Packaging, Contents, Exterior And Cabling
Packaging
The box is pretty small, and on its face is a photo of the power supply against a dark background, along with several icons depicting the 650W capacity, the 120mm fan, the 88 percent maximum efficiency and the Active PFC (APFC). In the top-right corner there are two more icons depicting the unit's 80 PLUS Bronze efficiency and its Haswell compatibility. The power specifications table, along with a cable list description, are conveyed on one side, while a small picture on the top of the package shows the PSU's dimensions. Finally, on the back of the box there is a multilingual features description and a small list of icons describing the unit's key features.
Contents
Since Antec used an eco-friendly wrapping, the box's contents aren't very well-protected. The PSU, however, is enclosed in a plastic bag. The box contains the basics, including an AC power cord, a set of screws, the user's manual along with a warranty leaflet and two cable ties, which can be used more than once.
Exterior
The PSU's exterior design is rather boring. To be frank, though, we didn't expect anything more from a PSU in this price category. We do think that the company could offer something better-looking than this ugly fan mesh. On the front of the unit, a small on/off switch is installed above the AC socket.
On the back of the VPF650 is a grommet at the cable exit hole. Since most of the cables aren't sleeved, the grommet is necessary to protect them. The naked wires look pretty weird—if not downright ugly. But we have to cut this supply some slack since its price is pretty low. After all, most folks with mainstream systems won't care whether their PSU has sleeved cables or not. On the other hand, this PSU could end up the top choice for a capable modder who prefers sleeving his or her own cables rather than buying one with poor-quality sleeving.
Cabling
Beyond only sleeving the main ATX cable, Antec didn't use any stealth wires. With that said, we prefer a company to spend more money on good-quality capacitors rather than sleeved cables, and it looks like Antec allocated its budget the way we like.
