Best budget 360mm AIO?

Ace Modder said:
Also what about the licensing fees to pay Asetek to use their patent on the CPU block for a AIO - any pump in the CPU block in the block has to pay Asetek for their patent use (if they sell into the US) now I don't know if Thermalright are selling to the USA - the patent is a USA one but if you have to sell in the USA you havew to pay them to cover every single unit you make, regardless of what region it goes too, but if Thermalright don't sell into the US, then they could be circum-venting that patent fee, which I believe Asetek do make a lot of money on. It's an interesting topic :)
Click to expand...
I've seen American review sites (GamersNexus) review it and give a $ value, so it seem like they probably do.
You do have to wonder how they're doing it so cheap, maybe just an early strategy to get a foothold in the AIO market?

And I'm not saying the Thermalright AIO will have as good reliability as the more established manufacturers, but we don't know they wont. Also us customers don't know the longevity of any AIO until it's been on the market for a few years. But by then they're probably not selling it any more or are about to replace it or if it is still going is it competitive with the newer AIO on the new chips? And just because Lian Li (for example) made one or two good AIOs does that mean you can just trust one of the new ones?

So hard to know what to do as a consumer, but that extends beyond AIOs...
 
Anyone would think that Thermalright is a new company the way some people talk about them. They have been around for decades and in the early days were the coolers to get as they outperformed their rivals easily. I have three Thermalright coolers here and I can assure you that their quality is excellent and you also get a full size tube of their TF-7 thermal paste unlike most rivals who mostly supply a tiny tube or even a packet of paste. I don't know how they can sell their coolers so cheaply but they are putting their rivals to shame in both performance and price.
 
Indeed, Thermalright was founded in 2001, 6 years before Noctua was founded.
Can't be much more "established" than that. ;)
Granted, they haven't been into AIOs for that long, but based on how well their other coolers perform and last I think their AIOs will be good as well.
 
Last edited:
A lot of “premium” brands have so-so performance. Corsair fans and AIOs in the past, entry level performance and noise, but that didn’t stop the YouTubers from pushing it. Same goes for Lian Li. Looks fine for some, but their fans can be more expensive than proper Noctua/T30, but some people love their RGB.
Also, let’s not criticise Thermalright. Antec haven’t been investing that much designing cases either. Just a copy and paste of Lian Li and Phanteks cases.
I honestly can’t complain about their Phantom Spirit. I’ve used Noctua and BeQuiet air coolers before and I don’t feel like I’m missing out.
I’m all for saving when possible. Until now, can’t find some cheap alternative to the T30, so I’m happy to pay the asking price.
About the Asetek Licensing, is more complicated than that. Some manufacturers managed to go around it. But most “big brands”, are happy to get a £30 quid AIO, slap their brand, some tiny screen and charge entry level custom loop price for it.
I would love to see an AIO using at least a variant of a DDC, full copper 40-45mm radiator, proper fans and the ability to top it up.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom