Final Thoughts
The Cooler Master Cosmos 1000 Full-Tower Case is definitely one of the best looking cases that I’ve seen in quite some time. Its unique design really pushes what is possible in case design these days with an impresssive array of high end features right out of the box. These are the main reasons why I was so concerned that I’d be totally blind to what could be wrong with the case so I appreciated having a chance to really live with the case and consider my opinion of it. I have to admit though, the case is truly seductive, begging for your attention, and asking you to buy it drinks all night. After the initial honeymoon and then living with the Cosmos 1000 day in day out for a few weeks, I have to say that it still holds a lot of the charm that I loved about it to begin with.
I really enjoyed the top mounted USB/eSata and Headphone/Microphone jacks. They were easy to reach and were well labelled. The only thing I didn’t like was the fact that the power button was so easy to hit. There were a couple times when I was fumbling for my coffee, placed on the cupholder area, that I accidently nicked the power button and ended up with a reboot. I’ve become more mindful of this and haven’t done it since, but I would have preferred them to be better protected, perhaps under the front door somewhere. Speaking of the front door, with such a high end looking case, there have to be some pretty high end components under there, and I was a little concerned about the lack of security, especially if you plan to actually lug this out to LAN parties or events. Speaking of lug, yes you will because it isn’t light, but at least the bars are nice and sturdy and seem to make great carry handles.
As far as sheer performance goes, the Cosmos 1000 is quiet for a case of this size. I never really expected it to be quiet, but was surprised at how quiet it turned out to be. Thanks to the noise reduction measures we talked about earlier, even with a fairly powerful dual SLI system onboard, it was definitely more than acceptable for every day use. Temperature wise though, although the rest of the system was happy, the VGA tunnel was a bit of a let down trying to tame our 8800 Ultra’s, but it did create some measure of sound reduction so if you had some cooler running cards, it might workout better for you.
Overall, I’m very impressed with the Cosmos 1000. It’s a super solid case that I definitely wouldn’t throw out of bed for leaving cookie crumbs. Its unique design, performance, and features definitely make it one of my favourite cases of all time. Despite some minor irritations, I have to say that this case has really earned my Editors’ Choice.
Pros
- Unique quality design reminds me of a Starship
- Fairly quiet for a case built for a high performance system
- Top mounted USB and Mic/Headphone jacks are very convenient
Cons
- VGA Tunnel was a bit of a let down for our 8800 Ultras
- Backdoor has a tendency of popping off if you don’t manage your cables properly
Overall Rating: 9.0 / 10.0
