External:

3/4 View Right	Front	3/4 View Left
Card Reader	Removable HDD	IDE or SATA

    The b-Envi enclosure comes in a couple flavors: those with side panel windows, and those without. The enclosure for review will have the side panel windows. BGears was also nice enough to send out the optional SATA HDD PCB Card with the b-Envi enclosure. The front bezel is constructed from plastic, but not your ordinary plastic. HMMM... On the front bezel are four 5.25" drive bays, or are there? Actually, there are four 5.25" doors, but only two external 5.25" bays. The top bay is set up for stealth mode, and the next bay down is the standard 5.25" bay. The third bay is a door, and behind that door is the optional 2.5" removable aluminum IDE HDD (SATA HDD PCB Card sold separately) enclosure. The bottom bay, which is also a door, houses the 58-in-1 card reader, 3 USB2.0 ports and the audio connections.

Rear

Mobo Tray

Rear Exhaust

Expansion Slots

    The top and two side panels are actually a one-piece cover that slides into place and is held on with two thumbscrews on the rear. As I said above, the enclosure I received has the side window panels. Between the front bezel and side panel windows, ventilation slots are cut in to the metal. The rear of the b-Envi enclosure is not set up like your typical enclosure. Since this is a mATX cube style enclosure, there are only four PCI expansion slots and a single 120mm opening. Also, the motherboard tray slides out the back of the enclosure for an easier install.  

    Now you may be thinking to yourself that I have forgotten something on the bezel, or, even better, BGears forgot to add something. LIKE POWER AND RESET BUTTONS!!!!!! Yup... no buttons to power or reset the system. Well, actually there are buttons, but they are not the typical push type with the tactile feel. Instead, they are touch sensitive ones like the ones found on a touch screen. Now, that is just cool. More on these buttons later.

Interior:

Interior

Optical Bays

HDD Bays

HDD Tray

    Since this is a cube style mATX enclosure, there is not a lot of retail space on the inside. As the space is limited and in such close quarters, it's crucial for the hardware to be placed in certain locations for easy access. To gain access to the interior, simply remove two thumbscrews from the rear and carefully lift off the cover; we don't want to scratch the windows. Towards the front and center are the mounting slots for the optical drives. Next to the optical drives on the right side is a removable HDD tray that will hold a total of two hard drives.

PSU opening

120mm Blue LED fan

Mobo tray

    The back left side of the enclosure is where the PSU gets mounted, and to the right is the 120mm blue LED exhaust fan. Last, but not least, is the removable motherboard tray that helps keep the install easy.

Installation:

HDD Installed	HDD Cage Installed	Optical Installed
PSU Installed	Mobo Installed	Finished Install

    With the cover already off and the motherboard tray out, it's time for the install. First thing I did was place the motherboard on the tray and secure it like normal. Next, I would recommend installing the optical drive, then the hard drive. The hard drive cage is also removable, so that install will go easy. Now if you don't already have a power supply, I would suggest in getting a modular type or the one that BGears sells with the shorter cables. This will keep things clean and will aid in an easier install. When all the gear is installed, it's time to slide the motherboard tray back in place and install all the cabling. One key cable is the intermediate power cable, which has the main power feed for the touch sensitive controls. This cable gets the constant-on 5 volts from the power supply. With that said, the install is done and now it's time to replace the top cover. Do this carefully as you don't want to scratch the windows. I speak from experience :(

Touch Keys

Power and Reset

Power Off

Illuminated

    With everything installed, it's time to fire up the system and try out those touch sensitive buttons. When the system powered down, the LED behind the button is red. To turn the system on, simply touch the illuminated icon and the system will power up, changing the LED to blue and lighting up some other LED's. The LED behind the Reset icon will light up blue during the boot process, while the HDD icon will flash red.  After a short period of time, the Power and Reset LED's will turn off and the LED behind the Touch icon will light up. This Touch icon locks out the Power and Reset touch buttons to eliminate the any accidental shut downs. To give the Power and Reset buttons their touch function back, simply touch the Touch icon.    

Conclusion:

    When I first looked at the b-Envi enclosure, I thought the front panel controls were either hidden or on the side of the bezel. Boy, was I surprised when I flipped through the manual and found out they were touch sensitive; I couldn't wait to try them out. The buttons work great, and there is even a little beep every time you push them.

    The overall aluminum material keeps the weight down on this small form factor enclosure, which is nice when going to LAN's. The integrated card reader is a plus, and the removable hard drive enclosure is a real bonus. I know that BGears sells the SATA board separately, which I feel it's because they think more people will have a spare 2.5" IDE HDD versus a SATA. Just my opinion.

    On the retail box it mentions Gaming and HTPC. Personally, I agree with use as a gaming or as a LAN box, but as for HTPC it's just not my style. It is a bit tall and doesn't resemble a HTPC component piece. As for gaming or LAN, using the BGears b-Envi enclosure would be a good choice. The overall construction is solid and light, and will make a great addition to anyone's collection. I would like to thank BGears for sending out this enclosure for VH to review.

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