Lian-Li Announces Three Ultra-Compact Cases for Smartphone and Tablet Users

There are just some occasions where I just don’t get it. An idea, a design, a product, or maybe just a marketing scheme that makes no sense to me. The Lian-Li Ultra-Compact cases for smartphone and Tablet users is one of those occasions.

The new PC-Q02, PC-Q03, and PC-Q16  are three cases designed to be quiet, elegant data centers. All three are aluminum “basic box” designs that leverage nature airflow and great use of space to minimize noise. They all provide just enough space for a mini-ITX PC, single slim ODD, and a handful of HDDs. These would be great SFF cases, but not for the people Lian-Li seems to be targeting.

As you can see from the PC-Q02 above, Lian-Li sticks to their guns about their aesthetic appeal. The PC-Q02 is a fanless case and only relays on natural air flow though its vents to cool your system. With just enough space for two 2.5″ and one 3.5″ HDD, this would be a great home server for a small family. The best part is it comes with a 300W 80Plus certified PSU for only $149.99 MSRP.

Next up is the PC-Q03 which builds up on the PC-Q02 base. This case adds room for a VGA card up to 180 mm (7.08 inches), USB 3.0 ports, and HD audio on the front panel. It even manages to have the same MSRP of $149.99, but all the bonuses do come at the cost of the including PSU.

Finally we have the PC-Q16 which is the largest of the three cases at  199 x 160 x 290 mm (7.83 x 6.29 x 11.41 inches; W x H x D). it will hold three 2.5″ HDD/SSD and one 3.5″ HDD in a hot-swap bay. While you do lose the 5.25″ slim bay the PC-Q02 and PC-Q03 have, you do get the 300W 80Plus certified PSU back for only $159.99. To ensure proper cooing, the PC-Q16 has a 140 mm fan to help airflow.

As you can see from the title, the target audience Lian-Li is after seems to be people who mostly use smartphones and tablet PCs for their daily PC use. I don’t see those consumers building, installing, and setting up a home server or data center PC. I think these would be better suited for a great start to a DIY HTPC design to be a visible piece to your home theater and not hidden away server media wirelessly.

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Lian Li Announces Three Ultra-Compact Cases for Smartphone and Tablet Users – PC-Q02, PC-Q03, & PC-Q16

Elegant, Small Footprint Chassis Designed to be Personal Data Storage Hubs for all Your Mobile Devices

24 May 2012 – Lian Li today announces three new brushed aluminum cases, PC-Q02, PC-Q03, and PC-Q16, designed for modern users who need a compact central storage hub to share information among all their latest generation mobile devices.

The Lian Li PC-Q02, PC-Q03, and PC-Q16 take advantage of the increasing efficiency of small form factor motherboards and progressively cheaper hard drives, and are able to hold the essential storage hardware in a small form factor. They also have high-quality features that are to be expected from Lian Li including: elegant brushed aluminum frames, easy-to-remove pop-off panels, USB 3.0 connectivity, rounded yet stable aluminum feet, as well as many tool-less features to make installations and upgrades easier. These three chassis also all have a dual LED power button which turns blue when on and glows red while reading.

PC-Q02 – Minimalistic and Quiet Design for Personal Data Storage

Supporting a mini-ITX motherboard, the PC-Q02’s quiet fanless design gives users more room for their hardware while keeping the tiny dimensions of (W x H x D) 149 x 230 x 200 mm (5.86” x 9.05” x 7.87”). While fanless, the PC-Q02 is designed to maximize the natural flow of air with vent holes located on the side and rear panels.

This compact case has a 5.25” external bay on the front panel that can hold a slim optical drive or a 2.5” HDD thanks to easily installed slim ODD module. Inside the PC-Q02, the removable HDD tray on the floor on the chassis can support two 2.5” HDDs, or if the tray is removed a single 3.5” HDD can be installed.

The PC-Q02 comes with a 300W 80 Plus certified SFX PSU included, and is available in two colors (Black or Silver) in selected countries and various vendors for the suggested retail price of $149.99.

PC-Q03 – Tiny Fanless Chassis with Enhanced Graphics Capabilities

The PC-Q03 supports either mini-ITX or mini-DTX motherboards, and has the slightly larger dimensions of (W x H x D) 199 x 245 x 210 mm (7.83” x 9.64” x 8.26”). Similar to the PC-Q02 in respects to storage capacity and the quiet fanless design, the PC-Q03 differs by having the capabilities to hold a VGA card up to 180 mm (7.08”) in length – for enhanced graphics. The PC-Q03 also has HD audio ports on the front panel in addition to the two USB 3.0 ports.

The Lian Li PC-Q03 can hold a PSU up to 160 mm (6.29”) in length, and comes with a PSU mounting bracket for Micro-ATX power supplies included.

The PC-Q03 is available in two colors (Black or Silver) in selected countries and various vendors for the suggested retail price of $149.99.

PC-Q16 – Small Chassis with Impressive Storage

The mini-ITX supporting PC-Q16 offers the most storage capacity of these three new Lian Li cases while still keeping the small footprint of (W x H x D) 199 x 160 x 290 mm (7.83” x 6.29” x 11.41”) by sacrificing the 5.25” bay. The internal HDD bay located at the top front of the chassis can hold one 3.5” hard drive. A 1-bay to HDD SATA hot-swap backplane is optional.

Hanging below this bay a removable HDD cage, using thumbscrews and rubber suspensions for reduced vibrations, can hold up to three 2.5” HDDs.

To keep your hardware cool, a 140 mm intake fan located at the front of the chassis blows cool air throughout the case.

The PC-Q16 comes with a 300W 80 Plus certified SFX PSU included, and is available in two colors (Black or Silver) in selected countries and various vendors for the suggested retail price of $159.99.

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