Introduction
Today we’re taking a look at the Corsair Carbide Series Air 240. A compact PC case made for flexibility in cooling. Capable of housing either a Micro-ATX, or Mini-ITX motherboard, and following the tradition of the ‘Carbide Air’ cases with split compartment design – it truly is a striking case. With the aggressive front fascia that we’ve come to know in the series, and an overall reduction in size of 40% from the Air 540 – it is a remarkable and extraordinary small form factor computer case.
The full sized window provides a fantastic overview of all of the core components in your system, showing off your building skills right from the get-go. Don’t let the size of the system fool you either, while still maintaining the small form factor, they’ve allowed this case to support a variety of full sized components, and still allow for easy installation, access, and cleaning of those components.
Let’s go ahead and take a closer look, and see what Corsair has for us today.
Corsair’s take on the Carbide Series Air 240
“Meet the Carbide Series Air 240 – an extraordinary small form factor PC case for Mini-ITX and MicroATX computers. The eye-catching cube design – complete with a full size window – hosts an internal layout optimized for maximum airflow or advanced water-cooling configurations (including a 240mm radiator or two). Don’t let the compact size fool you – this little one handles full size components while still offering roomy installation space.”
Packaging and Specifications
The front of the Air 240 case has its name, some feature text, and then an example of what the case looks like.
Moving to the sides - they both give us some more information about the case, features, specifications, and also some idea of the overall internal layout.
Moving around to the rear of the box and we can see that it’s a more thorough breakdown of the case, showing you all of the removable panels. (Including magnetic dust filters)
Specifications and Features
Warranty: Two years
Weight: 5.6kg
Color: Black
Case Form Factor: Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX
Dimensions 397 x 260 x 320mm
Maximum GPU Length: 290mm
Maximum CPU Cooler Height: 120mm
Maximum PSU Length: 240mm
Expansion Slots: 4
HDD Bays: 3.5” x 3, 2.5” x 3
Material: Steel
Power Supply: ATX
External Connectors: USB 3.0 x 2, Microphone, Headphone
Fan Mount Locations: Front 120mm x 2, Top 120mm x 2, Rear 80mm x 2, Bottom 120mm x 2, Side 120mm x 1
Fans Included: Front 120mm x2, Top 120mm x1
Radiator Mount Locations: Front 240mm, Bottom 240mm
Compatible Corsair Liquid Coolers: H55, H60, H75, H80i, H100i, H105
Direct Airflow Path Cooling
The unusual interior design is optimized to allow the intake fans to deliver cool air directly to your components that generate the most heat.
Easy Installation and Upgrades
Tool-free 3.5” drive, 2.5” drive, and side panel removal means that builds and upgrades can be performed without reaching for a screwdriver. The CPU backplate cutout allows you to upgrade your CPU cooler without taking out the motherboard.
Flexible Installation
The flexibility goes beyond dual Mini-ITX and MicroATX compatibility. The included rubber feet can be places on any of three surfaces, so you can customize the orientation of the chassis: as a standard tower, an inverted tower, or as a desktop.
Mini-ITX and MicroATX support in a Compact Size
Although it’s the same size as many Mini-ITX cases, the Air 240 supports MicroATX motherboards. This gives you the option of installing dual GPUs.
Outstanding Liquid Cooling Radiator Support
The Air 240 has pre-spaced holes for 240mm radiators on the top, bottom, and front. If you’re using a Mini-ITX motherboard, you can add both front and bottom 240mm radiators. If you’re using a MicroATX motherboard with dual GPU’s, you can install a front 240mm radiator.
Full Size Panel Window
The panoramic window allows you to admire your work.
Closer Look
Here we can see the overall view of the Carbide Air 240. It’s rugged and aggressive front panel, and then the full sized side window as well.
Here we can see the front in more detail, and the two 120mm fans that are mounted behind the front grill.
Moving in for a closer up view of the logo.
Here we can from left to right, the reset button, the HDD LED indicator, the power button, microphone and headset jack, and then two USB 3.0 ports. The power and reset buttons both feel fantastic, and are solid.
Moving slightly more towards the rear of the case, we can see the side opposite of the front window.
On this side is a removable magnetic dust filter, one that has some surprising grip to it.
Here we have some more views of the two side panels.
At the rear of the case we have a removable panel in the upper left, slot for the motherboard backplate, two locations for 80mm fans, 4 expansion slots, and then room for the full sized ATX power supply.
One nice thing that Corsair has continued with this case, is the ample use of thumbscrews everywhere. Not just side panels, but also other compartments, top panel removal, and even the HDD cage is removed with a thumbscrew.
The 4 expansion slots that are on the case come with a really nice mounting system, one which swings open when needed, and doesn’t require screws to mount your cards.
Closer Look Continued
The grill from the front continues along the top of the case, seamlessly allowing for fantastic airflow, while also giving it an aggressive stance.
