DeepCool latest Mini-ITX case sports a carrying handle and lots of mesh

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The ultimate Mini-ITX case for performance-minded enthusiasts?

Deep Cool CH160
(Image credit: Deep Cool)

DeepCool has unveiled a new portable Mini-ITX chassis with more mesh paneling than a typical ATX chassis. Dubbed the CH160, the Mini-ITX case sports mesh paneling on the top, front, rear, bottom, and right side panel to maximize airflow. The only part of the case that is not mesh is the left side panel, which is tempered glass.

The CH160 follows a new trend in high-performance airflow-optimized cases where right-side mounted mesh panels are being installed in place of solid side panels, to boost airflow potential as much as possible.

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Deep Cool CH160
(Image credit: Deep Cool)
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Deep Cool CH160
(Image credit: Deep Cool)

The case measures 13.23 x 7.87 x 11.16 inches and supports up to 172mm tall air towers and 305mm triple-slot graphics cards. The power supply is mounted in the front of the chassis and supports both ATX and SFX PSU. However, with an SFX unit, the case is far more roomy, with enough room to make a front intake fan viable. An ATX unit will also impact CPU temperatures if a full-sized 172mm air cooler is installed. If you do go with an ATX unit, it would probably be best to use a low-profile air cooler or a 120mm AIO.

The only case fan size the CH160 supports is 120mm. A single fan can be added to the front (with an SFX PSU), two at the top and one in the rear. The front 120mm can be swapped out for a 2.5-inch SSD/ 3.5-inch HDD drive mount for additional storage. And this storage mount is the only form of off-board storage the case supports. So you'll need to use M.2 storage on the motherboard itself for any other storage needs.

Front I/O features two USB 3.0 ports, a Gen 2 Type C port, and a single audio jack. Deep Cool has also included a carrying handle on the top, making it easy to transport the case around. The CH160 comes in black and white color schemes.

Pricing has not been announced, but we expect this to be a cheaper case, since it does not include any case fans.

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Aaron Klotz
Aaron Klotz
Contributing Writer

Aaron Klotz is a contributing writer for Tom’s Hardware, covering news related to computer hardware such as CPUs, and graphics cards.

4 Comments Comment from the forums
  • edzieba
    At 20l, that's a real chonker of an ITX case. e.g. the venerable Ncase M1 (also a two-slot-GPU ITX case) was 12.7L, and the M1EVO (mATX support, triple-slot GPU support, and can pack a 240mm AIO in at the same time) is 15L.
    Reply
  • phazeshifta
    edzieba said:
    At 20l, that's a real chonker of an ITX case. e.g. the venerable Ncase M1 (also a two-slot-GPU ITX case) was 12.7L, and the M1EVO (mATX support, triple-slot GPU support, and can pack a 240mm AIO in at the same time) is 15L.
    Yes, but the max cooler height on both the M1 and M1 Evo is 110mm...This has 60mm more clearance.

    The extra cooler height adds size. There isn't a way around that.

    They could've made it smaller by only taking SFX power supplies, but sometimes the practicality of accepting more readily-available and cheaper options, especially for a case that's predicted to be "cheap" ends up selling more units.

    If you want a smaller case, there's plenty out there. If you want to use big air coolers, some sacrifices need to be made.
    Reply
  • Notton
    At 20L, it is firmly in mATX territory.

    It seems to cater to people who want to keep it simpler with air cooling, and even has pictures showing it fits DeepCool's largest dual tower, the Assassin IV.
    It has a removable top panel, which is an amazing QoL feature when you want to cram in the largest cooler that fits in the case.

    With that said, it's still a chunky case. Adding a bit of height for mATX mounts wouldn't detract anything it has to offer.
    Reply
  • watzupken
    While it sounds like it is meant to be compact, but in reality, this is the type of casing I try to avoid. The reason is because it takes too much space on the desk, and too low when placed below the desk. The buttons are at the bottom of the case, which means it is more for on the desk use. So if you have limited desk estate, this case will be a poor fit.
    Reply