high power graphics cards. The 1300 W power supply includes limited SATA and Molex connectors while forgoing the typical EVGA branding with a minimalistic cardboard box packaging. The EVGA SuperNova 1300 M1 is currently listed on Newegg.com for 299.99 USD, the product is not currently listed on EVGA's site.

SilverStone has added a new budget option to its lineup, whilst keeping it hip by integrating an ARGB fan (120 mm rated at 18 dBA, with dynamic speeds according to PSU load). There are 17 separate lighting effects available to be cycled at the touch of a button on the PSU's back panel. The new ET500-ARGB PSU features a 500 W output capacity with 80-Plus Bronze efficiency levels. The PSU features a + 12 V single rail design, with a maximum output of 38 A. As it is a budget PSU, there's no place for modular cabling here; the cables that do exist, however, all feature a flat design for easier cable management. The ET500-ARGB offers 1x ATX 24-pin, 1x CPU 8-pin, 1x CPU 4 + 4 pin, 2x PCI-Express 6 + 2 pins, 3x 4-pin, and 4x SATA outputs, which should be enough for budget-minded users.

The ET500-ARGB PSU features the most common protections (Over Current Protection, Over Voltage Protection, Overload Protection, Short Circuit Protection, and Overheat protection, and an Active PFC circuit (full load PF> 0.9) all in an enclosure measuring 150 mm width, 140 mm depth, 86 mm height, and weighing 1.37 Kg. No pricing information was available at time of writing.

Huntkey, a leading provider of power solutions, unleashes two new models of PC power supply units - the GS700 PRIME and GS800 PRIME. They belong to the same series, but they are designed with different power outputs. The GS700 PRIME's rated power is 600 W and peak power is 700 W; the GS800 PRIME is rated 700 W, with peak power at 800 W. Both of them are 80 Plus Bronze certified, which means they are more energy efficient compared to other PSUs. Equipped with Active Power Factor Correction (APFC), they are capable of supplying more stable and reliable power with lower ripple and noise.

SilverStone rolled out its most powerful PSU in the SFX-L form-factor, the SX1000. This 1000-Watt beast tops the power-density charts for SilverStone, and offers connectivity to power even an HEDT or workstation. Under the hood, the SX1000 features a single 83.3 A +12 V rail, active PFC, DC-to-DC switching, and boasts of 80 Plus Platinum efficiency. The PSU features most common electrical protections, against over/under-voltage, overload, overheat, and short-circuit. A 120 mm double ball bearing fan is used to keep the PSU cool, which remains off when the load is under 200 W. The SilverStone SX1000 features full modular cabling. Connectors include a 24-pin ATX, two 4+4 pin EPS, six 6+2 pin PCIe power, eight SATA power, three Molex, and one Berg. The company didn't reveal pricing.

Cougar today rolled out the Auric line of premium modular PSUs targeted at performance-segment gaming desktops. Available in 650 W and 750 W capacities, the Auric series offers a fairly premium feature-set, including 80 Plus Gold efficiency, full modular cabling, an RGB LED illuminated fan, and a user-controllable semi fanless mode. At the push of a switch, the PSU can be made to maintain complete silence until 40% of load. Another switch lets you toggle the RGB illumination presets (one of which is a dark mode). The lighting can be synchronized to the rest of your lighting via a 4-pin RGB input.

Under the hood, the Cougar Auric series PSUs feature single +12 V rail design that complies with the latest ATX12V v2.53 specification, active PFC, LLC resonant converter, DC-to-DC switching, and protection against over/under-voltage, overload, overheat, and short-circuit. Both the 650 W and 750 W models offer two 4+4 pin EPS, seven SATA power, three Molex, and one 24-pin ATX. The 650 W model offers four 6+2 pin PCIe power connectors, while the 750 W model offers six of these.

Cougar announced the VTK line of mainstream power supplies for gaming PCs. Available in capacities of 400 W, 450 W, 500 W, and 550 W, these PSUs feature fixed cabling, and are targeted at those building on a tight budget. All the basics are covered, including a single +12 V rail design, 80 Plus Bronze efficiency, Japanese main capacitors, PFC up to 99%, protections against over/under voltage, overload, overheat, and short-circuit; and a low-noise optimized 120 mm fan. All four models come with single 4+4 pin EPS. The 400 W and 450 W ones have single 6+2 pin PCIe power, while the 500 W and 550 W ones have two. You get up to five SATA power connectors, and a trio of 4-pin Molex. The company didn't reveal pricing, although all four models are expected to be priced well under $80.

