P182 Special Edition - One of the best cases gets better
by Joshua Buss on April 12, 2007 1:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Final Words
Evolution and innovation drive all fronts of technology, and in the computer case business that translates into a constant battle for finding a perfect blend of functional usefulness, aesthetic acceptance, performance in regards to both temperatures and sound levels, and pricing to match competitors' similar offerings. Antec has already found great success with the original P180 and for years to come it will be a desktop case others are measured against. Its creative use of plastic, aluminum, and steel translated into some of the lowest noise levels yet on a desktop PC case without changing it at all from the way it comes out of the box.
At first appearance, there might not be much attracting a potential purchaser of a PC enclosure to the P182 SE over Antec's other offerings aside from the out-of-this-world paint job, but the work/showcase spotlight might be just the kind of accessory which nudges an interested party over the edge to choose it over the normal gunmetal gray P182. Choices are always good though, and in this sense the P182 and P182 SE make great additions to Antec's line.
The "vanilla" P182 is a nice choice; for around $170 online one can get almost all the same features as the case we reviewed, with a still very attractive dark gray finish. For the user who demands the "best", the P182 SE's still-killer noise performance - one of the best in its class - is available with the addition of the flexible work light, all black interior, and super-shiny mirror finish for a pretty substantial increase in price.. we've seen the P182 SE available for around $230 online. The special edition will be a limited offering, however, so if having the ability to see your reflection on the surface of your case is something you've always wanted, you'll want to jump on it as soon as it's available - but be aware of the fact that it's going to leave a bit of a dent in your wallet.
Evolution and innovation drive all fronts of technology, and in the computer case business that translates into a constant battle for finding a perfect blend of functional usefulness, aesthetic acceptance, performance in regards to both temperatures and sound levels, and pricing to match competitors' similar offerings. Antec has already found great success with the original P180 and for years to come it will be a desktop case others are measured against. Its creative use of plastic, aluminum, and steel translated into some of the lowest noise levels yet on a desktop PC case without changing it at all from the way it comes out of the box.
At first appearance, there might not be much attracting a potential purchaser of a PC enclosure to the P182 SE over Antec's other offerings aside from the out-of-this-world paint job, but the work/showcase spotlight might be just the kind of accessory which nudges an interested party over the edge to choose it over the normal gunmetal gray P182. Choices are always good though, and in this sense the P182 and P182 SE make great additions to Antec's line.
The "vanilla" P182 is a nice choice; for around $170 online one can get almost all the same features as the case we reviewed, with a still very attractive dark gray finish. For the user who demands the "best", the P182 SE's still-killer noise performance - one of the best in its class - is available with the addition of the flexible work light, all black interior, and super-shiny mirror finish for a pretty substantial increase in price.. we've seen the P182 SE available for around $230 online. The special edition will be a limited offering, however, so if having the ability to see your reflection on the surface of your case is something you've always wanted, you'll want to jump on it as soon as it's available - but be aware of the fact that it's going to leave a bit of a dent in your wallet.
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kellehair - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Anybody have a list of differences between the 180 and the 182? I have the 180 already but would consider upgrading, assuming it really is an upgrade.cbuchach - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes, I own a P180. The case is great except for the fact that all the cables from the bottom power supply/hard drive compartment route through the panel opening. The new cable routing features, instead of the mirror finish should have been the focus as in my opinion this is the best update to the case.Sunrise089 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Did I miss the pricetag for this special finish model?Also, how many fans are being used? It looks like you have the top and rear fans installed, plus another 120mm between the lower HD cage and the power supply. But what about the two front fans, in the upper and lower compartments?
Richey02hg - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
yes you did, last page i believe it says 229 (yikes!)Sunrise089 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Nope, that was added after the article was posted.JoshuaBuss - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
newegg has it for $230, as mentioned by someone else in the comments here.JarredWalton - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Not the SE version, but the standard P182 is a lot more readily available (and cheaper):http://www.atacom.com/program/print_html_new.cgi?c...">ATACOM $130 + shipping
http://www.etech4sale.com/ANTEC_PERFORMANCE_ONE_SE...">Etech4Sale $125 + shipping
http://www.excaliberpc.com/ANTEC_PERFORMANCE_ONE_S...">ExcaliburPC - $127 + shipping
http://www.computerbrain.com/applications/search/i...">Computer Brain - $132 + ship
No idea if these guys are safe or not, but I also found the P182SE for $191 + shipping from http://ozdirect.com/product_info.php?products_id=6...">OZDirect
http://froogle.google.com/froogle?q=antec+p182&...">Froogle is your fried! :)
yyrkoon - Sunday, April 15, 2007 - link
ATACOM should be, I've ordred from them before. ExcaliburPC IS safe, as is computerbrain, never heard of etchforsale, and anyone putting numbers in their business name, can not be all that sophisticated, now can they ;)Anyhow, look on resellerreview . . .
nicolasb - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
> Also, how many fans are being used?Like the P180, the case comes with three fans, but there are mounting points for another two if you really want to go nuts....
Can anyone tell me what the dimensions of the PSU compartment are? It'd be nice to know which 750W-850W PSUs will actually fit into this case.
giantpandaman2 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
It's a bit of a lower end case, but, shockingly enough, it actually does come with hard drive suspension gear. I picked it up for $60 at a Fry's sale. It's definitely not as pretty as the P180's that were sitting next to it, but I couldn't believe I how cheap I was getting a tooless, quiet (comes with modest sound dampening material) case w/4 HDD suspension mounts and dual air filters. Obviously there's much better cases out there, but not for $60. The only thing it lacked was a front intake fan, easily solved for another $10 though.