Conclusion
Re-styled to incorporate grey paintwork and RGB illumination, the chassis' defining feature is out-the-box integration with Asus's Aura lighting ecosystem.The Noctis 450 ROG is an unexpected mash-up of an ageing NZXT enclosure and the Asus Republic of Gamers brand. Re-styled to incorporate grey paintwork and RGB illumination, the chassis' defining feature is out-the-box integration with Asus's Aura lighting ecosystem.
There's not a lot wrong with the hardware implementation - each RGB lighting zone is bright and easily configurable - but the aesthetic changes don't do enough to bring the Noctis 450 up to date in 2017, and the alterations certainly don't warrant a 70 per cent price premium over the standard model that's readily available for a far more attractive sum.
Promotional tie-ins certainly have their place, and I admit, I'd probably have been tempted had the Noctis 450 been given a Star Wars or Man Utd makeover, but at £180 the ROG edition doesn't make a whole lot of sense to anyone other than a die-hard fan of Aura effects. Underneath all those shiny lights there's a decent case offering good performance, ample storage capacity and a useful PWM fan hub. It's called the Noctis 450 and it's available for £105.
The Good The Bad Good performance
Aura integration, if that's your thing
Room for half-a-dozen hard disks
Integrated eight-way PWM fan hub ROG premium is significant
Doesn't have a reset button
Rather large for a case with no 5.25in bays
No USB Type-C
HEXUS.where2buy*
The NZXT Noctis 450 ROG chassis is available to purchase from Scan Computers.
HEXUS.right2reply
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