Review: Lian-Li PC-A12 chassis

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The PC-A12 does everything it should do, though it's not perfect, of course. In particular, the lack of water cooling was a disappointment, even for a model billed as the budget offering in Lian-Li's new range.

Some of you may scoff at that statement - £90 is a significant amount of money and quite a lot to be asking for a system case, especially since its only real features are the fit and finish - which in our view are very important - and the blue lights in the door, which don't score too high on our must-have list.

But the finish of the PC-A12 is excellent and the quality of the materials shines through in the final product.

Yet, we are concerned that the PC-A12 is priced a little too high in the UK. In the USA, the same case is currently available online for less than $120. That's the better side of £65 and, even with the necessary addition of UK VAT at 17.5 per cent, would equate to a good bit less than £80. And that's where we feel the PC-A12 should be pitched over here - under £80.

However, we try hard to review products at the earliest possible stage, and it's a bit unfair - and slightly misleading, as well - to criticise newly-launched products on pricing until there's a wide range of stockists and competition has kicked in.

The PC-A12 is a good chassis and we like it. It's quiet and functional, pretty to look at and easy to work with. Hopefully, soon, it will be stocked more widely, by which time you may be able to find it for under £80. However, unless you're a aluminium addict, you might think that there's better value currently available from a steel chassis, perhaps most notably the Antec P182.

But lovers of aluminium (among whom we number ourselves) who don't need water-cooling or a huge multi-featured case might think that the PC-A12 will do the job very nicely - and would likely be right.

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