Element Gaming Atomic ITX Aluminium Chassis Review

Introduction

Today is a special day, as it’s the first time we’ve featured Element Gaming on eTeknix! This won’t come as much of a surprise to Element Gaming though, as they’re a relatively new brand, but they’ve already launched a wide range of gaming peripherals and chassis products to market, so we thought it would be great to see what all the fuss is about!

“Built from aluminium, steel and acrylic this high-quality case is ideal for small form factor enthusiasts. Specifically designed for ITX system boards the case nevertheless has enough room to build a high spec PC. Fast USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports along with audio inputs are positioned on the top of the case with the on/off button to the front. The rear of the Atomic has two PCI expansion ports whilst internally there is a 3.5” HD bay or room for two 2.5” SSDs. The case supports 120mm radiators and a 120mm LED fan is mounted to the rear. There is also support for 265mm VGA card and 165mm CPU cooler. As an added feature the right panel is made from clear acrylic to allow viewing of the components and the lit fan.”

The case couldn’t be better timed, as more and more people are building ultra-compact gaming systems and with more graphics cards manufacturers now making ITX graphics cards, as well as some incredible Mini-ITX motherboards hitting the market in recent years, a powerful gaming system doesn’t need to be in a mid or full tower form factor anymore.

As you can see from the features, the Element Gaming Atomic ticks a lot of boxes. It may be small, but it can fit all the hardware you’ll likely need.

Features

• Aluminium and acrylic construction
• Suitable for ITX system board
• 1 x 120mm LED fan included
• Support for 120mm radiators
• Supports 265mm VGA card and 165mm CPU cooler

Technical specification

• Internal drive bays – 1 x 3.5″ HD and 2 x 2.5″ SSD or 1 x 3.5″ HD
• 2 x PCI expansion slots
• 1 x USB 3.0
• 1 x USB 2.0
• 2 x audio
• 1 x 120mm rear mounted fan

The Atomic is super compact, but first impressions of it are very good indeed. The main panels of the chassis are black brushed aluminium with a little silver trim on the edges of the front panel. It’s lightweight and looks absolutely gorgeous. The left side panel is held in place with four screws, whilst also featuring a full-width dark tinted side panel window.

The side panel window matches up with the glossy plastic section on the front panel, giving it a nice wrap-around effect. Finishing up the front panel is a nice power button in the top center, as well as some Element Gaming branding.

The right side panel is the same design as the left, more screws and another full-width window panel, giving the chassis a nice symmetrical look.

The top panel features more aluminium, which has curved edges, giving the Atomic a sleek and modern look.

There’s not a huge amount of ports at the front, but there’s everything you’re likely to need; USB 3.0, HD audio and USB 2.0.

Here you can see that the motherboard is mounted upside down, which means the GPU will be at the top of the chassis. There’s a power connector at the back, which uses a pass-through cable to hook up the PSU, which mounts towards the front of the chassis.

The base of the Atomic features four rubber tipped feet; these will stop the chassis sliding around should you have it up on your desk. There’s a few mounting holes in the base for fitting hard drives to the chassis interior and, of course, there is a large cut-out for the PSU.