I find that April 1st is the toughest time of the year to cover hardware news, because silly product announcements are abundant. It may sound easy to discern between what is real and what isn't, but that's not always the case. And sometimes, April Fools' pranks morph into actual products. That's the case today with Phanteks showing off its Evolv Sound Mini speakers at CES.
These tiny speakers started off as a joke, with Phanteks humorously hyping "+30 percent digital-RGB performance." However, the design resonated with fans, several of which pleaded with Phanteks to make these speakers an actual product. And so it has.
The 2.0 speaker setup consists of a pair of tiny satellite speakers in the distinct mold of cases like the Evolv X. According to the product page, they are made of ABS plastic with a fabric finish, and Phanteks says they only cost $29.99 (£26.90). At that price, I wouldn't expect thumping bass or anything approaching audiophile-quality sound reproduction, though Phanteks claims the drivers "pack a punch" and deliver "impressive stereo sound." They're certainly affordable, at least.
As for the RGB lighting, both speakers light up along the sides, similar to the Evolv X. There are buttons on the main satellite to control the RGB lighting on both speakers. Phanteks also plans on launching a taller, slender version of these speakers as well.
Another one of Phanteks' jokes last year was a Revolt PSU with a removable CNC-cut aluminum cheese grater. Who knows, maybe that one will make an appearance as a real product at CES 2021. It would be a nice complement to Razer's LED toaster.
Phanteks did show off some cases, including the budget-oriented Eclipse P300A.
The Eclipse P300A is a relatively compact mid-tower case measuring 7.8 x 17.7 x 15.7 inches (200 x 450 x 400 mm). It uses "ultra-fine performance mesh" to facilitate better airflow while keeping dust bunnies from taking residence, and features a magnetic cover on the top fan cutout.
There's room in the P300A to fit a pair of 2.5-inch SSDs in the back and two 3.5-inch HDDs in the bottom chamber, in front of the PSU bay. The most impressive thing, though, is the price—it carries a $59.99 MSRP.
Speaking of cheese graters earlier, Phanteks also had on display a couple of cases that look like the Mac Pro, the Neo Matrix and Neo Pro. These are designed in collaboration with Metallic Gear, and while we don't have a whole lot of info to share on these cases, we do have some shots of the fancy RGB lighting effects. Have a look:
There will be a bunch of lighting effects that users can choose from, beyond just changing the colors.
Both the Evolv Mini speakers and P300A case will be available sometime this month.
