This has been the first product that we have tested from "The
Card Cooler". We were impressed at the simplicity of the design and we
never expected that the fans could look so good from the outside of the PC case
:-)
The manufacturer states that each fan will blow 69 cubic feet per minute of
air, and when both fans are operating together, they can reach 138CFM. This
is truly a lot of air. But "The Card Cooler" engineers did not only
think of performance, but also of stylish design. The fans used in the Card
Cooler XT light up blue when operating, and there are several other colours
also available for you to choose from. The fans have transparent frame and blades
to take full advantage of lighting effects under low light conditions.
Although the manufacturer promises 2400RPM, we did not reach more
than ~1855RPM. This shouldn't be a problem since 1850RPM is already a very high
rotation speed for a 120mm fan. Our tests reported good performance, slightly
better than a standard 120mm fan. The overall size of the Card Cooler XT is
big, and you should first check if it will fit in your PC case before buying
it. But because of its size, it doesn't only helps cool down your VGA card,
it can also cool down multiple VGA cards (very handy when it comes to SLI-enabled
systems), other cards installed in your PC, memory modules and other mainboard
chipsets. And if you are worried about noise levels, don't be. The fans were
very quiet, with the CPU and VGA card fans being louder that the Card Cooler
XT.
The aim of the Card Cooler XT is to provide greater and more effective air
flow inside the PC case, but it is not intended to replace the standard cooling
system. This means that if you want to change your cooling system because you
want to try a noiseless solution, this product is not for you. You cannot replace
you standard fans, but you can help boost overall performance with a larger
volume of air flowing inside the PC case.
The colored version of the Card Cooler XT is priced at US$22.99,
while the colorless version is priced at US$19.99.
There are also more fans provided by "The Card Cooler" that you can
choose from. Some are priced higher than US$22.99, but they do look fantastic.
Check them out here.
- The Good
- Good cooling performance with 138CFM
- Simple and effective design
- 3-pin to 4-pin adapters
- Very quiet
- Helps cool down almost all PC components, not only VGA cards
- Low price
- The Bad
- Might not fit in some PC cases
- No rotation speed control
- Didn't reach the manufacturer's stated maximum rotation speed
