A Closer Look:
 

Product Box

Contents

What do I mean by "cultural history and art" in a computer product? The Legend behind the Lion emblem in the description alone is in fact part of history. And if take a look at the box, you can see some cool graphics and glyphs of sorts that set the stage for what you're going to see when you open the box. The graphics are a bit more expressive than we're use to seeing and it all looks pretty cool. ASUS may be on to something new here.

The Cooler

While the product box alone offers up some Chinese art work of sorts, the CPU cooler itself is the real treat. If you look at the top of the cooler, you'll see a Chinese Lion very nicely etched in to the black cap. Call me a romantic if you like, but this is one really cool idea inspired by traditions of old.

Unique Cooler Cap

The cooler itself has a shapely design reminiscent of a flower of sorts. It's very well fabricated with every noticeable detail finely machined and constructed. They also have a nicely brushed finish. The fins have clean edges and aren't razor sharp to the touch. But, a little care should still be taken when handling the cooler. You won't find these fins bending easily to the touch.

Front Side

Bottom Side

The cap has it's own flame etch work around the very edges along with the ASUS label. It's pretty inconspicuous, but it's still a nice touch not seeing a huge company emblem drowning out the art work. The cap closes off the top helping direct air from one side to the other. Without it, the air would be drawn down in to the fan rather than through the fins and past the heat pipes.

Cap Looks Deadly!

In the center of the cooler, you'll find a 92mm blue LED cooling fan. Fortunately, it's not very bright and shouldn't over power your eyes in the dark thanks to the amount of fins shrouding the glow. As far as how much air the fan can move, isn't listed in the specs. But, at 16 dBA, it'll probably be pretty standard at 40 to 45 CFM.

Cap Removal

Close Up

Now, the base isn't as large as we've seen on previous generation coolers. It's actually a little narrower than a CPU's IHS. However, the CPU itself underneath isn't larger than the base. This means the CPU will still center nicely and cool the optimal area.

8mm Pipes & Base

The base doesn't sport a mirror polish. You can just feel the machined surface as you drag your fingernail over, but can't be felt to the simple touch. While it doesn't have to sport a mirror polish, it would be nice to see a little finer finish to guarantee maximum thermal dissipation.

Bottom View

Base Finish

The increase in the size of the pipes should help increase cooling capacity. Despite their size, they some how fit in to the base of the cooler. As you can seeThe pipes almost span the entire width of the cooler base.

Chrome 8mm Heat Pipe Caps

One nice thing about the heat pipes is their 8mm size and polished chrome end caps. You almost don't notice what they are and their purpose sticking out of the top. This is a real nice touch and breaks away from the typical copper smelted pipes we're use to seeing.

Pipes Throughout

Eight 8mm Pipes Visible

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