New trend in PCs: why haven’t manufacturers done it for a long time?

JVTech News New trend in PCs: why haven’t manufacturers done it for a long time?

Cable management: a trend that matters!

The owner of a particularly compact Mini-ITX PC will notice at first glance that it represents an exceptional case with regard to the subject covered in this article. Indeed, in this one, it is a question of annoying cables and new creative answers to the problem of their concealment (or rather their camouflage) as best as possible inside the PC. In very compact cases intended for motherboards in Mini-ITX format, cable management partly adjusts itself due to limited space available. It is essential that all cables can pass through, allowing the case to be closed.

See Mini-ITX cases and motherboards on Amazon

We start with the motherboard

Speaking from personal experience, I first discovered this trend thanks to motherboards like the TUF Gaming B760M-BTF from Asus, the MSI B650 DIY-APE from MSI or the DIYAPE H610 King from Maxsun which you can see below. They simply pass many ports on the back. Concretely, this looks like this:

Photo credit: zFrontier

An idea as simple as it is smart, because it keeps cables away from the main area of ​​the PC. This not only provides a tidy look, but also ensures better airflow for cooling the gaming components (CPU and GPU). The motherboard bracket should have enough openings in the right places and there should be enough room at the back up to the case wall to fit all the cables through. In other words: specially adapted housings are required.

The next step: graphics cards

Asus goes even further with a graphics card that even completely dispenses with annoying (power) cables. This is possible thanks to an additional connection on a suitable motherboard which is located directly behind the well-known connection for the PCI-Express slot :

Photo credit: WCCFTech

In this case it is an RTX 4070, but the new electrical connection on the motherboard must be able to provide up to 600 watts and therefore sufficient energy for an RTX 4090. Also in this case the connection for the power cable moves from the PSU to the back of the motherboard. But there is a catch: the solution is proprietary.

Manufacturers are becoming more and more creative

Inno3D’s concept graphics cards, among others, take a different approach than Asus. The advantage: there is no need to install a new electrical connection on the motherboard and GPU, it is simply a matter of improving cable management. As can be seen in the image below, the electrical connection is on the back of the graphics card and not on the narrow top. So you can route the appropriate cable without bending and as elegantly as possible from the GPU to the PSU:

Whatever the solution chosen and whatever the advantages and disadvantages it presents in detail: the trend to hide cables is very good news for the market.

See Mini-ITX cases and motherboards on Amazon