Cooler Master Lab Test Bench Review 14

Cooler Master Lab Test Bench Review

(14 Comments) »

Value and Conclusion

  • The Cooler Master Lab is available for a few cents less than 90 US Dollars or 80 Euros. This seems a bit on the expensive side.
  • Still cheaper than most other options out there
  • Extremely compact
  • Easy and simple installation
  • Fits full size ATX boards
  • Extra power & reset buttons
  • PSU cables lead out the back
  • 2.5 inch bay for notebook or solid state drives
  • A bit expensive for what you get
  • Expansion cards cannot be secured
  • Very simple, no fan installation possible
  • No water cooling can be installed
  • Mainboard clips hold, but may not survive frequent board exchanges
  • Not enough space for multiple hard drives
  • Power and reset button not at the same height
The Cooler Master Lab is an interesting entry into the test bench market, which is lead by brands like Danger Den or DimasTech. Those are generally fairly expensive and may suffer from limited availability, while the Lab clocks in under 90 US Dollars and should be available everywhere Cooler Master products are sold. That said, the Lab is still expensive for what you get. The company manages to offer you elaborate cases with great designs, fans and loads of features for the same price of this simple rack. This is the biggest downside of the Lab, which could easily be remedied by a noticeable price drop.
A price drop would seem justified due to the non-existant expansion options, as you can't install a water cooling loop, cooling fans or too many storage devices in the Lab. Those shortcomings, while unwanted by a large percentage of prospective buyers, should also drive the retail price down. That said, the Lab is the smallest of the test benches we have had for review up to this point, but may seem a bit too simple for the crowd it is aimed at.
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Jul 24th, 2024 15:23 EDT change timezone

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