Customer Reviews

Apex MI-100 4BAY Desktop Blk/Silver 250W ATX12V Mitx

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Update (March 26, 2010):
I bought another one of these for someone else. The case that I have (purchased about a year after my initial review) now comes with 2 SATA power plugs, and both sides now have air vents rather than just one. Overall still very pleased with the case.

Original Post (March 09, 2009):
I bought this case and matched it with a D945GCLF2 MB, 2 GB RAM, 640 GB HD, and a 22x DVD burner, and added an 80mm fan to the vent hole side. Very tight fit, but if you plan things ahead of time you can run the cables where you need them, and tuck them away and tie them off with large twist ties, or small zip ties if you are feeling confident. Go with SATA for both DVD and HD to increase airflow (has only one SATA plug so you need to buy a MOLEX to SATA power adapter for more). I initially had an 80GB SATA and a 40GB IDE drive in the case (made room for the IDE in the open spot below the DVD and 80GB slots so that nothing would block the side vent). Does not seem to run too hot, all readings showed both cores and the HD running at ~38 to ~40 degrees Celsius while crunching DVDs into .WMVs. The case is a fingerprint and scratch magnet, but looks very nice and compact and does not seem too out of place in the living room.

Things I would change:
-Add a spot for a case fan.
-Get rid of the "mirror finish front" and just make it black
-Make it easier to open for upgrades
-2 SATA instead of 1

Things I like:
-Compact
-Place for everything
-Nice black finish
-Sturdy
-Comes with a power supply

First of all, the pictures of this item on Amazon are not very helpful.
The case is a very sturdy steel that slides off the back like an older tower-style case would.
The finish is a shiny powder-coated black.
The front of the case is a silver mirror over the optical drive cover and the 3.5" internal bay cover. The left side of the front face can be opened to reveal USB and audio ports.

This case has no fans in it or places to install fans, except the one built into the power supply.

The construction of the case is quite solid and easy to assemble. The only problem is that dimensions are REALLY TIGHT in this case. It is great that it is so small, and it should be possible to get your components in there, but don't plan on stuffing it too full with IDE optical drive and two 3.5" hard drives, because it will be a very tight squeeze and there ventilation is negligible.

I am using it with Intel's D945GCLF Atom-based motherboard and it works well, though it was difficult to get everything stuffed in there without removing the power supply while putting it all together.

=====> WARNING -- SHIPS AS BLACK w/ MIRROR/SILVER <=====

If you're used to Antec P180-series cases, take a deep breath. You won't find the airflow and cable routing, or the heavy gauge, damped sheet metal construction of the Antec. You will find a case that lets you build a complete dual-core Atom 330 machine with a pair of RAID (ZFS) 500 GB drives for around $300!

For my intended use, this case is more than adequate. The form factor is attractive and this MI-100 has a reset button and a "subtle" power LED (limited angle of view and non-blinding-intensity green) over its sister, the MI-008.

Space inside is adequate for the Intel D945GCLF2 Atom 330 (dual-core, 64-bit) I use, along with a pair of Seagate Momentus ST9500325AS(G) 5400.6 500 GB notebook drives.

The power supply is "quiet enough" for me and not worth going for something like the picoPSU (as I have enough space inside as well).

There is only one SATA power connector on the PS harness, so grab a Molex-to-SATA converter.

Definitely remove the PS when installing the motherboard. Between trying to plug in the 2x2 power and getting mounting screws in, its worth your while.

A 120mm fan can easily be added next to the power supply if you need more cooling. The power supply should be installed so that the air inlet is over the CPU -- pulling air from over the motherboard and exhausting it out the rear of the case.

There are slew of great photographs of the sister case, apex-mi008, at silentpcreview, including disassembled, with MB in place, and how they install a fan (I also like the Yate Loon as a great, quiet, and inexpensive fan, which I have been buying in lots of four from my local source).

[...]

Size:
This is a fairly large case for a mini-itx. This is not the case for you if you are going for miniaturization and sleekness. The shape is elongated, like a large shoe box.

Definitively, it'll fit
1 - 5 1/4 inch ext (DVD Rom)
1 - 3 1/2 inch ext (floppy sized slot)
1 - 3.5 inch int hard drive
1 - power supply space

I find it not quite possible to put a hd in the 3.5" external bay designed for the floppy, there isn't enough clearance for the SATA adapter. It maybe inconvenient if you are going to use 2 hard drives.

Installation:
I installed the following: Zotac a-u, CPU fan, 3.5" hd, dvd-rw drive, removed the psu to use the external psu.
It was a breeze to install, and took about 15 mins. Air circulation in the case without the PSU is great.

I can see the following installation/fitment issues:
1 - internal PSU is maybe 2-3 inches above the M/B, could be a problem if your CPU heatsink+fan is too tall. Not an issue for me as I'm using the ext psu that comes with zotac mb.
2 - Possible air circulation issue if you use the internal PSU, an additional case fan is recommended.
3 - Internal PSU has 2 SATA plugs and bunch of old style plugs (probably not used if you are building with up to date hardware).

Quality:
Sturdy but cheap, front panel is scratched out of the box.

Overall, it is a mediocre case with respect to the efficient use of space and design, which it compensates by making it larger. Fortunately I'm using zotac's ext power supply and I didn't run into some of the possible issues mentioned.

Should have spent the extra few and got an Antec or something. This is my third Mini ITX case and boy is it junk. Looks ok, seems like it should work but what a nightmare. The layout is just horrendous. A lot of wasted space along side of very cramped space. The metal is cheap the weight of the PSU bends it where it is mounted. There is a big bow in the back and the PSU which came mounted in the case is tilting downward onto the mobo. The mobo has to be shoved under this PSU and the power supply wires etc.. get scrunched. You have to make all connections before sliding the mobo under the PSU. There is no mounting option for 2.5" HDD which I would assume in smaller builds is very common.I have never seen an ITX case without it. It's just too cheap and poorly designed for me to be happy with it.

