Cougar Spike Mini-ATX Case review
Now that we've completed our tour of the Spike's exterior, it's time to remove the case's thumbscrews to take a closer look at its interior. The first thing we come across when opening the case is a plastic bag that contains all the accessories. Besides a brief manual and a bag with screws and standoffs, you also get a case speaker. As you can see, not a lot of accessories are included but that's normal for a budget case.
The interior has an all-black design, this not only includes the case itself but also all plastic components and most of the wiring. Spike is designed for Micro-ATX motherboards and will accommodate graphics cards as long as 330mm. Like the exterior, the interior has a pretty basic design, there are no special cut-outs for cable management and there's no cut-out in the motherboard plate to make it easier to swap a CPU cooler.
Here's a closeup of all the cables that are used by the front's I/O panel. It includes the usual connectors for power/reset and LEDs, one USB 2.0 motherboard connector, one USB 3.0 motherboard connector and a HD audio motherboard connector.
The front offers two 5.25" drive bays, one drive bay for an external 3.5" device and two 3.5" storage bays. There's also room for an optional 80/90/120mm fan.
The 5.25" devices and the HDDs can be installed tool-free but the plastic mechanism doesn't really look solid. Fortunately, the tool-free system can easily be removed to secure your devices with screws.
Added: July 30th 2013
Product reviewed: Cougar Spike Mini-ATX Case
Reviewer: Thomas De Maesschalck
Score: 8/10
Page: 2/4