A Closer Look - Outside

Out of the box, the Phanteks Evolv Shift XT is certainly not the smallest ITX case out there. For that, you have to look at those compact 10-12 liter options from a slew of boutique brands. Instead, the Shift XT adds some bulk purely for aesthetics, but mostly for functionality. With its exterior made out of aluminium. the Shift XT reminds you a little bit of what the other Shift enclosures look like even though it is quite the departure in design language. However, considering the original Shift and Shift X have been on the market for a while, a face-lift for future versions does seem reasonable.


Looking at the front of the Shift XT in the compact configuration, the front is mostly covered by the two aluminium panels. In the rear, it becomes apparent that the chassis employs a fairly classic sandwich design with the GPU on the left side of the chassis when looking at it from the front. This means the GPU will be facing you if you put the system on that classic right side of your display.


Both sides of the Shift XT look identical. There is a small gap between the top and bottom halves, and while there are square vents on the exterior panels, there is also a fine mesh layer behind it. This outer design seems a bit obstructive, so don't expect temperatures to be on the cool end in this smallest of setups.


You may slide the front panel of the chassis up to reveal a USB-C and USB-A I/O on the left and ARGB controls on the right, along the bottom edge of the chassis. Phanteks has embedded the power button into the sliding panel itself; while a nice engineering touch, it practically asks to be pressed by mistake when you gravitate towards that nook to pull up the cover and reveal the I/O.


In the rear, taking a closer look at the two functional sides, the GPU area comes with three expansion slots with thumb screws, so installing beefy, triple-slot graphics cards within the Shift XT shouldn't pose any issues. On the other side is a bit of an air vent and the opening for the motherboard. Those wanting to employ air cooling can go for units of up to 72 mm in height, so something like the Noctua NH-L12 series should fit just fine.


On the top, you can see additional square vents with a recessed center line running down the whole length of the Shift XT. This goes nicely with the design of the front and adds a bit of depth to the case as well. On the bottom are four clipped-on feet you may move around if you really want.