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NZXT

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NZXT, Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryComputer hardware
Founded2004; 20 years ago (2004)
FounderJohnny Hou
Headquarters
13164 E. Temple Ave
City of Industry
California
,
United States
Key people
Johnny Hou
Products
Websitenzxt.com

NZXT, Inc. is an American computer hardware manufacturer based in Los Angeles, California. The company manufactures computer cases, components, and accessories for the PC gaming market.[1][2]

The company has faced controversy surrounding its Flex PC rental program, which has drawn criticism for alleged anti-consumer practices, misleading specifications, and pricing structures. This has led to significant backlash from the gaming community[3][4]

History

[edit]

NZXT was founded in 2004 by Johnny Hou to produce products specifically for the DIY PC building community. The company's first product was the NZXT Guardian, which was a case featuring a plastic front bezel resembling Transformers toys and lighting effects.[5] Over time, they gradually expanded to other categories of computer hardware including computer power supplies,[6] computer cooling, motherboards,[7] and streaming devices.[8][9]

On July 30, 2024, NZXT offered PC rentals.[10] Scharon Harding of Ars Technica noted that the service did not allow for ownership, and over a two year upgrade cycle, would cost as much as "a quality PC that you could own and continue getting value from beyond two years."[11] Michael Crider of PCWorld raised similar concerns about pricing, however noted it could be an option for people who could not afford a "top-notch gaming PC".[12]

On November 30, 2024, YouTube channel Gamers Nexus criticized the Flex rental program for false advertising claims, rapidly changing prices and specifications,[3][4] without changing model names and related performance benchmarks,[13] and anti-consumer terms of service,[13] which would allegedly allow the company to sell the data stored in the rented computer.[14] The channel would also drop NZXT as an advertiser, cancelling an ongoing advertising contract.[15] Further accusations involve targeting minors via focused social media video advertises and without properly verifying the applicant ID before starting the renting program.[16] NZXT shared a social media post in response that they are aware of the claims made.[15]

Products

[edit]

NZXT is most known for its computer cases, but also sells motherboards, power supplies, cooling products, LED lighting, and other accessories marketed towards PC gamers. The company designs and develops their products in Los Angeles, with manufacturing being in Shenzhen.[17]

Cases

[edit]

NZXT has been making PC cases since 2003, when they released the Guardian.[18] In 2013, the Phantom 630, 530, and 410 were released.[19][20][21]

The S340 was released in 2016 and later featured a collaboration with Razer.[22][23] The S340 was refreshed in 2016 with the S340 Elite, which featured a tempered glass side panel instead of the acrylic panel of the previous S340.[24] A limited Hyper Beast edition of the S340 Elite was later released.[25] Also in 2016, NZXT released the Manta - A mini-ITX chassis that featured radically different design compared to their case lineup at the time.[26] Later NZXT and Razer stopped their partnership though.

A new line of cases was released in October 2017, consisting of the H700, H400, and the H200. They are minimalist in design, and are constructed from steel with tempered glass side panels.[27] The "i" variants of each case come with decorative LED lighting and a fan controller.[28][29][30]

An empty H500i case

A cheaper case, the H500, was added to the lineup in May 2018.[31][32]

The H-series cases were refreshed in May 2019. The new revisions introduced a front-panel USB-C port. One of the refreshed cases, the H510 Elite, added a second glass panel on the front of the case.[33][34][35]

In February 2020, NZXT released the H1 compact form factor case.[36] Several months later reports began to emerge of H1 cases catching fire, which were first reported on November 30, 2020, by Gamers Nexus, a PC hobbyist YouTube channel.[37][38][39] On February 2, 2021, NZXT removed the H1 case from their product lineup, until a permanent solution could be made.[40]

Cooling

[edit]
An NZXT X52 240mm water cooler

NZXT has multiple all-in-one water cooler products under their Kraken lineup. The first of these was released in 2013, in both 140mm and 280mm sizes.[41][42] NZXT has since released multiple updates to this lineup, including new coolers in 120mm and 360mm sizes, and improvements to the pumps and radiators.[43][44][45] Most recently, they released a new cooler, the Z73, which includes a customizable LED display, and updates to the rest of their AIO lineup.[46]

Motherboards

[edit]

NZXT released their own line of motherboards for the Intel Z370 chipset in January 2018. It was praised for its minimalist design, as the circuitry is not exposed, but was initially criticized for its high price.[7][47][48][49] The lineup was refreshed in October 2018 to support the Z390 chipset.[50][51] The NZXT branded Z390 motherboards were manufactured by Elitegroup while a Z490 one is made by ASRock.[52]

Power supply units

[edit]

NZXT began selling power supply units in 2010, before ceasing sales of them in 2016. They re-entered the market in July 2018 with a series of modular digitally-controlled power supplies.[53]

Lighting

[edit]

NZXT started making their own line of lighting products including RGB & fan controllers, underglow, LED strips, RGB cable combs, and the hue 2 ambient v2 desktop lighting system.[54]

CRFT

[edit]

