Review: Noctua NH-U12S redux

Conclusion

Noctua's pared-back redux product line succeeds in bringing the company's traditionally high-end coolers down to a more mainstream audience.

The first such offering takes a logical approach to streamlining the existing NH-U12S. Removing bundled items such as low-noise adapters and thermal paste is an expected cost saving, and the cooler itself has been re-worked to feature one fewer heatpipe and a high-airflow fan.

Such trade-offs bring the resulting NH-U12S redux down to an agreeable £44 price point, and there's plenty to like for those users who don't see the point in additional frills. Noctua's mounting kit is already best in class, there's still a six-year warranty with the promise of adapters for future sockets, and though the cooler isn't as eerily quiet as Noctua's best, performance is more than acceptable on a modern, many-core CPU.

Bottom line: though not as refined as the regular NH-U12S, the redux edition is a capable performer that's easier on the eye and much kinder to the wallet.

Noctua NH-U12S redux

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The Noctua NH-U12S redux CPU cooler is available to purchase from Amazon.

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