If you're a maker of AIO liquid CPU coolers, it's getting harder to stand out in the crowd. Just about every vendor has something that boasts an additional VRM fan, cable-free fan connections, or a massive LCD screen, so what more can you offer to the discerning buyer? Lian Li reckons that simplicity is what's missing in the market, and its forthcoming Hydroshift 2 LCD-C CL cooler keeps things as simple as it can (even if the name has an awful lot of Ls and Cs).
We were given a demonstration of the new cooler at this year's Computex event, and at first glance, the Hydroshift 2 LCD-C CL just looks like any other liquid cooler. The one thing that perhaps all coolers share is clunky RGB software, though, and despite the best efforts of the likes of Corsair with its iCUE package, changing the colours or patterns isn't as straightforward or quick as changing the DPI on a gaming mouse, for example.
Well, that's the first feature of Lian Li's new cooler. The RGB LEDs in the fans and pump unit can be controlled via an app, but if such things give you the heebie-jeebies, then fear not, because all you need to do is twist a dial on the pump, and that's a bingo! Fresh new colours and whatnot.
But let's say that it's not the software that you dislike, with RGB-toting AIO coolers, but all the wires that you have to use to connect the fans together, and then again to your PC to control them. The new Hydroshift sports cheaper versions of Lian Li's SL Wireless range, which as the name suggests, uses a 2.4 GHz wireless connection for RGB and fan speed control.
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The fans themselves daisy-chain together via electrical contacts, rather than a nest of wires, making the whole setup and subsequent control as easy as pie. (Are pies easy? I've always found making decent pastry really quite hard!)
Anyway, the whole shebang is topped off with a 2.1-inch LCD screen, which you can probably adorn with a picture of your face, looking all smug and satisfied with how simple and easy the Hydroshift 2 LCD-C CL has been to rig up and use.
If that sounds like it's right up your street, then you won't need to wait very long to pick one up, because Lian Li is targeting May 29 as the launch date, with an MSRP of $180 for both black and white versions.
Of course, we don't know just how effective Lian Li's new cooler is or how quiet the fans and pumps are, but having got our sticky paws on it at Computex, we can confirm that it is simple to use and looks pretty nice, to boot.
