A Closer Look - Outside

Taking a look at the tiny chassis, it features the same design elements as other variants of this case family. While previous Core cases were all towers of various sizes, the Core 500 is actually an SFF enclosure. In terms of quality, it is more than robust, well above average.


The front of the Core 500 is out of plastic and features a few metal-mesh elements on the side. It has a brushed aluminium look to it. You will find a 140 mm fan above the CPU cooler's area in the rear, so large tower coolers should fit within.


Both sides sport differently sized air vents. One is for the GPU while the other is for the PSU.


Taking a closer look, there is a small Fractal Design logo on the front of the Core 500. Above that is the single 5.25" drive bay with the same brushed aluminum look to it as the rest of the front.


As the PSU bay is in the front, a plug in the back connects your actual power cable to the unit. The middle is taken up by the aforementioned fan. While Fractal Design could have gone for a 120 mm unit, it went with a 140 mm variant instead, which is nice to see. To the right are the two motherboard expansion slots in their usual white color we have come to expect from Fractal Design.


At the top of the front cover are two USB 3.0 plugs, the usual audio I/O, and power and reset buttons. A large vent can also be found there. It is for any fans or liquid-cooling setups below. You will find another vent with a removable dust filter on the chassis's underside. This is where the PSU will pull cool air in as it operates.