Conclusion
Well what can we say, the Cooler Master 280 doesn't present any features that suggests it's not a budget chassis. There's just a bit too much cost-cutting for our liking. Cooler Master could have used higher quality, cheaper materials such as plastics and achieved very similar looks but with a better finish.The cheap plastic doors on the front are disappointing to see, as well as the lack of full modular support for switching panels,
In terms of thermals the chassis struggled, and the lack of flexibility in the design does make the whole concept seem a bit weak. We're not totally dismissing the idea but there is certainly a lot of room for improvement.
Cooler Master needs to address some of the issues with the design, the pressed air vents, fiddly front panel fitment and lack of true modular flexibility.
We then come to the price, sure at an RRP under £60 it’s cheap for a Cooler Master, but, perhaps, it may be too cheap. If there is one thing Cooler Master knows how to do its in building quality chassis; remember the ACS series of desktop chassis from a few years' back?
Slick, quality products that worked as well as they looked; the overall feeling we have of the '280 is there is plenty of room for improvement before it can rub shoulders with the ACS range of old.
Cooler Master has made the '280 appeal to a market that is focussed on the aesthetics as much and the functionality, but it just feels cheap to the touch; people want a high-quality product that looks good in the digital home, and the '280, sadly, doesn't fit the bill.
We just hope Cooler Master can move forward with the ideas in the 280 series and improve and simplify it to make a better product in the future.
HEXUS Certification
Cooler Master Media Center 280