SilverStone today introduced the Nightjar NJ700, a premium power supply that's completely fanless. This 700-Watt PSU boasts of Cybenetics Titanium and 80 Plus Titanium switching efficiency ratings; and on virtue of being fanless, bags Cybenetics Acoustic A++ rating. It features a single +12 V rail design, with 100% Japanese capacitors, and ±2% voltage regulation, and ripple suppression. It offers full modular cabling, with enough juice and straws for a fairly powerful gaming PC. Connectors include a 24-pin ATX, two 4+4 pin EPS, four 6+2 pin PCIe power, twelve SATA power, and a handful 4-pin Molex and Berg connectors. The PSU offers active PFC, and protection against over/under-voltage, overload, overheat, and short-circuit. The company didn't reveal pricing.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and gaming gears, today announced the latest compact size design power supply: P1000GM - 1000 W 80 PLUS Gold certified with a fully modular design. To meet the needs of high-end gamers and overclockers, P1000GM provides up to 1000 watts of power and is also made of high-quality materials. The main capacitors are made in Japan, coupled with various OVP/OPP/SCP/UVP/OCP/OTP current and voltage protection and smart semi-passive silent fan to provide up to 10 years of warranty. The fully modular cable and single +12V rail design simplify the installation steps and time for gamers. In addition, P1000GM leads the industry in reducing the size of the 1000-watt power supply, making it easy to install large-wattage power supplies in various cases, even small cases that have recently become more and more popular.

The power requirement of the new graphics card and the high-end CPU is getting higher and higher. In order to meet the needs of high-end gamers and overclockers, achieve better power efficiency, and provide stable power, GIGABYTE has launched the P1000GM with an enormous power of 1000 watts. The P1000GM can meet high-end graphics cards and CPUs' power requirements, so gamers can enjoy the graphics-intensive games without worrying about the power shortage. The fully modular design only installs the needed cables, making the whole system cleaner and allowing better heat dissipation. The P1000GM provides six 6+2 pin PCIe connectors to support the large-wattage graphics cards.

Yesterday, we have reported that ASUS is officially increasing the prices of their graphics cards and motherboards, due to increased component and logistics costs. What the company meant by that was not exactly clear to everyone, as it looked like the company has adjusted to the current market prices exceeding the MSRP of components like graphics cards. The GPUs are today selling at much higher prices compared to the original MSRP and it is representing a real problem for consumers. Today, we get to see what is the underlying problem behind the announcement we saw yesterday and if we are going to see more of that in the close future.

According to the New York Times, the Chinese import tariff exemptions have expired with the arrival of a new year (2021) and we can expect the tariffs to start from 7.5%-25%, which will massively increase component costs. A Reddit user has noted that MSRP will increase about $80 for every major GPU manufacturer like ASUS, GIGABYTE, PNY, Zotac, etc. so we are expecting MSRP adjustment from other companies to follow just like ASUS did. The import tariff exemptions are also supposed to increase MSRPs of other PC components like motherboards, SSDs, PSUs, cases... everything without exemption. As a product of a trade war between China and the Trump administration, it remains a question will these tariffs get easier shortly, so consumers can afford their desired components.

Cybenetics, the company behind the Cybenetics power supply rating system, introduced a new certification badge system that makes it a lot easier to gauge the efficiency and noise of a PC power supply unit when making a purchase decision. Unlike competing PSU certification services, Cybenetics doesn't just use brute 12 V switching efficiency to gauge the quality of a PSU, but takes into account the efficiency of the individual voltage domains, power-factor correction, vampire power (losses), etc., to present a more complete measure of a PSU's efficiency. Cybenetics also offers a logo program to gauge the noise output of a PSU, so you know a PSU isn't cutting corners with noise in pursuit of switching efficiency, and has sufficient heatsink mass to afford a quieter fan.

Cybenetics Efficiency logo grades resemble precious metals and gems, much like sports medals. It begins with "Standard," and goes through "Bronze," "Silver," "Gold," "Platinum," "Titanium," and "Diamond." The first table below shows what it takes to qualify for each of these. It's important to note that the grading system takes input AC voltage into account (110~120 V or 220~240 V AC), and there are different parameters for each input voltage type. For PSUs that support both 110 V and 220 V AC inputs (automatic switching), it's likely that it comes with two efficiency logos. Noise output is a more universal rating, and depends entirely on how quiet the PSU is. Since its inception, Cybenetics tested and certified over 770 PSU models, and is testing many more.