Introduction

Bitspower had sent along two CPU blocks and a few other things for coverage here, and I was nearly done testing them when a separate package arrived over the holidays which contained the newly announced Premium Summit M CPU block I decided to prioritize instead. In fact, the review of that very block was published recently and has the subject of this review included in the results, which shows how far along I was into this review before pausing it. It is time to get back at it, especially with the pricing finalized for the various new Bitspower CPU blocks, and thanks again to the company for sending along this sample.


To keep things simple enough, Bitspower has a new product lineup under the "Premium" moniker, including CPU blocks such as the Premium Summit M, which means the non-premium named Summit M effectively belongs to a lower tier of products. But then the company adds a wrench into this mix by using the "standard" series to experiment with more features, such as adding a temperature sensor and OLED panel to display coolant temperature and effectiveness of your custom cooling loop on the CPU block, a concept that is not new with us having covered Aqua Computer's implementation on the cuplex kryos NEXT nearly three years ago. However, Bitspower claims to have made things simple by using a single cable for this, and also integrated RGB lighting that is new to the CPU block market since. We will take a look at all these features and more in the review beginning with the specifications below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

I had unboxed this CPU block before the more premium experience with the Premium Summit M, and yet there is plenty here to talk about positively. The product box does come in a plastic wrap, however, which I continue to dislike, and employs a cardboard construction with a black and blue color scheme. There is quite a lot going on here, with the company and product name, the company logo, a render of the block, and several marketing features all on the front, alongside logos of the various mainstream motherboard RGB control schemes. This tells us immediately that Bitspower is supporting RGB lighting with motherboard control, as with the Premium Summit M. The contents of the product page are effectively printed on the back, and perhaps this is too much writing, but it will come in handy in retail stores for those chancing upon it and wanting to know more without accessing the Bitspower website. It also lets you know that the block is compatible with a lot of Intel and AMD blocks out of the box without extra hardware purchased separately.


Bitspower is employing a two-part packaging with the outer sleeve we have been seeing so far and an inner box that is more plain, with the company logo and more stickers, including a QR code we also saw on the sleeve that takes you to the installation manual linked on the product page. That's right, as with the Premium Summit M, Bitspower is clearly shying away from printed manuals for their CPU blocks, if not across the board, and I still maintain that this is one of the few times where I would rather see a printed manual included in the box. Opening the box, we see a piece of thick foam protect the contents underneath during transit.


Under the foam piece is the CPU block itself, vacuum sealed in plastic. Next to it are the mounting hardware and various accessories, which surprisingly includes a set of Bitspower's true brass enhance multi-link hardline fittings for 12 mm hardline tubing. These cost $9.50 each in the US, so this is nearly $20 added, which will no doubt increase the retail price of the block. I have mixed thoughts about this because it is something users may not even want given the color and size restrictions forced upon them by Bitspower. I would have rather seen a lower price tag in their absence instead. We also find socket backplates for the various Intel sockets that need it, the AMD socket mounting bracket, and the rest of the installation hardware, including plastic washers, metal nuts, metal screws, metal springs, standoffs, and a hex wrench. The Intel socket backplate, which no doubt will see more use than any other, comes in three pieces, including a rubber back pad, a metal back plane, and a 3M-branded sticky pad.