Corsair H100i Liquid CPU Cooler Review (Firmware V1.0.4)

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. The Corsair H100i4. Installing the Corsair H100i5. Testing Methodology6. Thermal Performance7. Acoustic Performance8. Closing Thoughts9. View All Pages

There's no doubt about it, the Corsair H100i is even more impressive than the H100 it replaces.  It's also clear that Corsair are very serious about maintaining their dominant position in the factory-filled liquid cooling market.

In our tests, the H100i performed very well indeed, achieving some impressive temperatures with our overclocked test system.  It performed especially well in ‘Quiet' mode, only rising a few degrees over the ‘Maximum' mode where fans are set at 100%.  This makes the H100i perfect for users who want to build a whisper quiet, overclocked PC.

Our favourite feature of the H100i is the Corsair Link V2 software that is bundled with the cooler.  This can act as a very sophisticated fan controller, letting us configure different fan profiles or choose from a series of preset options.  This lets you set the fans up to suit your preferences.

The revised mounting mechanism makes installation a breeze and it's now easier than ever to switch between AMD and Intel retention plates should you wish.  We did encounter a slight issue with the nut on the backplate, however we have tested three other coolers today with identical backplates and none suffered the same issue, so we expect it's a one-off.

At a price of £92 from Overclockers UK, the Corsair H100i is fairly costly but it's definitely worth the money for those who want excellent cooling performance without building a custom water cooling loop.

Pros

• Excellent performance.
• Quality fans included.
• Easy installation.
• Corsair Link Software.
• Can be very quiet (in quiet mode!)

Cons

• Expensive.
• Not compatible with all cases.

KitGuru says: Another quality product from Corsair that performs very well indeed.

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