Cooler Master's power supply has been praised highly of its high efficiency and stability. In the year of 2006, Cooler Master will launch a new series of power supply iGreen Power 430W/500W/600W. iGreen Power is the world first power supply which achieves 85% efficiency through Double Forward Switching Circuit Technology. This intelligent circuit configuration stabilizes your running system without costing you a fortune.
While staying true to our original mission to provide the best products, Cooler Master is responding to the environmental concern around our globe. We make this iGreen environmental friendly - it has met the Energy Star and Blue Angel requirements.
First Impression:
There is *no* mistaking CoolerMaster packaging. The purple and white is here in force! It has a good little plastic handle integrated into the box packaging so it is easy to tote from store to your work bench! ;) Almost all of the printing on the box is easy to read, high contrast material. The information on the box gets the important stuff across and quickly. glancing at the front panel, we see a 3/4 view of the power supply, the honeycomb mesh exhaust area, a good view of the fan, as well as supporting bullet points that let you know that the unit is SLI/Crossfire ready. Also, the packaging boasts of powerful 12v rails (396 watts), super silent operation (17dBA), and up to 85% efficiency. Items that *should* catch your eye. On the ends of the packaging, you have one end that has the UPC bar code and multinational designation of the powersupply, and on the other end of the box, you have 17 point checklist of information regarding the powersupply, as well as a chart at the bottom of the list that details what is available on each voltage line. On the rear of the box, there are good picture references of all of the attached connectors as well as some nice detail shots of the power supply itself. Those connector detail shots are invaluable, because I don't know about you, but I sometimes have a huge brain fart when it comes to remembering the "type" of connector that I am looking for. Having these clearly displayed helps me immensely to insure I am buying a unit that will hook up where I need it to hook up.
Also on the back is a list of 5 key items that CoolerMaster feels it is important for you to know about their power supply.
1. Intelligent Circuit Configuration * No.1 "Double Forward Switching Circuit" Technology for 85% Efficiency * Intelligent circuit configuration for higher stability and reliability * Super silent operation with intelligent fan speed controller
2. Green Power Product * Green power design to meet Energy Star and Blue Angel requirements for energy and money saving * RoHS Compliance
3. High Performance * Compliance with the newest Intel standard ATX 12V V 2.2 * Compliance with the newest SSI standard EPS 12V V2.91 * With 5Vsb increasing from 2A to 3A, it could support up to 8~10pcs USB devices. * USB devices could be charged when your PC is power off. * 120mm dual ball bearing fan makes superb heat dissipation at low noise (17dBA) * Sleeved Cables for neat management and airflow improvement.
4. High Reliability * Life expectancy: MTBF > 400,000 hours * Passing Over-Voltage, Under-Voltage, Over-Temperature, Over-Current, Over-Loading, and * Short Circuit Protection * Passing 100% burn-in, hi-pot & ATE tested
5. Worry Free While you work or play * Power Failure Detector will light up when Over-Voltage, Under-Voltage, Over-Temperature, Over-Current, Over-Loading, and Short circuit occur. * PCI-e connector with bead core protection to minimize EMI for reducing noises. * Multi-GPU Ready: Dual PCI-e connectors * SLI-certified Licensee Product (http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone2_build.html for the list.)
Opening up the box, you are greeted with an efficient and effective packaging. Easy to remove (but very secure) formed paperboard packaging. Nice bit of box engineering that Cooler Master did, in that the power supply box flips open like a book. You are not reduced to trying to get a hand hold on the packaging and trying to slide it out the small end of the box. Cooler Master made its power supply easy to pick up and easy to get to. No lame "I don't want the trouble of unpacking it..." excuses to be had here. Kudos to Cooler Master! The included manual is multilingual, and pretty thorough in that it breaks down each connector, and tells you how the connector is pinned out and what rails are feeding it power. I love this step, and wish that other manufacturers took this simple step. Other companies provide this info, but I usually have to dig for it. Cooler Master makes the info readily available for the enthusiast that this is geared towards by putting it in the included manual, right up front! And if you loose the manual, a few simple clicks on the Cooler Master web site and you have the exact same thing for you in a PDF file. (http://www.coolermaster.com/installation_manual/Manual_iGreen%20Power%20500W.pdf) The reason I am so stoked about the inclusion of the rails on the molex connectors, is that in custom cabling scenarios, when you want to create a cable out of something else, you want to be sure you are not overloading a specific rail with too much demand. That will shorten the life of your unit substantially, possibly damaging equipment. I prefer not to dance this dance, and I try to keep careful track of spreading the load around as much as possible. Having a diagram that tells you what plugs are attached to what rails is precisely what you need to know when removing plugs that you will not be using, and reallocating the power to other tasks!
The power supply is snuggly kept in place from the formed packaging. The nickel plated power supply is wrapped in a protective plastic bag. All cables are routed and grouped in another section of the packaging, keeping that beautiful finish unmarred and blemish free. Speaking of finish, the surface is very reflective and quite an upgrade from the former practice of putting a matte gray color on the power supply. The 120mm temperature controlled fan is a welcome addition to the unit, as temps will be kept under control with minimum noise. Even at its highest speed, the 120mm fan will be less noisy than 2 80mm fans running at full tilt.
All in all, the colorful and clear packaging of the power supply tells me everything I needed to know "at a glance". The handle makes for ease of carry (and yes I have dropped my share of boxes..) and the box opening layout made for easy entrance to the goodies. Good work, clean and professional.
