Today I will be reviewing the Global Win IStorm Hard Disk Drive Cooler which is sold by the Cooler Guys( http://www.coolerguys.com ). Well actually, a lot of other companies sell it, but the one I got for review came from the Cooler Guys. The reason I even asked for it for review was because on of our readers requested it. I would like to thank them for reminding me to not leave this HDD Cooler out of my roundup. No, this is not the roundup, but that is coming soon. I think I have reviewed just about every Hard Drive Cooler in preparation of the "Big HDD Cooler Roundup" that you won't wanna miss. There are 6 coolers in all so far in the roundup. The ones that will be in the roundup are the following: HD 200, King Kong, IStorm(no I'm not kidding), 3dfxcool hddHO, Ultra Thin Exhauster, and the Twin Turbo. Go on and email me at kevin@speedy3d.com if you have any HDD coolers that you want included! I always love to get your email good or bad. Onto the review!

Installation

The installation can be very hard or very easy. If the company provides detailed instructions and you have somewhat of a brain they will be easy to install. The thing is, when the company doesn't provide instructions then it can get tricky. Not hard, but tricky. That was sort of the case with the I-storm Hard Drive cooler. They had instructions on the back of the box, but they weren't that detailed. In other words if you needed lots of help installing the cooler, they didn't provide it. For me and most people that would be buying this cooler they were "adequate." Nothing revolutionary, just what the doctor ordered.

Now we get to talk about the important stuff, like cooling effect and noise. I will go ahead and talk about noise first so that I can get it out of the way. The IStorm doesn't produce barely any noise at all. If you have a few other fans in your case besides this one, then you won't notice any difference in noise. On the other hand if you have no other coolers in your case, you will notice that this thing produces some noise, but nothing you can't live with. Now we will talk about how well this cooler cools. Global Win spent some time designing this cooler. It is one of the nicest and most professional looking coolers that I have reviewed so far. Yes I know, first impressions aren't everything. The thing that matters for a Hard Drive Cooler is how well it cools. The IStorm HDD Cooler has been touted by many review sites out there as the best cooler. I was not influenced by any other hardware sites when reviewing this cooler, substances maybe, but not hardware pages. The IStorm is one of, if not the, best cooler that I have reviewed so far. The IStorm has provides plenty of airflow to ensure that your hard drive will be kept cooler. In my tests the hard drive went from being hot after being in operation, to almost cool to the touch. I will not release any actual temperature measurements as I am saving those for the roundup. But expect a 12 degree F drop in the temperature of your hard drive. I cannot guarantee this in any way, but remember if your hard drive is cooler by 5 degrees, then your whole system is cooler by 5 degrees. Onto, the ratings. The price of this Hard Drive is cooler is $35.95 US when ordered from the Cooler Guys. Not for someone who is looking to spend $10 for a cooler hard drive. The cooler is getting a 7.9 for price, because at $35.95(+ shipping) it is the most expensive HDD cooler that I have reviewed. For Performance I'm dishing this cooler a 9.6. To say it simply, this cooler is awesome! I would have liked some better instructions for the price, but that doesn't effect how it cools.

Overall it's going to be getting a 8.7. The reason for such a "low" overall rating is due to the price. I felt that this was a good $25 cooler, not a $40 cooler. If you can find it for $25 somewhere, then make sure you buy it! Simply the IStorm Cooler is one of the most powerful hard drive coolers on the market. If you can afford to lose about $40 for a hard drive cooler, then this is the cooler for you.

by Kevin Perko

Price - 7.9 Performance - 9.5 Overall - 8.7

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