Oh, and Amazon needs to change the main picture as the front is silver and not black.

UPDATE. WOW....Just awful. If u plan to use a mini ITX that does not have an integrated CPU it will not fit. The CPU Fan will not fit under the this cases poorly placed PSU. I cannot believe this design. This leaves very little versatility. Should have stuck with the antec I am already using in another system that the PSU is wisely side channel mounted so you can fit anything, and that case is smaller than this one. Also! If you do manage to fit a CPU fan under the PSU, the PSU fan would the CPU fan causing thermal issues. I am not typically this harshly worded in a review but this design just baffles me. Just unreal. Stay away.

If you don't mind the height, this is one heck of a HTPC box. It features a tucked away spot for an IR receiver (and USB IR receivers can fit nicely on the internal USB connectors of Zotac's series of IONITX boards). The top/sides are one piece, the cover, which slides off nicely and easily, after unscrewing. The 250W power supply fits right in, so you don't need to get a board with an extra PSU.

The unit is high-gloss black, and I've managed to keep it scratch/smudge free in the few months I've had it. You can too, if handled with care. Though, you can remove any smudges that do appear with a dry micro-fiber rag/towel and you're good to go. The case came wrapped with plastic to protect it from scratches, and the front face also has plastic, though you wouldn't tell. So that would extend the life of the front face, which indeed is also high-gloss black.

Someone said the face was silver. Their eyes are just playing tricks on them, because the front face is indeed black, but has a thin clear overlay, and that overlay is what makes the face appear slightly darkish-silvery (only because the overlay is a bit more reflective than the gloss black). Technically the face of the unit is still black though, which is apparent at certain angles, or by opening the CD drive's access panel door and looking at the door from its backside.

A hidden access panel also conceals two USB and two audio jacks behind the front face. There's also a door below the CD drive that seems like it would fit a

Overall, it's a sexy little unit. I wouldn't think twice if I needed another, especially considering I'd done my research. I'm very happy with the purchase, and have been using it for a few months now.

I'm currently using mine with the phenomenal Zotac IONITX F-E motherboard: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002TKVK1M?tag=a52-20&ie=UTF8

This case is great. As stated by other reviewers, with a little planning you can get everything into the case.

My Specs:
Mobo: Intel D945GCLF2 Essential Series Mini-ITX DDR2
Ram: 2 GB corsair
Optical Drive: Lg Lightscribe.
Wireless Adapter: Linksys wireless G adapter.

There is still space for a 3.5" drive and maybe an ide drive beneath it.

Notes: The power supply must be removed to properly insert the 2x2 power connection; besides it makes things easier to work with.

There is space on one of the vent to install an additional fan (80mm) BUT only if you do not use the PCI port on the mobo. Also the PSU's fan is directly below the top of the case housing and tends to get hot, however I haven't noticed any problems while the system is running.

I bought the mobo with the S-video to connect the system to the Tv, running cat5 cable for the network connection wasn't practical so I used a wifi PCI card. Now I can use the TV to stream photos and videos from any shared computer on the home network.

Things I would change.. extend the vent holes to cover the entire side of the case to accomodate additional fans.

Otherwise this is a great case.

using this with a zotac IONITX board and it's pretty awesome. i've got one of the boards with an external power supply which is great for this tiny case. I pulled out the power supply and for right now there's an gap in the back of the case where the PS used to be. I'm planning on making a little grate to cover that up. one nice features of this box is the front LEDs aren't too bright. When you're watching TV the last thing you want is an HDD light flashing at you. The pics on this page make it seem like the front is black plastic, but it isn't. It's mirrored finish and it marks easily. The size and clean build make up for that lousy front, but if you are looking for a really smart looking face, this might not be for you. This would be my perfect case if it came with a laptop drive cage. As it is I bought a rail adapter to hang my drive in there. Until I got that I had to sit the drive on the floor of the case.

Well, it's going to take a bit of thinking on how you're going to squeeze a whole computer in there, but it's possible. Just make sure the optical drive isn's longer than 7 inches, other than that it'll be a piece of cake. The design is very good, but I wouldn't be able to say the same about the material. I can tell they put some thought into this product but they decided to go a little cheap. I like the front since it has like a little push-to-open door to reveal two USB slots and a audio in/out. It may look bright and shiney when you first get it but the fron is made of plastic that scratches up pretty easy. The 250W PSU that comes with it tends to heat up even when youre using a small 4 watt Intel Atom processor. But it is a real good value, a case and PSU for around 50 bucks. There are PSU out there with 250 watts that can easily cost more than 50 bucks. I thought it was a good deal and I'm happy with it, didn't have to spend any extra cash than was needed. Enough room in there for the mobo, optical drive, and two hard drives. The other downside is that it only comes with only one SATA power connector, so you'll have to buy an adapter. This was all I needed from a case though, not too fancy. Looking forward to buying another one jor a home entertainment system.

This is my first mITX build, and I was pleasantly surprised at the quietness of the PSU fan. It is somewhat too big for what I needed, since I am not using a hard drive or a DVD drive, but for this price I can't complain. As others have said, you need to remove the PSU first before installing the motherboard. The bunch of wires coming out of the PSU can be a little awkward, but that's unavoidable given the space. I put an Intel D510MO board in it, booting the Slitaz Linux distro from a USB flash drive, and everything worked the first time. Being a low-power system, it doesn't have a problem with heat. I suppose if you build a more-complex system, you'd need to install (probably with some customization of the case) a case-fan to ensure adequate air flow. Overall, a nice case for a good price.