Best gaming chassis 2012

We only got about four and a half hours of continuous use in our testing. However, it does charge very, very fast with the included W power brick. Overall, though the G15 will be a better option for folks who often work on the go, the Legion is still a solid choice—and we have to give Lenovo props for the screen.

Speaking of battery, we averaged nine hours and 16 minutes of work use between charges, which makes the Strix G15 far and away one of the longest-lasting gaming laptops on the market.

It delivers great battery life, and exceptional gaming on battery. The Razer Blade 14 is a heavy-duty gaming laptop in a light and portable chassis. It could even stay close to 60fps with ray tracing on. Dell has also managed to cram that power into an impressively thin and sleek chassis. On the other hand, the X17 would not be a good choice to double as a daily driver though it did do well in our Premiere Pro testing. The webcam is mediocre, and the touchpad is a bit small, especially for a inch notebook.

Battery life only averaged around four hours in our testing. The Alienware X17 delivers outstanding 4K gaming performance, and manages to do so while keeping its impressively thin chassis quiet and cool. In short: if you use this in public, people will notice.

And the Strix comes preloaded with various programs to help customize your gaming experience. It still packs the top chips on the market and comes with a Hz QHD display, but at just 4.

In addition to its reliable gaming performance, the Blade 15 works well as a productivity machine. Our primary complaint is that this Blade got quite hot during our game testing. It has a more powerful processor than the base Blade 15, higher-end GPU options, and a slimmer design. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.

A beautiful handlebar design, curved glass panel, and sleek color scheme are matched by features that'll support even the most high-end components including E-ATX motherboards and oversized GPUs. A larger footprint means that you won't be pushed for space either, making it a delight to build into.

What's more, the RGB lighting is subtle enough that it won't distract you while you game. Yes, this is a lot to spend on an enclosure. However, those willing to go all out on a build will get a case with everything they need to create a stunning PC.

One of Corsair's best cases, the Carbide R, might be the ultimate minimalist's case. Aside from a small "sail" logo on the front panel, the R ditches additional branding for the sake of a clean design for the style-obsessed. While the design may be minimal, the functionality isn't. Phanteks has made some incredible cases over the years, but the Evolv X stands out as an excellent chassis for anyone looking to build a mid-tower PC with a little something extra.

That extra being the ability to slide two systems into its pleasing form—there's room for an ITX system in the top to go above the main ATX system. It's a bit of a squeeze for sure, but it is possible. If your demands aren't quite so crazy, then you'll find it roomy to build in, and there are enough neat little touches and funky design choices to cover almost any build you have in mind.

There's space for all-in-one liquid coolers in the top up to mm and front up to mm ; it comes with a universal fan hub, three Phanteks Premium mm fans, and has cable-hiding flaps in the rear so that it looks good whichever side you look at. You can slide a frankly ridiculous amount of storage into it as well. Apart from that, it's the same case, which is itself essentially a miniaturized version of one of our favorite mid-tower chassis, the Hi. Built to support mini-ITX builds, the Hi is all about packing a high-end system into a compact, minimalistic package.

With plentiful support for liquid cooling and full-sized components, the Hi is the perfect compromise between smaller ITX builds and larger mid-sized towers. Once your PC starts heating up and fans begin blowing at full force, your once-silent PC can quickly turn into something that resembles a roaring jet engine. The Silencio S mid tower looks simple on the outside, but the interior is filled with intelligent engineering and high-quality sound dampening materials to help drown any unnecessary noise.

Usually, this comes with a severe compromise for airflow, but the S does a pretty decent job of moving air and keeping things cool despite its silent properties.

Speaking of roomy builds, the Corsair Obsidian Series D is a behemoth of a PC case ready to house the biggest and baddest systems. Standing tall at a staggering The D features a unique triple-chamber design with convenient french-door-styled storage compartments and telescoping radiator trays for easy installation in addition to the stellar cooling support. The Obsidian D has long been a top choice for massive, over-the-top builds, and it only fits that the D was designed to knock it off its throne.

