Cooler Master Centurion 5: Simplicity Meets Functionality

Construction

Besides the vertical trim on the front of the case and the plastic tool-less devices for the drive bays and expansion slots inside the case, the Centurion 5 is constructed completely of steel.

We went through the inside of the Centurion 5 and felt for sharp edges that could cut wires or wandering hands, and found a few around the drive bay area. We have noticed that unlike the thinner steel used years ago, this thicker 0.8mm SECC results in slightly duller edges when cut. Most manufacturers do fold over as many edges as possible to avoid any problems.

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As we mentioned before, the plastic clips used to secure expansion cards are very flimsy and can break easily. There are many alternatives that we can think of which would be more effective at doing their job. For example, Thermaltake (Xaser III, Xaser V Damier) uses sliding clips that are made of a thicker, stronger plastic, which can easily support the heaviest of expansion cards. We also did not mind the thumbscrew idea that SilverStone used in their Temjin 3 and Lian Li implemented in their PC-V1000.