The side panels are easily removed, and the thumbscrews stay with the panels when they’re removed.
Looking at the inside of the case finally, we see some nice quality grommets we’ve come to expect from Corsair. We also see the included 120mm fans (2x front, 1x Top) – and then the instruction manual and typical box of screws you’d expect to get with a case. One thing to note however, is that the 3.5” HDD cage covers up the 8-pin CPU power cutout in the upper left corner. It would have been nice to have seen a hole in the HDD cage as well.
Here we have the grommets up close.
Taking the top panel off of the case, we are greeted with a few treats. A more modular top mounting system, which gives you the ability to install fans on rails, rather than in very specific slots. Also towards the right side of the top we can see a HDD cage with 3 bays for 2.5” hard disks.
Pulling one of the flexible bays out, we can see that it has pins that hold the drives in place; thus allowing for a tool free design. The flexible material really stiffens up once a drive is installed.
Here we see up close the modular rail system that was talked about earlier.
The rear compartment of the case shows the 2.5” and 3.5” HDD cages, and towards the lower right – the mounting location for the power supply.
At the back of the case, we see a thumbscrew – which once unscrewed, opens up and allows us to view the HDD cage that supports up to three 3.5” hard disks.
Here is the larger HDD caddy, and the removed bracket.
Removing the front grill, we get a good look at the two front fans, and then the front panel connectors.
Here is a closer up view of the board for the front panel connectors. With everything else being black on the case, I’m really excited to see the aesthetics continued here.
The Build
System components used:
- Gigabyte Z97MX Gaming 5 Motherboard
- Intel Core i7-4770K Processor
- Corsair H100i CPU Cooler
- Kingston HyperX Fury 16GB 1866MHz DDR3 Memory
- EVGA Nvidia GTX 760 ACX Graphics Card
- Corsair AX750 w/ Sleeved Cables
- Samsung 850 Evo Solid State Drive
The completed system build. The overall build went along very smoothly, however as we mentioned earlier – the CPU power cutout is blocked by the HDD cage. Due to the sleeved cables, we were able to route the cable where it needed to go – but with standard cables it might be harder. This might be something Corsair should look at revising if they plan to make changes to the case. The HDD cage easily fit back into position once we had routed the cable.
Cable management in the rear compartment isn’t really much of an issue, there are some zip tie mounts – but most people won’t find themselves using it. One of the advantages of this build layout, is that you don’t really need to be concerned with 100% tidy runs in the back.
With the split compartment design, the I/O ports for all of your devices are actually relatively close to you, which makes plugging in your system relatively easy.
Here we have a picture of the case before we put the panels back on. The entire front of the case is consumed by fans, and it’s very clear why they call this case the ‘Air 240’ – with maximum air flow available to all components, at all times.
Final Thoughts and Conclusion
The Corsair Carbide Air 240 was a pleasure to work in, its big brother, the Air 540 – is one of the most fun to build in cases that I’ve experienced; this one lived up to its name. With the split compartment design, large side window, easy cable management, unique expansion slot setup, and many other advanced features – it is one of the best Micro ATX cases that I’ve had the pleasure of working with recently.
The aggressive front grill, overall minimalistic side panel, and simplicity of tear down due to a tool-less design and thumbscrews, make this case something to be proud of. It has everything that you’d expect from one of Corsairs larger cases. The solid and rigid chassis design is evident the moment you take it out of the box, and even the few plastic components that it comes with feel solid, and the quality of components you’d look for in a higher end case.
Something to note with this case, is that there is no optical drive. Personally that is not an issue, and it’s not something taken into account as a negative. However, if you still rely on physical disks as a medium – it’s something to keep in mind. It’s also strange to me that none of the HDD cages have a hot swap plate like the Air 540 does; however, since this case is cheaper, I suppose they had to do away with a few things. The added benefit of it however I feel would justify a few extra dollars; since getting the cables plugged in when using multiple HDD’s can be tricky at times in this case.
Overall the design of the Air 240 was fantastic, easy to build in, aesthetically pleasing, and was an enjoyable time. The added benefits of the tool-less design, the magnetic fan filter, the optional case feet – make this clearly a case that you’d expect to even come at a higher premium than they’re asking. The Corsair Carbide Series Air 240 is currently available on Newegg and Amazon for $89.99. It is with no surprise that we would recommend this case to anyone who is looking for a smaller form factor build, especially with gaming in mind.
Pros
- Tool-less expansion slot system
- Easy HDD installation
- External magnetic fan filter for PSU
- Feet come included as optional extra, orientation very modular
- Rigid construction
- Quality grommets
- Very large side window
- Satisfying power and reset buttons
- Easily removed side, top, and front panels
- No front optical bay to maintain sleek appearance
- All thumbscrew design for panels and cages
- Aggressive, yet elegant design
Cons
- No room in the roof for fans and a radiator
- CPU power cutout missing from HDD cage
