The Pop series is a new range of cases from Fractal Design. Pop is divided into two categories, Air and Silent, and these into three size variants. We received the Pop Air case, which is the middle sized model. It is the only one in the series to offer a wide choice of colour options. The Pop Air has a perforated front panel, and cooling should be more efficient as more of the mask area is open.
Conclusion
Cooling lags slightly behind most of the tested cases. Graphics card cooling came out the worst of the tests at all noise levels. There the cooling loses about four degrees compared to the best results. Only Deepcool Macube 110 and Antec P82 Silent are worse. CPU cooling also lags behind, albeit by only one or two degrees. However, this does not limit performance and the case can cope with powerful hardware even under long-term load.
In terms of structure, it is difficult to find shortcomings. Except for the thin sheet metal at the front of the intake, which flexes even when gently touched, the case has no weaknesses. Of course, a dust filter would certainly not have hurt the case, fortunately the holes on the perforations themselves are quite small. The thickness of the plates in the range of 0.80 to 0.85 mm is solid and they do not bend. The Pop Air also has the advantage of colour variety, which the other cases in the new model range don’t have. There are four interior and leg colours to choose from, not including black and white. Those are standard for most manufacturers.
The recommended price without tax is set at 94.99 EUR, the retail price will be, we assume, in the range of 130 to 150 EUR. For this money, I would already have expected a USB Type-C connector, which is only an optional accessory. It’s also a shame that the tool-less latching system, which is also used by the Meshify series of cases, was not used.
The installation of the hardware inside the case went fine although the space for cable management is relatively small, 19 mm to be precise. But with the use of multiple cable retention positions, it worked out quite well. The cables don’t obstruct the closing of the side panel, nor do they bulge it.
You’ll be able to choose a case by colour to match your gaming or work area. Although the Pop Air RGB is not the best in cooling, its overall design is of an excellent standard and therefore earns the “Approved” award.
English translation and edit by Jozef Dudáš
| Fractal Design Pop Air RGB |
| + Easy installation |
| + Build quality of the case at an excellent level |
| + A total of seven positions for 2.5" and 3.5" internal storage |
| + Up to nine case colour options to choose from |
| + Two hidden 5.25" positions |
| - Higher price |
| - USB Type-C connector only as an optional accessory |
| - Weaker price/cooling effectiveness ratio |
