Case: SilverStone Sugo SG05
Our second case is SilverStone’s SG05. Unlike Antec, SilverStone sells several mini-ITX chassis solutions. The SG05 is one of the company’s higher-end offerings built for the more conventional PC market. It’s capable of hosting a fully-featured desktop configuration based on a mini-DTX or mini-ITX platform.
The Sugo SG05 differs from Antec’s case by integrating the power supply, rather than forcing you to use an external power brick. The 300W SFX supply is several times more powerful than Antec’s 65W model. This allows you to build virtually any system type, including one with powerful discrete graphics. In addition, SilverStone specifies 80 PLUS compliance. The device automatically detects the input voltage.
While the Antec case can only accommodate two 2.5” hard drive, SilverStone provides one drive bay for 2.5” drives and another for a 3.5” hard drive. This way, you can install a fast SSD, as well as a high-capacity 3.5” hard drive. The optical drive has to be installed at the very top and, once again, you have to use a slim drive. A 120mm fan behind the front panel sucks fresh air into the system for ventilation. There are openings on the side and top to dissipate heat as well.
Lastly, we should have a look at the plastic front panel. It offers two USB ports, audio jacks, and power/reset switches. Unfortunately, eSATA isn’t available, though the fact that the chassis takes a 3.5" hard drive should negate much of the impact there. To make sure you stay within power and temperature limits, SilverStone offers a GPU support list on its product page. Note that the case is available in black or white finish.
