Seven cheap power supplies tested

The Tech Report has a roundup of seven affordable power supplies, with wattages of 350W-500W and prices between $23.99 and $106.95. Six of the units that are tested in the roundup come from well-known brands but there's also a generic one from a firm named SolyTech. You can check it out over here.

Designed to take on power supply units up to 1.5kW, The Beast has already abused two batches of high-end PSUs. Most recently, however, it's been snacking on smaller game in the 350-500W range. The industry's growing focus on power consumption has fueled a budget and mid-range market teeming with energy-efficient parts that don't require a lot of wattage. And although enthusiasts pine after exotic high-end builds, most of us end up using mid-range and budget gear, whether it's at work, on our own desktops, or even in our living rooms.

To get a better idea of how the other end of the power supply spectrum shakes out, we've assembled seven PSUs from Antec, Corsair, Enermax, FSP, OCZ, and Tagan. For kicks, we've also mixed in a little generic flavor in the juvenile hope that something bursts into flames. Keep reading to see which of the market's more modest PSUs we like best.

The $72 Corsair VX450W and $80 OCZ ModXStream Pro came out first, but units recieved The Tech Report's Editor's Choice award.