Gamerstorm Castle 240EX AIO Cooler Review

1. Introduction2. Unboxing and First Look3. Installation Procedure4. Testing Methodology5. Performance and Comparisons6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

Deepcool have done a great job with the Castle 240EX. It has a good combination of stylish looks and excellent thermal performance. The improvements Deepcool have implemented in the Castle 240EX over previous generations have obviously proven positive. In our thermal performance tests, it out scored all the other coolers we have tested so far on our new test bench, which in itself is no mean feat.

While at idle the Deepcool Castle 240EX has ultra low noise levels. The new pump design is extremely quiet while still being very capable at efficiently moving coolant around the system. Under load, the TF120 S fans do start to become rather loud though, however this is a natural consequence of 120mm fans which run at 1800rpm, so is not out of the ordinary.

Deepcool have compromised on RGB a little with the Castle 240EX. Only applying lighting to the pump, and not the fans, may not suit everyone. That said, we are quite sure it will fit in with almost any PC build, as it has the option to display the full spectrum of RGB lighting or a specific colour to match almost any theme. You can always turn the RGB off if it is not your style.

A great feature of the Castle 240EX is the removable central logo on the pump. which can be positioned the correct way up no matter how the pump is installed. You can even remove the Gamer Storm logo and apply your own, giving extra levels of customisation.

 

Only time will tell if the patented anti-leak feature – which Deepcool has been keen to sing the praises of – will be worth the three years of R&D spent on design. It's simply not realistic for us to test a product for years and years, so we must take Deepcool's word for it that this is a worthy addition.

So taken as a whole, we only have a few minor criticisms Castle 240EX: the large imposing design of the pump might not be to everyone's taste, and the same could be said of the lack of RGB lightning on the fans, while it is reasonably noisy under load. But the biggest issue for us at the moment is lack of availability in the UK, as it's not currently for sale anywhere on these shores.

What that means is, you can currently only buy the cooler on Amazon US for $129.99 USD. Deepcool has told us it will arrive in the UK in September with a price of £109.99, and this equates to a good price per performance ratio. However, there are a huge range of 240mm all-In-one liquid coolers in this price bracket, so with Deepcool being late to set out their stall in the UK market, this may affect sales once it does arrive on our shores.

Pros

• Ultra quiet pump operation.
• RGB lighting.
• Interchangeable pump logo.
• Excellent thermal dissipation performance.
• Anti-leak technology.

Cons

• Loud under load.
• No UK availability.

KitGuru says: With features such as Anti-leak technology, RGB lighting and excellent thermal performance, there is every reason to purchase the Castle 240EX from Deepcool. Although for UK enthusiasts this is impossible at the moment, which is disappointing.

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