Review on Phanteks PH ES217E_AG Tempered Cooling Anthracite by Brian Barnes

I bought this case because I wanted a small form factor gaming rig but on almost every corner; This case created more work. The rig specs are listed at the end of this review. Good 1) This case has extensive existing cable routing with a mid-tower shelf and velcro straps front and back 2) The case looks great with its slim, minimalist design that fits on or under any desk. 3) The dimensions of the case are very small, which allows you to place it almost anywhere. 4) For those who love RGB, there is a handy RGB controller button. 5) Comes with a PCI adapter 6) Competitive price for form factor. Most similarly styled Mini-ITX cases cost $10-$20 more. The Bad 1) Although the case is tall, not many PSUs fit inside. My current PSU is a little big, but it's still a normal length and the mounting options just don't work for it. This causes the power supply to interfere with the GPU. Also, there aren't even mounting points for a horizontal mount that might work. 2) The GPU bracket is cool, but has a direct GPU output to the cellphone with a gap of 2-2 inches, which may cause overheating problem. Street. Also note that your m.2 slot is directly above the GPU fans. Honestly, you can mount the GPU so that it faces outwards, but cabling becomes such a rat's nest that it becomes a huge problem. 3) The front fan will be blocked no matter how well you route the cables from the fan power connectors to a mini-ITX board. Also, the fan intake is largely blocked by the front panel. There are now side air intakes, but the square inch of room for air is limited. 4) All panels: 2 tempered glass side panels and 2 aluminum front and back panels are extremely difficult to attach if you route cables through the provided cable routing as the power cables are thicker than the space provided for the front and back panels. Ugly1) All outputs for this case are under the cover. That means: outputs to monitors, USB, Ethernet and speakers. You know what makes a computer run. To use any port, the top must remain open. This would be easy to fix by simply unscrewing the spring-loaded top, but the power button is on top if you want the top on. A+ design. 2) The power button doesn't work and I had to install an OEM switch to make it work. 3) to install a mini itx board (the smallest commercially available cell phone) i had to remove the ssd brackets to get to the screws. So if you need non-M.2 drives, pray that you have a surgeon's skills and a jeweler's tools to mount it all. Gaming Pluc AHard Hard Drive - Samsung 970 EVO m.2RAM - G.Skill TridentZ RGB 32GBGPU - EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 XC Gaming PSU - EVGA Supernova 750 G3, 80 Plus Gold CompactCPU Cooler - Noctua NH-L9x65 SE-AM4