NZXT released the first product on their CRFT line, a series of themed limited edition PC cases, in May 2018.[55] They first started with a partnership case with PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, before moving to a "Nuka-Cola" Fallout themed case with Bethesda Softworks. Another PUBG and Fallout series case were released as well as World of Warcraft and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six themed cases.[56]

Audio

[edit]

NZXT started selling their line of audio products in November 2019; they released their headset, audio mixer, and headset stand.[57][58]

Gaming accessories

[edit]

NZXT introduced their line of gaming accessories starting with the puck in January 2017 used for cable management and a headset mount.[59] They expanded it later to include mousepads, a sling bag, and mechanical keyboards.[60][61]

BLD

[edit]

In 2017, NZXT launched a computer building service called BLD.[62] The service asks about what games would be played on it, budget constraints, and customization options before generating a PC build. The build is sold pre-assembled. They offer 4 categories of PC builds: Starter, Mini, Streaming, and Creator. In March 2023, NZXT revamped their brand of gaming computers into "Player".[63]

Flex

[edit]

In summer 2024, NZXT launched Flex, a computer rental service based off of BLD.[64][65] This service attracted substantial criticism and controversy over allegations of predatory rental fees, anti-consumer practices, and invasive data privacy policies.[3][4][13] The company has updated the branding of Flex and its computers to better separate BLD and Flex computers as they feature different components.[66][67][68]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Grever, Steve (8 February 2012). "NZXT Switch 810 Full Tower PC Case Review". PC Perspective. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  2. ^ Hall, Charlie (6 June 2017). "New PC builder promises 60 fps or your money back". Polygon. United States. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Roth, Emma (Dec 1, 2024). "Gamers Nexus claims NZXT's Flex PC rental program is a 'scam'". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  4. ^ a b c Gamers Nexus (2024-11-30). Do Not Buy NZXT | Predatory, Evil Rental Computer Scam Investigated. Retrieved 2024-12-04 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ Sanghani, Purav (5 April 2004). "NZXT Guardian". AnandTech. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  6. ^ "NZXT - PSU Review Database". Spain: RealHardTechX. Archived from the original on 2 April 2014.
  7. ^ a b Shields, Joe (9 January 2018). "The NZXT N7 Z370 Motherboard Review: A New Player in the Motherboard Market". AnandTech. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  8. ^ Walton, Jarred (13 January 2015). "NZXT Launches DOKO In-Home Streamer". AnandTech. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  9. ^ Portnoy, Sean (17 January 2015). "NZXT Doko is a $100 PC streaming device for your living room". ZDNet. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  10. ^ "Flex a PC Gaming Subscription Service" (Press release). NZXT. July 30, 2024.
  11. ^ Harding, Scharon (Aug 2, 2024). "NZXT wants you to pay up to $169/month to rent a gaming PC". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2024-12-02.
  12. ^ Crider, Michael (Aug 2, 2024). "Would you rent a gaming PC? You can now with NZXT's Flex program". PC World.
  13. ^ a b c "NZXT responds to damning Gamers Nexus video accusing it of running a "predatory, evil" rental scam". Beef Suplex Gaming. 2024-12-01. Retrieved 2024-12-01.
  14. ^ "New Video Claims NZXT PC Rental Program Is "A Scam," Company Says It's Looking Into It". GameSpot. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  15. ^ a b "NZXT responds to damning Gamers Nexus video accusing it of running a "predatory, evil" rental scam". TechSpot. 2024-12-02. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  16. ^ "NZXT accused of 'predatory scam' gaming PC rental program". pcworld. 2024-12-03. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  17. ^ Burke, Steve (27 May 2016). "NZXT Factory Tour in China – Start-to-Finish Case Manufacturing". Gamers Nexus. Archived from the original on 23 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  18. ^ Burke, Steve. "NZXT's First Case: The 2003 Guardian". www.gamersnexus.net. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  19. ^ "NZXT Phantom 630 Review". PCMAG. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  20. ^ "NZXT Phantom 530 Review". PCMAG. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  21. ^ Darksaber (December 1, 2011). "NZXT Phantom 410 Review". Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  22. ^ Fylladitakis, E. "The NZXT S340 Case Review". www.anandtech.com. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  23. ^ "Razer Announces Custom Designed NZXT S340 PC Case". NZXT. 2015-08-25. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  24. ^ "NZXT S340 Elite Review". PCMAG. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  25. ^ "Introducing the S340 Elite Hyper Beast". NZXT. 2017-04-18. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  26. ^ "NZXT Manta Review". PCMAG. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  27. ^ Lynch, Steven (October 17, 2017). "NZXT Outs New H-Series Cases". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  28. ^ Peak, Sebastian (February 14, 2018). "NZXT H700i Tempered Glass ATX Mid Tower Case Review". PC Perspective. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  29. ^ Mai, Terrence (December 27, 2017). "Case of the Year: NZXT H700i". PC Gamer. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  30. ^ Lathan, Patrick (November 1, 2017). "NZXT H700i Case Review: Better Without the "Smart" Device". Gamers Nexus. