Conclusion:

The Ultra Products m998 Mid-Tower ATX Case offers a number of innovative features that make it extremely appealing. In addition to things you may have seen before, like a removable motherboard tray, a matching paint job inside and out, and the use of casters on the bottom, it has another trick up its sleeve...

The Power Bar power distribution system seems like a great idea to not only keep a case's wiring neat, but to insure that you have enough connectors exactly where you need them. The bundle of modular cables included will allow you to connect a variety of drives, fans, and video cards without having wires running all over the place. This setup makes sure that the view through the case's side window is a clear one!


This case is named after what Ultra Products refers to as the "world’s toughest and most versatile military vehicles", the m998 Humvee. While the m998 case is versatile, I think it could do a little better in that department by offering more tool-less features and easier access to common areas like the hard drive cage. As far as toughness goes, I do not see that as a key selling point to this case. The Aluminum is rather thin and could be damaged easily if banged around on the way to a LAN party, for example. On top of that, I found that the threaded holes made in the thin sheet metal could easily be stripped.

A search of PriceGrabber returns four stores carrying the Ultra Products m998 Mid-Tower ATX Case, with the best deal coming from TheNerds.net (about $163 US, shipped). This is not a bad price for a high end case, and you could easily pay more for one with similar features. But, when you pay that much for a case I would almost expect it to include things like tool-less drive bays and perhaps a better implementation of thumb screws.

Considering the innovative features and overall high quality of the Ultra Products m998 Mid-Tower ATX Case, it earns the awards of "Recommended" and "Great Idea".


Pros:

» Power Bar power distribution system is great for keeping wiring neat
» Includes a variety of short modular cables for use with the Power Bar
» Includes four casters for mobility
» Light weight
» Removable motherboard tray can accommodate large CPU coolers
» Same black finish inside and out
» Includes two quiet 120mm fans that keep things cool

Cons:

» Threaded holes in thin sheet metal can easily be stripped
» Hard drive noise is very noticeable
» Drive installation is not tool-less at all
» Hard drive cage not particularly convenient to remove
» Plastic front bezel doesn't match finish of aluminum frame and style is a bit dated

Special thanks to Ultra Products for providing the Ultra Products m998 Mid-Tower ATX Case to Bigbruin.com for review!