iBUYPOWER Snowblind Review: Translucent Screen on the Side

It’s pricey, but iBUYPOWER's Snowblind chassis has something no one else has and everything an enthusiast could want. At $299 (£), this case, though expensive, may actually save you money in the long run.

iBUYPOWER Snowblind Case
Editor's Choice
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Benchmark Results and Conclusion

For comparison purposes, we brought in the NZXT H710, the Corsair iCUE 465X RGB, Gamdias Talos P1A and the Fractal Design Define S2 Vision, to give you a good idea of where the Snowblind sits compared to its competitors with similar sizes and feature sets.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

There is no doubt that the two 120mm intake fans coupled with the 140mm exhaust fan provided an ample amount of airflow, more than enough to keep our test system downright chilly. CPU temperature leveled off at 59 degrees Celsius over ambient. These results put this case dead even with the cases we used for comparison purposes. This is good considering all the cases used are solid performers in the cooling category.

GPU temperatures maxed out at 49 degrees Celsius over the ambient room temperature, again, on par with the other cases used for comparison.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

We took sound pressure level readings with two off-the-shelf dB meters from two different angles. With the fan speed set at 1,200 rpm, our test system registered dBA at idle. With the test system under load, sound output increased to dBA, in line with the majority of the cases tested against.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Cooling efficiency and noise levels are both ways to measure performance. Determining acoustic efficiency, also referred to as cooling-to-noise ratio, is a matter of averaging all five of our tests to determine a base value. Great thermal performance, combined with relatively low noise output, make iBUYPOWER's Snowblind a solid choice for just about any system build.

Bottom Line

Considering everything this case has to offer, we feel that, though the price may be high for some, the unlimited customization potential adds serious value to this chassis, thereby justifying the price tag. Even though the market is packed with cases with similar features and performance, this is the only case on the market featuring a transparent LCD display. The wow factor is through the roof.

MORE: Best Cases

MORE: All Case Content