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  31. ^ Chacos, Brad (May 22, 2018). "NZXT H500i review: A $100 case loaded with premium features". PC World. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  32. ^ Peak, Sebastian (May 22, 2018). "NZXT Announces H500 and H500i Cases with Tempered Glass". PC Perspective. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  33. ^ Bonshor, Gavin (May 30, 2019). "NZXT Refreshes H Series, New H510 Elite Chassis With RGB". AnandTech. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  34. ^ Shields, Joe (May 27, 2019). "NZXT Refreshes H Series Chassis With USB Type-C, Smart Device v2". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  35. ^ Nelius, Jonna (May 27, 2019). "NZXT is giving its H-series cases a refresh". PC Gamer. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  36. ^ Carver, Garrett (February 25, 2020). "NZXT H1 Review: SFF Excellence, PSU and AIO Included". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  37. ^ Ridley, Jacob (February 18, 2021). "NZXT to begin shipping more permanent H1 PC case fire hazard fix this month". PC Gamer. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  38. ^ Liu, Zhiye (November 28, 2020). "NZXT Issues H1 Product Recall Over Safety Concerns". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  39. ^ Hamilton, Eric (November 30, 2020). "HW News - NZXT "Safety Issue," GPU Availability, AMD MI100 GPU, NVIDIA A100 80GB". Gamers Nexus. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  40. ^ Ridley, Jacob (February 2, 2021). "NZXT halts sale of H1 PC case for second time as long-term fire hazard fix is developed". PC Gamer. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  41. ^ Sklavos, Dustin (December 26, 2012). "Closing the Loop: Contained Liquid-Coolers from Corsair and NZXT Compared". AnandTech. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  42. ^ Nyhuis, Brian (September 12, 2013). "NZXT Kraken X40 & X60 CPU Water Cooler Reviews". Legit Reviews. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  43. ^ Forrest, Derek (March 6, 2018). "NZXT Adds Larger, More Affordable AIO CPU Coolers To Kraken Lineup". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  44. ^ Lilly, Paul (March 6, 2018). "NZXT's Kraken X72 is the company's first 360mm all-in-one liquid cooler". PC Gamer. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  45. ^ Sebring, Chad (November 13, 2014). "NZXT Kraken X31 140mm AIO CPU Cooler Review". TweakTown. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  46. ^ "Review: NZXT Kraken Z63 and Z73 are among the best AIO coolers out there". Windows Central. 2020-01-28. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  47. ^ Makedonski, Brett (January 10, 2018). "NZXT's first motherboard seems perfect for first-time PC builders". Destructoid. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  48. ^ Dingman, Hayden (January 10, 2018). "NZXT's debut motherboard is one of the most breathtaking motherboards ever". PC World. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  49. ^ Soderstrom, Thomas (January 9, 2018). "A New Player in Motherboards: Our NZXT N7-Z37XT Review". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  50. ^ Gayde, William (October 8, 2018). "NZXT releases their second ever motherboard, the N7 Z390". TechSpot. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  51. ^ Grubb, Jeff (October 10, 2018). "Asus, NZXT, and more launch Z390 motherboards for 9th-gen Core CPUs". VentureBeat. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  52. ^ "Anandtech: The NZXT N7 Z490 Motherboard Review: From A Different Direction". Retrieved October 17, 2020.
  53. ^ Shilov, Anton (July 17, 2018). "NZXT Enters PSU Market with E-Series ATX Power Supplies Featuring Built-In Monitoring". AnandTech. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  54. ^ "PC Case Lighting | LED Lights for Gaming Setup | NZXT". www.nzxt.com. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  55. ^ Stevens, Alex (2018-05-05). "NZXT Announces Limited Edition H700 PUBG Licensed Case, 10% Profits Going To Charity". Wccftech. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  56. ^ "NZXT | Gaming PC products and services". www.nzxt.com. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  57. ^ "NZXT | Gaming PC products and services". www.nzxt.com. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  58. ^ "NZXT Reveals New Audio Suite for Gamers | NZXT". www.nzxt.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  59. ^ "Puck Everything | NZXT". www.nzxt.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  60. ^ "Gaming Accessories". www.nzxt.com. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  61. ^ Sarah Jacobsson Purewal (2024-02-22). "NZXT Function 2 Review: Surprisingly... Solid". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  62. ^ Mott, Nathaniel (June 6, 2017). "NZXT Will 'BLD' Your Next Gaming PC, For A Price". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  63. ^ Wallace, Mitch. "NZXT Launches Stunning Line Of 'Player' Pre-Built Gaming PCs". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  64. ^ Hagedoorn, Hilbert (2024-08-01). "NZXT Launches Flex PC: Subscription-Based Gaming PC Rental with Upgrades". www.guru3d.com. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  65. ^ "NZXT Announces NZXT Flex a PC Gaming Subscription Service". NZXT. 2024-07-31. Retrieved 2024-12-10.
  66. ^ NZXT (2024-12-04). Addressing Your NZXT Flex Subscription Concerns. Retrieved 2024-12-09 – via YouTube.
  67. ^ Davis, Wes (2024-12-08). "NZXT's Flex PC rentals are still 'misleading' and 'predatory,' claims Gamers Nexus". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  68. ^ Gamers Nexus (2024-12-06). NZXT Says We're "Confused". Retrieved 2024-12-09 – via YouTube.

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