When companies build quality products, that's good, but when they build what its customers want, then that's great. Today, Fractal Design tweeted that its Define R5 is now available in a "Blackout" edition, which is essentially an all-black Define R5 with a window. Officially, the Define R5 Blackout won't be launching globally until May 18, but starting today it is available at Newegg.com.
The Define R5 cases come in various colors, but the normal black version comes with white hard drive tray mounts, white fans, and white PCI-Express covers. The Blackout variant takes those white parts and swaps them for black, making the entire case black.
Beyond the all-black design, there's nothing different about the Define R5 Blackout compared to other Define R5 cases. It has room for up to ATX motherboards, three dual-slot graphics cards that are up to 310 mm long (or 440 with a hard drive cage removed), eight 3.5" hard drives, and two more 2.5" SSDs. Despite the trend towards optical-drive-less systems, the Define R5 does have room for two 5.25" drives.
The hardware that the case can house isn't what makes it special, though. In fact, in that regard, it's not special at all. The main selling points of this case are the clean and elegant Scandinavian looks and the well thought-out feature set. For example, the top of the case has a so-called "ModuVent" system, which essentially allows you to seal off the top of the case if you decide not to use it as exhaust.
The side panel also has a quick-release system for easy opening, and the front door can be mounted to swivel from either side so that you can ideally place the case on either side of your desk. The case also has a three-speed fan controller built in, and it can support up to a 420 mm radiator at the top and a 360 mm radiator up front. Of course, to mount these you will have to remove the optical drive cage.
If you're interested in the case, and live in the U.S., you can purchase it on Newegg.com today for $129.99. For the global launch, you'll have to sit tight until May 18, when most worldwide distributors should have stock.
Follow Niels Broekhuijsen @NBroekhuijsen. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+.
