Installation - 9

Installing Dynatron’s Crossflow Blower/ CF-001 is hard to gauge. Some may find installing it to be overly time-consuming but others – myself including – will have a great deal of fun deciding just how to use the Crossflow Blower.

The Crossflow comes with four extra screws, an adhesive pad, and little else to guide you. After a few moments of head scratching and looking from case to fan and back, you catch on that the Crossflow Blower/ CF-001 can pretty much go anywhere you like. I successfully installed the fan in such a way that it acted as an intake fan. Then, using the adhesive pad, I moved it so it acted as a hard drive cooler.

I finally settled on screwing inside my PC against the rear of the case so that it functioned as a powerful exhaust fan. This was accomplished twice. Once screwing the Crossflow in so that is shot almost directly out of an empty PCI slot but seemed to space consuming. The second and final resting spot for the Crossflow was pushing air through some ventilation near the bottom of my case.

The entire process was great fun but if you are not overly geeky, you may want to decide on your plan of attack ahead of time. I would recommend sticking with an exhaust configuration. A few screws should hold the fan in place so don’t be afraid to experiment.

Aesthetics - 7

Like something from a slasher flick for fingers, the Crossflow Blower/ CF-001 looks like an old-fashioned push mower trapped inside of a metallic box. The Crossflow Blower is filled with small holes to allow it to be screwed in just about anywhere. When all is said and done, there is very little worth noting. Still, as with other non-LED fans, the Crossflow Blower does not detract from a computer’s appearance. At best, its rather imposing size and shape may lend an aura of power to your PC.

Durability - 7

Since the Crossflow is entirely metal, it should be a formidable piece of equipment. With that said, the unit I received had a single screw rolling around the box and, after numerous attempts to return it to its home, it would appear that the undercasing had slipped to the side.

This may actually be due to the Crossflow Blower/ CF-001’s flexible nature. Much of the Crossflow almost appears to be made out of tinker toys. This gives the unit a very adaptable nature witch allowed me more choices when deciding where the unit should go in my case. In the end, the Crossflow Blower’s home in my PC would have required the removal of the errant screw anyway, so no harm was done.

Performance - 9

The CF-001 is an absolute beast of a fan. Generating a great deal of airflow, the Crossflow seems to outdo its own specifications. The amount of air it pushes is remarkable and the unit did an excellent job of cooling my case wherever I put it. In certain configurations, I was able to get the Crossflow Blower to pull air across my AGP card and the results allowed me to knock up its core’s frequency a few MHZ more.

In its final configuration, the CF-001 acted something like a hurricane, pulling air across all of my PCI cards. It also stirred up air between of the cards, chasing out any pockets of heat that may have existed.

In the end, and much to my surprise, I saw my CPU’s temperature drop a degree. Considering that I didn’t have to so much as touch my CPU’s heat sink or fan, I was elated at this discovery. Better still, PC users who are worried about their CPU’s heat but unwilling to touch anything associated with it physically will find extra peace of mind with a Crossflow Blower/ CF-001 whirling around in their machines.

Even for those not afraid to tinker with the more expensive parts of their pc should enjoy the quick drop in CPU temperatures. In addition, the Crossflow’s construction allows it to be placed in PC’s that no longer have room for standard fans so there are few who could not find a home for Dynatron’s Crossflow Blower.

Value - 10

Considering the Crossflow Blower/ CF-001’s strength and many potential uses, its price tag of $12 is almost negligible. The peace of mind alone that a strong fan brings justifies the price. That the Dynatron’s Crossflow Blower is so highly functional and adaptable at such a low price is remarkable.

Overall – 9.0

I love this fan and the Crossflow Blower/ CF-001 should please any PC owner. For the casual owner, the Crossflow can be placed blindly and it will still have a beneficial affect. For those with plenty of fans looking to cool their hard drive, an AGP card, their PCI cards, or just about anything else, the Crossflow Blower is a cost-effective and fun-to-install option that too good to say no to. A highly recommended addition to anyone’s PC.