Fractal Design Core 500 Case Review

Fractal Design’s Core Series has been very solid. We’ve reviewed quite a few cases from the Core Series and they have proven to be very reliable, loaded with features, and have a very simplistic design. Fractal Design recently released their first mini-ITX case in the Core Series, the Core 500. This case is quite small, but still offers many features you would find in full-size cases. Inside you have room for long graphics cards and normal ATX power supplies up to 310 mm, CPU coolers up to 170 mm tall, six hard drives, and even water cooling support for radiators up to 280 mm! Yet the case remains small and compact. Let’s jump in and see what the Core 500 is all about!

Special thanks to Fractal Design for providing us with the Core 500 case to review.

Specifications
– Mini ITX, Mini DTX motherboard compatibility; NOTE: motherboards with SATA ports that are angled 90 degrees may conflict with installation in the case.
– 2 expansion slots
– 3 – 3.5″ HDD positions
– 3 – 2.5″ dedicated SSD/HDD unit positions
– 1 – 5.25″ bay (removable)
– CPU coolers up to 170mm in height
– ATX PSUs, up to 170mm in length (non modular PSUs); ATX PSUs, up to 160mm in length (modular PSUs)
– Graphics cards up to 310 mm in length (note: graphics cards longer than 170 mm will not fit with PSUs that exceed 170 mm)
– Colours available: Black
– Case volume: 19.5 liters
– Case dimensions (WxHxD): 250 x 203 x 367 mm
– Case dimensions – with feet/screws/protrusions: 250 x 213 x 380 mm
– Net weight: 4.4 kg
– Package dimensions (WxHxD): 285 x 335 x 450 mm
– Package weight: 5.3 kg

Packaging
The Fractal Design Core 500 comes in a typical retail box we are used to seeing from Fractal Design. On the front there is an outline of the case.

Fractal Design Core 500 Case

Moving to the back of the box there is an exploded view of the case showing all of the parts and it highlights some of the main features.

Fractal Design Core 500 Case

On the side of the box there is a list of specifications and overview of what cooling options you have.

Fractal Design Core 500 Case

Getting the box open inside we can see the case is protected by large pieces of styrofoam and a plastic bag.

Fractal Design Core 500 Case

The case comes with a nice users guide, mounting screws, and a handful of zip ties.

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