Initially known for its silent power supplies and fans, be quiet! One of its more recent cases, the Dark Base Pro , remains one of our highly recommended full towers thanks to its sleek design and enthusiast-friendly interior. The Dark Base Pro is large enough to support the biggest motherboards and radiators up to mm in size. The case also features total modularity with options for an inverted motherboard layout and even some nifty features like wireless Qi charging and preinstalled LED lighting.

However, if you already know how to build a PC, piecing it together shouldn't prove too difficult. For the most part, it's a standard tempered glass mid-tower case with a few bells and whistles to make it all worth the enduring trial and error of the PC building experience.

For one, it has three removable panels—one on the front and one on each side. Naturally, this makes for an easy installation. Incorporating a liquid cooler in its exposed ceiling area is an effortless undertaking.

It certainly will. The spacing of the mounting holes on an micro ATX board match those found on an ATX board, there are just fewer of them. The key question here is, how big is your motherboard? Getting the best PC case for you is key, because it's arguably what forms the identity of your computer, dictating not only its looks but also what fits inside, the noise levels in your room, and the cooling potential for your rig as well. As long as you check whether the parts you want to use will fit and you like the looks, one of these cases should keep you happy for several years to come.

And while its materials quality could be seen as a little lacking, this is a case where you pay for its excellent design, not only in looks, but also practicality: it has tons of cable management space, is laid out logically and with easy to access filters, a breeze to use and maintain as your daily driver. Read: Meshify 2 Compact Review.

The O11D Mini was inspired by its design, but had a few issues. But now, the O11 Air Mini comes in as a brilliant alternative. The chassis features an unusual side-by-side chambered design, but building in it is a breeze and its performance is well up to snuff by modern standards. Fractal offers a thoughtful, versatile design aimed at ease-of-use, and delivers a very pleasant and enjoyable building experience with the Meshify 2.

Whether you use this case as a system where you just want to deliver tons of airflow and room for expansion, a workstation with tons of hard drives, a server, or high-end custom liquid cooling, the Meshify 2 will find a way to accommodate your build. For that, along with thermal and acoustic performance that is in-line with what we expect from a mesh front, it earns a rare five-star rating.

Read: Fractal Design Meshify 2 Review. Read: Phanteks PA Review. This is a The basic frame is made from steel, and each side houses a half-glass, half -perforated steel.

The front face and the top plate are made from fancier, prettier aluminum, giving the case a very premium feel overall. But the case can also be reconfigured to sacrifice some AIO and storage options in favor of fitting an ATX power supply, which is a great way of achieving some cost savings in combination with opting for the plain PCIe 3.

There are few things not to like about the Q Read: Lian Li Q58 Review. The Evolv Shift 2 stands out at first glance for its its towering, small footprint design and beautiful anodized aluminum panels. With a small footprint and beautiful finish in both the tempered-glass and mesh variants, the Evolv Shift 2 is perfect as an SFF PC for use in the living room, moving around the house wherever you need it or taking to LAN parties.

The easily accessible top IO makes plugging devices in a breeze too. Building in it was tight, and came with the typical frustrations associated with Mini-ITX systems, but I still managed a build within about 3 hours, and the end result was well worth the effort. Read: Evolv Shift 2 Review. Indeed, the X RGB as well as the similar D airflow , is an extremely easy and convenient chassis to build a system in, and everything just makes sense.

If you're looking for top notch performance with a strong feature set, the Fractal Design Define 7 is worth the money. Read: Fractal Design Define 7 review. With room for up to ATX motherboards, more than adequate cable management, and surprisingly good thermal performance despite the quiet intentions, the P82 Silent is a great value for those seeking a quiet PC. Read: Antec P82 Silent review. The be quiet! Dark Base is in a class of its own.

At first glance it may seem like just another case with a tempered-glass side panel. You'd be hard-pressed to find a more versatile, high-performance enclosure.