XFX Type 01 Bravo Case Review
by E. Fylladitakis on May 16, 2014 6:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- XFX
- mid-tower
- Case
Final Words
XFX put a lot of effort into the aesthetic appeal, with their marketing claiming that a case "represents who you really are". Aesthetics are a strictly subjective matter and the design of the Type 01 Bravo is undoubtedly unique. On the other hand, although it is not an aggressive design, we cannot really consider it to be "minimalistic" as XFX claims. The definition of minimalism is to design something with the least amount of elements possible, achieving simplicity. Though the design of the Type 01 Bravo is based on basic geometric shapes, they have been used excessively and in order to achieve a design that stands out a lot, not to form a simple and understated product.
In terms of performance, the XFX Type 01 Bravo is no better than most typical mid-tower cases. Although this isn't bad considering the size and design of the case, it becomes a problem once the price of the case is included in the evaluation. If it could close the performance gap between a mid-sized tower case and an advanced gaming case, the XFX Type 01 Bravo would have been serious competition; however, the XFX Type 01 Bravo is all but hopeless when compared with larger, more advanced designs.
Despite that, aesthetics are a subjective matter (some users might hate this design, others may love it) and the average performance is not really a major issue for a new case. The real problem of the Type 01 Bravo is the quality issues and the excessive use of plastic. We should clarify that there is nothing inherently wrong with plastic, the properties of which depend on its quality and density - there are plastics that greatly surpass the properties of the best metals. However, the plastics used in the Type 01 Bravo are badly designed and very brittle, requiring very careful handling by the user or serious damage is bound to happen. This also makes the Type 01 Bravo entirely unsuitable for frequent transportation and we would not recommend it to people who upgrade often either.
As the Type 01 Bravo is the very first attempt from XFX to design a case, we consider it to be a fair attempt, but with plenty of room for improvements. We cannot deny that the Type 01 Bravo has several useful and interesting features, nor that it is versatile and easy to work with. It is however plagued by quality issues and the price tag is hard to justify for what really is a typical mid-sized tower case with an unusual aesthetic. XFX is currently working on other case designs, with a rumored aluminum-based "Type 01 Alpha" coming up, which sounds far more interesting for advanced users, gamers, and enthusiasts.
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28 Comments
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piroroadkill - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
Another large, generic and ugly case.I want to see a lot more innovation in the arena of microATX and miniITX.
A good example of an innovative microATX case is the Aerocool DS Cube. Damn nice.
nissefar - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
Yes. I don't get why so many mediocre mid towers keeps getting released, when that market is already saturated.For the vast majority of users, there is no need to build anything larger than mATX or even ITX. But the big producers are moving so slowly in this area, basically if you want something that's not huge and doesn't look awful you have to go for custom niche productions like the Ncase M1.
RaistlinZ - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
Stick to video cards.sicyo - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
I don't mind the looks but I wouldn't spend $50, let alone $130 on a case that broke so easily in a review.jmke - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
", we mentioned that the plastic top and bottom frames are just a decoration and mishandling them will almost certainly cause permanent damage. We tested that theory by trying to lift the empty case by its rear top plastic frame, which looks like a handle. The result of that test was the snapping of the frame even before the whole case was off the ground. The bottom rear frame shattered when the case landed back on the floor as well. It goes without saying that users need to handle the Type 01 Bravo with extra care."if it looks like a handle, people will use it as a handle. make sure it can support the weight and then some. and you tried it with an empty case, imaging you installed thousands of $$$ and it breaks..
they have to fix this... either remove the handles or make the sturdy.
Good example of handles done right is Coolermaster Cosmos; that one has handles top/bottom, but they support the weight, even when loaded with 10+ HDDs!
lavaheadache - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
what a steaming pile of garbage. I feel bad for anybody that buys that caselmcd - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
Not only should the handles work, but the front panel should be covered by a band of thick plastic about 1/3 from the base just to improve the aesthetic (and the logo, buttons, and ports can all go there too). Below the band that I suggest they insert, HDDs should be hot-swap facing forward.Gunbuster - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
It looks like they designed maybe 45% of the case at most and then said aw screw it just ship it out.And that grime/fingerprint magnet finish. No thanks...
Dr0id - Monday, May 19, 2014 - link
Man the grime was the first thing I noticed in the pictures. I thought my glasses were dirty.I appreciate Fyll's technical review, but the $30 looks of this case kind of sour any compliments he could give to XFX.
The whole thing looks like a cheap 80's boombox, with the front looking like the speaker grill, the grimy faded black plastic all round, and the useless rounded flare which looks like it would brake if you stare at it (but would usually be stamped with something witty like "Xtreme Bass.)
Torashin - Friday, May 16, 2014 - link
Oh god, it's hideous!