LIAN LI PC-U6B Black Aluminum MicroATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Pros: Hands down the coolest looking case ever! Definitely one for display purposes.

Very easy to open and add components. Light yet very sturdy. Built in fan controller. Easily removable washable filters.

Cons: Doesn't support standard ATX boards, only MicroATX. :(

Other Thoughts: Proud owner of this case! More details will be provided later.

Pros: If you're considering buying the case, it's for the looks. Construction is first rate (with a few odd little exceptions, like the rubber pass-through plugs, which are cheapish). Lots of good cable-routing options. Good airflow for a case this size. Better value now that Newegg has dropped the price.

Cons: It's not a big case, and can't serve in place of one. You're limited to micro-ATX motherboards, can't stuff in zillions of hard drives, can't use the very largest CPU coolers or add 10 case fans, it'll only take one optical drive, etc. And the power supply casing is VERY tight--I literally had to scrape off the power supply stickers to get it to fit. They should make it a mm wider.

Other Thoughts: No box for me. Love the snail!

Pros: The case looks nice and has solid build quality for the most part. Separate power supply area prevents additional heat leak into mobo area. Due to its round front, higher end graphics cards fit with relative ease.

Cons: Airflow is poor. Despite the fact that it's among the largest micro-atx cases around, it struggles to perform comparably to cases less than a quarter of its price ($275) due to its ineffective cooling. It only has room for one 80mm exhaust fan! It wasn't even included at such a hefty price tag. The rear door is made of cheap plastic which never stays closed. Removing the fan filters are a chore compared to other cases. You'll need a screwdriver to remove four screws for each fan to get them off. It will not accommodate high end CPU coolers.

Other Thoughts: If you have an all-in-one water cooler solution, avoid this case like the plague. The side intake fans are the only options to install the radiator which effectively kills (mounted normally, it sucks the hot air into your system and in reverse, you no longer have intake fans at all) what little airflow the case had to begin with. It also causes the tubing to be twisted so much that mine eventually broke, taking out my motherboard and hdd with it. My graphics card soaked up quite a bit of the coolant but it somehow manged to survive.

Pros: This is a fantastic case, even if you ignore the shape. There is room for a full size video card, included fan controller, separate compartment for PSU (intake on the bottom), and extremely effective cooling. With the two fans blowing down on the MB and a top down CPU HSF, temps stay in low 70's overclocked to 4.6 on an i5 2500k. Space for up to 5 HDs in a micro ATX case. USB 3.0 ports on front of case. Grommeted cable pass throughs.

Cons: Shell is a love it or hate it thing...I loved it at first, then decided to make a change (see other thoughts). Motherboard tray is not removable. Recommend modular PSU as there is not a ton of room for extra cables, though there's a decent amount of space in the PSU area to hide SOME extras.

Other Thoughts: I'm not sure I could be any happier with this case, other than price. The design is very effective for a single optical drive, bunch of hard drives, large video card, and very little wasted space. The shell shaped grills are removable...held on by 9 screws each. I cut two pieces of smoked acrylic to replace them for a very slick look. Removed two fans on the side panel and installed one in the front blowing in, kept second out so you could have unobstructed view of innards. Plan is to add a 120.1 radiator in the front and an 80mm on the rear with fans to set up water cooling. Running Asus Maximus IV Gene-Z/Gen3, Core i5 2500k OC'd to 2.6, Nvidia Geforce 560Ti, dual SSD's. Red 80mm fan on the rear fan spot, PSU has red LED fan glowing out bottom, installed included LED strip. Water cooling hose will be red, as well as reservoir. Not designed for water cooling, but it can work with some imagination. Until then, running a CoolerMaster GeminII...fits perfect.

Pros: The obvious feature is the unusual design. Most other cases are variations on a rectangular box, maybe with some fans, windows or embellishments here and there. This is about as unique a shape as you can get while still keeping to the tower form factor, so if you're into the whole inspired-by-nature aesthetic this may be for you. I'll admit I bought and score this mostly on looks.

A benefit of all these curves is that even though the case is small, it's still easy to work inside, with a few exceptions, noted in the con section. That curve at the front is how, as the overview notes, you can fit very long PCI devices (GPUs) in the case.

Hard drives seat horizontally to each other in a very compact area above the power supply, and the mounting method is designed to reduce vibrations. 2.5" drives lay flush into slots on a panel, and 3.5" sit over the top of them.

Other various pros:
- Quiet side fans
- Plenty of dust filters
- Built in manual fan controller
- Slots for cable m

Cons: Fairly steep MSRP.

Installing the power supply is a hairy operation. The slot for it is padded at the bottom slightly and the side edges are almost imperceptibly too narrow to "gently" slide one in, as the instructions call for. You have to push hard enough to possibly shave a little of the paint job off of your PSU. You'll want that PSU to be at least partly modular, since the space you have to route cables from it is a small triangle.

The side fans may interfere with CPU heatsinks over about 120mm , but you'll want a downward-facing or low profile one to match airflow from those fans anyway. I got a Noctua NH-C14 and removed the top fan.

I eventually decided to purchase an 80mm fan for exhaust at the back of the case, since hot air accumulated at the front outcropping during load.

Other Thoughts: Micro ATX only. Not a big deal.

One drive bay. With the advent of Steam and HD streaming, who cares.

Includes a strip of red LEDs, if you're into that kind of thing. I hooked them to the fan controller.

Cable management is a bit odd, partly due to the aforementioned small space to run power cables, and partly because you'll feel inclined to run things along spiraling arcs instead of straight lines.

I'd suggest sticking to 2.5" drives for the first two -- an SSD and mechanical, for instance, to keep things neat.

Overall, this is a no-frills case with a really cool appearance.

Pros: The case is a eye opener for sure. Like the last person the red LED that they give you does create a nice effect. The fans are very quite and the loudest fan is my cpu cooler. I have two cats and the dust guard and mesh like side stop a lot of dust. Has usb 3.0 and even a converter if your motherboard doesn't support it. I got this for xmas and I am very pleased.

Cons: A few things.
Closing the back can be very hard even with a modular power supply. I am using a non modular Corsair (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021) w/ extended cables and it was a fight to get it to all come together. Wish had more cable clips in the back. Other then these few things maybe a 3.5 bay would be nice or a SD reader. I would have found the SD reader to be better then the Sata input.
Wish a extra LED was given.

Other Thoughts: Biostar mother board.
8GB GSkill
i5 Sandy
Adata SSD
WD 500GB
Corair 750W
560TI 2GB Vram

Pros: Unique design, very spacious and easy to work with. The side grills and dual 120mm fans provide more than adequate ventilation and its set up so that you can add an additional fan in the back. The red LED strip creates a very eery effect as the light reflects on the shell shaped grills, which most people find very appealing. I highly recommend this case, its functional, easy to clean and the looks while not everybody's cup of tea are truly original.

Cons: Can't hear the murmuring of the ocean

Other Thoughts: I think it should have included a secondary LED strip to allow both sides to be illuminated. Also, keep in mind that all components will be visible, so if you don't want people looking at all the wires, you might want to consider getting sleeves to give it more professional look.