SilverStone Sugo SG03 SFF
Examination:
From the exterior, the SilverStone Sugo SG03 does not resemble the SG01 except for both being of a petite size. As opposed to the SG01 where the motherboard and components are laid out in a horizontal fashion, the motherboard does reside vertically in the SG03. The dimensions for the SG03 are 200 x 360 x 312 mm and the weight of this all-aluminum chassis is 3.5 kilograms. The front of the SG03 is mostly mesh while on the left and right hand sides are two flaps. Concealed behind the SilverStone mesh is a single 120mm fan, but supported by the SG03 are two 120mm fans in this area. Above this fan intake area is a single 5.25" drive bay. Covered by the left flap are two USB 2.0 ports, one IEEE-1394a Firewire, and two audio ports. Also concealed behind this flap is an external 3.5" drive bay for a floppy disk drive or internal card reader. On the right hand side of the SG03 are an HDD and power LEDs along with a reset switch. On the right hand side are two latches that secure the front mesh and fan in place. These two aluminum flaps provide an incredibly clean look for the Sugo SG03 and we are very fond of its design.
On the left hand side of the SG03 is a relatively nonchalant side panel except for the mesh that allows for some additional ventilation near the power supply and expansion slot areas. This side panel mesh design had reminded us of the recently reviewed SilverStone Temjin TJ09. At the rear of the SG03 we see the I/O panel, four expansion slots, and the power supply slot in a somewhat unique spot. While this is not the first time we have seen this, the power supply slot is situated next to and parallel with the motherboard. The SG03 power supply mount is reversible so that if the power supply uses a 120mm fan, it can point either towards the mesh area on the side panel or towards the CPU socket area (if you were using the SilverStone Nitrogon NT06 for instance). There is also another expansion slot towards the top of the micro ATX case and that can be used for mounting any PCI slot fan controllers, cathode switches, and similar items. While there is no active ventilation at the rear of the SG03, there are pre-stamped holes into the expansion slots as well as into the case itself in order to provide greater airflow. The SilverStone FX121 cross-flow can, which premiered for use with the SG01, can also be used with the SG03.
The right hand side of the SG03 lacks no ventilation capabilities or any other items worth pointing out. At the top of the case is the power button while the bottom of the case is very interesting. The bottom of the case has two aluminum bars as feet but it also doubles as the hard drive mounting location -- more information on this to come shortly.