Page 4 - Conclusion
Quoting yet another common line thrown around frequently, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," this applies to the SilverStone Tundra TD02-SLIM as well. The LITE version has just been made thinner, and as we have seen, it will affect performance -- but should this come as a surprise to you? The TD02-SLIM is made for people with tighter chassis, and still want it water cooled. SilverStone did an excellent job at designing the product quite a bit lower profile than its thicker counterparts, which coming in at 37mm in depth is very impressive. For your reference, the SilverStone Tundra TD02-LITE comes in at 52mm. The TD02-SLIM is 15mm thinner than its previous design; displaying SilverStone's push to further thin out their coolers. The installation process was simple enough, and the provided instructions are clear. The water cooler looks great even without the carbon fiber finish, as most of the time it is hidden inside a case. Build quality is great, and it was clearly designed to keep costs down without feeling cheap. However, some of these signs were displayed still, such as the eight screws in the baseplate, aluminum fins not being soldered to the liquid piping, and the lack of nickel plating on the base plate to prevent surface corrosion. Unfortunately, the LED on the water block still cannot be turned off, but it is not very bright, and just lights up the edges of the logo. Overall, the SilverStone Tundra TD02-SLIM performed very well, given the difference in size. In terms of sound emissions, it is very similar to the TD02-LITE. Coming in at $83 USD at press time, the price is around where I expected it to be. The product aims to be effective in smaller chassis because of how thin it is, and I think SilverStone did an excellent job keeping the performance good and the product thin.
SilverStone provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH Review Focus Summary:
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks; but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Numeric Rating is 7.0/10
Please note that the APH Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other sites.
The SilverStone Tundra TD02-SLIM is a good performing, slim closed loop water cooler for people with tight cases.
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Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware; Installation
3. Test Results
4. Conclusion
