Roll up: Grade Over Function?

Xigmatek's Nebula looks great. From its removable aluminum doors to its chromatic activity light, IT's clear that the company focused on aesthetics. Hell, we're even warming up to its plastic silver grey base and its glossy black elevation cover ISN't and then bad until it's covered in fingerprints and dust. However, few people buy a case happening aesthetics alone and however attractive the Nebula may atomic number 4, information technology's besides impractical for just about.

Perhaps about disappointing is that Xigmatek wasted 13%+ of the Nebula's internal blank, which makes you wonder why it's and so big for a Miniskirt-ITX case in the first place. You're small-scale to GPUs no yearner than 200mm (175mm for treble-expansion slot cards) piece heatsinks can't support taller than 80mm -- hardly great news program for the Nebula when there are cheaper, smaller and much capable Mini-ITX cases already available.

Along with having mickle of new place, the Nebula limits dual-expansion slot cards to 175mm because of a plastic piece that contributes to its aesthetics, though we managed to remove this for an redundant 70mm of legroom (245mm total). This feels more ilk an oversight than a conscious decision to favor form ended function. There are plenty of slipway to make a uniquely attractive case without such a limit.

Moreover, the Nebula's cable management is virtually not-existent and we had to push all inch of the way to make things fit. Again, this is only more bothersome when you know how much space is bony elsewhere, though some of the case's limitations won't be a problem if you'atomic number 75 going to use an AMD APU much as the A8-7600 instead of a discrete GPU for a basic nursing home house-oriented build.

It would unmoving live skillful to fill the relinquished space. For exemplify, we could have had the alternative to install more 3.5" drives for storing movies and other media content in an HTPC. As is, the Nebula could hold twice as many 3.5" drives with the spare room below the existing drive cage. We find likewise about some of the externals, too. For representativ, why hide the I/O panel about the corner so it's hard to touch?

The more we look at the Nebula the more we query Xigmatek's design choices. The Nebula is a genuine incase, but information technology's disappointing to see it come short in areas that could have successful it a must-get product. If you like the way it looks and don't care about its shortcomings, mostly those concerned about haggard infinite and GPU/CPU cooler restrictions, it should still be a good buy out if it sells for $100 or inferior.

Pros: The Nebula offers an attractive plan that sets it apart from other Mini-ITX enclosures.

Cons: Emaciated potential/distance limits the Nebula's use for higher-end builds. Price should be a concern if it sells for more than $100.