Zalman Introduces The Ultra-Compact CNPOS2X CPU Cooler

By Niels Broekhuijsen
published

Zalman has released a new CPU cooler, the CNPS2X.

Zalman, a manufacturer of cooling equipment, has released its new CNPS2X cooler. This is a compact CPU cooler that is intended to cool CPUs with TDPs of up to 120 W. It has a diameter of just 84 mm and is only 27 mm tall.

The unit features a unique S-heat pipe. The heat pipe is bent throughout the entirety of the unit with the middle of the heat pipe making direct contact with the CPU IHS. The rest of the unit is a round array of fins made of copper for superior thermal transfer.

Cooling is accomplished by a single 80 mm fan, one that spins at speeds from 1500 RPM to 2600 RPM and noise ranges from 17.4 dBA to 22.7 dBA. Zalman makes a note indicating that the use of a 120 mm case fan is required.

Zalman's CNPS2X CPU cooler works on all modern CPU sockets including the LGA1150, FM2 and AM3+. It is expected to cost around $30.

Niels Broekhuijsen
Niels Broekhuijsen

Niels Broekhuijsen is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He reviews cases, water cooling and pc builds.

9 Comments Comment from the forums
  • bucknutty
    Cool
    Reply
  • nevilence
    haha i see what you did there, "cool", you witty devil you. on a seperate note, that is a good looking cooler, even if it requires case cooling
    Reply
  • somehow i doubt that this little thing will be able to cool ~100W within acceptable noise levels. i'd actually be surprised if it manages even 80W.

    also, if the fan really is exactly 80mm, the whole heatsink surely is more than 84mm in diameter. 94mm would seem to be a better guess, judging by the pictures.
    Reply
  • ftab
    I don't really see the point of the compactness if it requires the use of a 120mm case fan. Cases that can fit those can surely fit a standard ginormous heatsink, no?
    Reply
  • roadrunner343
    This looks like an interesting SFF cooler to me. I would think it would be ideal for low wattage parts with very little headroom. Does anyone know if this stays within the reference cooler space, of if there is a posisbility of interfering with other MB parts?
    Reply
  • thundervore
    Although my past 3 coolers were Zalman and they performed wonderfully, they all suffered from the same problem. After a year of use the copper turns a dirty orange color. Although the nickel plated copper coolers did not have this problem.
    Reply
  • __-_-_-__
    love the design, for low profile seams to be great. anyway, worthless without benchmarks.
    Reply
  • Looks good, especially for HTPC's where space is very tight! Can't wait to see this in some benchmarks and see how it does over stock AMD and Intel coolers (I wouldn't expect anything really great, but much better then stock!)
    Reply
  • AJSB
    Nice for a max TDP of 65W w/o extra fans ...and only if it's not a tower.
    Reply