Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 ARGB CPU Cooler Review

Due to the inconsistent thermal performance between AMD and Intel platforms that we saw from testing the Arctic Liquid Freezer III, it's not so easy to conclude whether this one is worth buying or not. If you already have a Liquid Freezer II and you are looking for more performance on AM5 then it’s certainly a good upgrade, not only in thermal performance but it’s also a definite visual upgrade, the white model will look particularly impressive in a white-themed system.

However, if you have an Intel 13^th Gen or newer CPU, particularly the i9 series, then the Liquid Freezer III might be a good choice in terms of value but other coolers perform significantly better on our Intel LGA1700 test system at least. If you are thinking of upgrading from a Liquid Freezer II to a Liquid Freezer III for better performance, it's not worth the upgrade on LGA1700 unless you really prefer the looks of the Liquid Freezer III.

CPU platforms and thermal performance aside, it’s a very good-looking AIO cooler, a big improvement over the Liquid Freezer II for me in terms of the aesthetics. It’s a very well-built and quality-looking AIO too, I always felt that the plastic pump housing of the Liquid Freezer II looked a little cheap, the Liquid Freezer III is a big improvement in that sense for sure. Plus it comes with a 6-year warranty for peace of mind so if things do go wrong, Arctic has got your back there.

It's certainly a great cooler for AMD AM5, it produces superb thermal performance on our AM5 test system and produces low noise output, even at high fan RPM. If you combine these things with the exceptionally reasonable price tag it is an absolute no-brainer for AMD AM5 platform owners. However, on high-end Intel CPUs, it's not the AIO that I would recommend based on thermal performance alone.

This cooler is proof that you should never base your CPU cooler purchase on a single review alone as it may not have been tested on the same CPU platform that you plan to use it on, and as we have seen from the Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 ARGB, just because a cooler performs well on AMD it doesn’t necessarily mean it will give the same performance on an Intel CPU. If I were to award this a score based on AMD testing alone it would be a solid 9/10 but since Intel's performance isn’t as good it has to be marked down a little, but it’s a great cooler for AMD users that’s for sure.

The Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 ARGB White is available at Amazon UK and other UK retailers with an MSRP Price of £99.99.

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Pros:

• Low noise output even at max fan RPM.
• Improved looks over the old LFII.
• Available in black and white.
• Great AM5 thermal performance.

Cons:

• Performance is not so good on Intel LGA1700.
• Not compatible with older Intel platforms.
• The paint on the white fan screws wears off easily.

KitGuru says: If you are looking for a new AIO with great thermal performance for your AMD Ryzen 7000 CPU then look no further as the Arctic Liquid Freezer III is hands down the best value CPU cooler for AMD.

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