Antec Nine Hundred Two (902) Review

Posted by: David Mitchelson () on: 04/08/2009 03:01 PM [ Print | -21 comment(s) ]

Features - Outside and Inside
Exterior

The Nine Hundred is presented in the usual fashion; it comes packaged in a sleek box with pleasant graphics and detailing of the case printed on the sides. Inside is the case itself, along with some instructions, warranty, an additional fascia panel/bracket and all the necessary screws.

On first impressions you will immediately notice that the Nine Hundred Two follows very similar design concepts to that of the Antec Twelve Hundred case The main difference between the two being that the Nine Hundred Two is smaller but slightly larger than the original Nine Hundred case, this is to accommodate the new goliath of a 140mm top mounted TriCool fan also found on the current Twelve Hundred case. The front panel hosts some useful ports such as 2x USB, 1x e-SATA. Behind the front panel is a tray that is useful for storage - similar again to the Twelve Hundred.

Some of the great improvements Antec have taken care to employ are the overall quality of the materials used for the build. The Nine Hundred Two weighs an additional 3KG's over the original Nine Hundred case. This extra weight has been used to strengthen the case and give it a solid structure.

On the front side of the case there are two front 120mm TriCool. You can remove these cages to reveal the seating position for HDD storage. On the front side of these cages there is also the option to control the fan speed on both 120mm fans; this feature is also present around the rear of the case giving you the ability to manage all fans throughout the enclosure.

One thing that is distinct about this new revision is that there are now handles on the side panels - making it considerably easier to remove these panels. A small, but very useful design feature!

Interior

Although there has been some significant changes made on the exterior of the Nine Hundred Two, inside the case there has been very little changed. The Nine Hundred Two follows on the trends that the Twelve Hundred is characterised by. A clean, matte black finish and great airflow design along with some great slots to hide those cables - allowing you to neatly tuck away un-needed wires, improving cable management. Behind the dual 120mm fans there are some useful dust filters. These filters can be easily take out and cleaned. A great design idea. Simple and effective.

As already mentioned, the HDD storage areas are easily removed by sliding the entire cage out and installing the device. This is very beneficial as it means that you won’t have to start removing items out of your case to get at the HDD area. Each of these cages is given access by removing eight thumb screws – 4 in each side. This makes it even easier to remove the cage as you won’t need a screwdriver in your hand.