Antec X-1 Xbox One Cooler Review

Peter Donnell / 9 years ago

Introduction

x-1-cooler-for-xbox-one

When it comes to our desktop computers, cooling is a critical component to system stability and longevity. A CPU that gets too hot can become damaged, cause crashes or cause the system to shut down to help prevent extreme damage to your hardware; this is why we install CPU coolers.

Games consoles are not exempt from these issues either, we obviously have a cooler in there already that was chosen by the hardware manufacturer, but in some circumstances, it’s not always enough. Xbox 360 was a lot more prone to overheating than the Xbox One, but that’s not to say that having extra cooling can’t be beneficial to the life of the console.

A cooler console may have a longer lifespan, it may also run quieter and of course, there are situations where you actively need extra cooling. If you have your console in a compact space, with limited airflow, or you have a particular warm environment, be that from the weather, or you like to blast your central heating all night long; one way or another, you may need or want extra cooling.

The Antec X-1 cooler does exactly what you would expect, offering extra cooling for your Xbox One, so let’s take a closer look at what it has to offer.

In the box you get the cooling unit, as well as a USB to Micro-USB cable to provide it with power.

The front panel has been given a glossy finish, that matches up with the Xbox One finish perfectly, allowing the unit to blend into its surroundings.

The top panel has a soft-touch rubber like finish, giving it a stealthy appearance and one that is easy to maintain; the grippy coating is a handy place to store your controller or headset.

The sides of the cooler are cut away a little to allow airflow in and out of the top of the console. The whole unit is designed to simply sit on the top of the right side of the console, no tools needed to install it.

Around the back, you’ll find even more ventilation, the Micro-USB in (for power) and a USB out. As the X-1 takes up a single USB port from your console, the full-size USB port here can still be used by any other devices, so you don’t actually lose the use of a port; handy!

In the corner, there’s a small display for temperature readout, helping you keep track of the coolers performance.

On the underside, you’ll find four grippy rubber feet that will help hold the cooler firmly in place, as well as the very obviously blower type fan.

The fan is designed to pull air up through the Xbox One and blow it out the back of the cooler, away from the console.

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Performance

Here’s the Xbox One on my AV stand, without the cooler installed.

Here it is again, this time with the cooler installed. As you can see, it matches up with the glossy side of the Xbox One’s front panel and isn’t overly imposing in terms of design.

The front panel is nicely designed so that it’s not glaring in your face while gaming, or sitting watching a movie. You would have to physically go and take a peak at the read-out, although it’s unlikely you’ll need to do that often, if ever.

From this angle, you can see the pass-through cable that is used to power the X-1. Setting up the cooler was incredibly easy, just pop it on the top, hook up the USB cable and that’s it; nothing less, nothing more.

The performance of the X-1 really isn’t an easy thing to quantify, it’s a blower fan design that is intended to move more heat and air from the console and that’s exactly what it does. I’ve never had any overheating issues with my Xbox One, even after many hours of the console being powered on; it was after all designed to run virtually day and night. Microsoft already fitted a huge fan in the Xbox One to help prevent overheating, no doubt after they lost a lot of money on the whole ‘red ring of death’ thing.

What I do like about this cooler, is the fan stops completely if it’s not needed. If your temps at 30c or less, the fan stop, go above that and it’ll spin up to help disperse the heat, so it only really fires up after you’ve been gaming for a while, it didn’t spin at all when I was watching a movie. Even when it does spin up, it’s pretty quiet and wouldn’t be noticeable at all if you’re sitting more than 6ft away.

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Final Thoughts

Price

The Antec X-1 Cooler for Xbox One is a bargain at just $29.99 directly from the Antec online web store. That’s not a lot of money for extra piece of mind when it comes to cooling and improving the lifespan of your hardware.

Overview

I really like the X-1, it’s a very smart-looking add-on for the console and while I must admit that I simply do not need one, I can see that there is a market for it. If you’re in doubt about the cooling capabilities of the console, or you’ve suffered from your console overheating and shutting down after day long gaming sessions, because your house is too warm or because the place you’ve installed the console already has restricted airflow, then the X-1 is exactly what you need.

There are other options on the market for cooling the console, but they all look like cheap plastic tat compared to this. Build quality is exceptional and it’s designed really well to blend in with the design of the console. Although I must admit, it’ll stand out a lot more if you’ve got a white Xbox one, but very few people do and I understand that Antec have designed this to match the mass majority of Xbox One’s, as it’s already a niche product to begin with.

If you want that extra piece of mind when it comes to keeping your XBox One as cool and quiet as it can be, then the X-1 is the best solution there is. It’s compact, affordable, stylish and very easy to set up and use. While it may not be something everyone needs, it certainly couldn’t hurt to have one either way.

Pros

Excellent build quality and design
Easy to install and use
USB pass through so you don’t lose a USB port
Temperature controller automatic on/off
Affordable price

Cons

None

“The X-1 does exactly what it says on the box. It keeps your Xbox One cooler and that’s a great way to help improve the lifespan of the hardware while also ensuring that overheating doesn’t interrupt those long gaming sessions.”