A Closer Look:

   The Zalman ZM850-HP is longer than a standard ATX power supply so make sure you have the space in your rig for it. There is a large 140mm fan that runs silent yet moves plenty of air to really keep this unit cool no matter the load. The black mirrored finish of this power supply is also a huge fingerprint magnet...ugh! When will companies learn to use Matte or Satin finishes?! I'm so tired of everything being glossy and attracting every smudge and print and dust.

No On/Off Switch!?#!@#!@

   One thing that really intrigued me with this unit is the lack of a true on/off switch on the rear (facing) of the unit. Without seeing a power switch in it's normal position, I spun the unit around to find a switch on the inside (facing) part of the unit. I thought that was quite odd thinking that someone would have to get inside their rig to power off the unit. Then I realized this isn't a power switch at all, but rather an odd "standby noise filter switch"....huh? First off why the heck would I want to turn something like that off in the first place and why include this switch and not an on/off power switch which I use all the time?! Really quite baffling to me and I've yet to figure it out. All I know is the standby noise filter switch is useless and the power on/off switch is a missed necessity to me and many enthusiasts out there.

   Now this unit isn't 100% modular but instead hard wires a group of necessary cables including 8-pin CPU, (2) PCI-e, 20/24 pin ATX, (3) SATA and (3) Molex. Now you can run a real high performance rig with just the hardwired cables and never even need to use the modular cables. However if you can do that feasible you'll have to reevaluate the need for this beefy power supply altogether because this unit is made to power so much more than that.

   As you can see there is a ton of cables to go around with the Zalman ZM850-HP power supply. Along with the 2 hardwired PCI express cables, you get two more PCI express cables (can you say Quad-SLI ready!?). Add to that a ton of SATA cables to power your data collection and you've got one serious power supply. All the cables were black sleeve wrapped and are typical high quality for this market segment.

Getting Inside:

   There is a lot of hype and marketing for the Zalman HP (heatpipe) series of power supplies so let me void the warranty so you don't have to!

   Inside the Zalman ZM850-HP is where we see what makes the Zalman power supplies different from anything else on the market; the heatpipe(s). The quality of components used is the top of the class and the heatpipes are typical Zalman quality. In this case, the heatpipes serve to channel heat away from the main components to the finned heatsinks where they can be kept cool by the large 140mm exhaust fan. besides water-cooling your power supply, this is as good as it gets for PSU cooling in the market today. Kudos to Zalman and their heatpipe technology.

Got News? Send 'em in!