Not only has the demise of the desktop PC been greatly exaggerated, the makers of the ancillary bits are upping their output and creativity, as if to prove that weary cliche wrong. CES usually takes second place to midyear’s Computex Taipei trade show as the launchpad for serious PC-builder gear, but 2020’s edition was no slouch. Check out the top dozen bits we saw at the show. Short version? Innovation is very much alive, and RGB lighting on all the things is still very much not dead.
Cooler Master ML240P Vivid
Cat videos on your CPU cooler are now a thing. Expect the Vivid to hit the street starting at $199, depending on radiator size.
Thermaltake Pacific DP100-D5 Plus & Core P5 DP-D5 Distro Plates
The DP100-D5 Plus, meanwhile, is a straight-through rectangular design that will fit on most 360mm-radiator mounts. Both have integrated pumps, and their lighting works with the major motherboard makers’ sync software, as well as Thermaltake’s own app and Razer’s Chroma.