Cooler Xtreme : Coolers
: Graphics / VGA Cooler : Full Review Of Blue Orb
Rating and
Conclusion
Ease of Installation
(4/5)
The installation of the blue orb
can be difficult depending on the type of card you have, but because some
manufactures do not use the holes that the orb needs isn't really the fault
of Thermaltake. Thermaltake does include frag tape you could use, but if
I had to go that route I would use some thermal epoxy instead. The only
other problem with installation is that, if for some reason, you needed
instruction the ones included aren't very good. But, as I said, most people
would be able to figure out what’s going on.
Performance
(3.5/5) The blue orb
didn't draw the heat away as well as I hoped it would have. While it did
drop it 10º celcius from the stock heatsink, I think part of the reason
the stock didn't perform so well was because the original thermal paste
was poorly applied at the time of manufacturing.
Quality
(2.5/5) This is where I think the blue orb could be improved. The first
problem is the obvious weakness of design: the pins, as well as the clip
that’s holds the orb to the board, are easily bent. Sure the orb is made
out of aluminum, which is a pretty weak metal, but so are a lot of heatsinks
-- many of which are much sturdier than the blue orb is. Secondly I think
the fan runs louder than its rated. It's rated to run at a quiet 26.4 decibels,
but I have some 80mm case fans that run at 28 decibels and the orb was definitely
louder then they were.
Main Features
(4/5)
While the orb didn't really have any "features" since all heatsinks generally
include the same general setup: a heatsink, someway to secure it, and maybe
a fan. So the features I’m going to count for the orb are; the frag tape,
the thermal grease, and the 3 pin to 4-pin adapter. A lot of companies/manufacturers
don't include one or any of these, so Thermaltake definitely gets the nod
here.
Pricing (4.5/5)
I picked up the blue orb for RM60.00 at Overclocker's
Paradise RM60.00 for a heatsink with all the things that this
one includes I think is a good price, and couldn't get much cheaper without
Thermaltake starting to lose money on the deal.
Overall 3.5/5.0
Conclusion
So is the orb worth it? For a buck per degree drop in celcius I’d say
yes. But you have to factor in the soft design, and making sure it will
fit where it needs to go - either on your graphics card or chipset. As for
the somewhat feeble design, I don't think this is an inferior product, it
could just be better.