NZXT Kraken 280 (RL-KN280-B1)

The NZXT Kraken 280 is an advanced closed-loop liquid cooling system with a massive 28cm radiator, Aestek 7th generation water block and an auxiliary LCD screen for beautifying the case and monitoring the system in real time. The model belongs to the middle price segment and is part of the NZXT Kraken family of advanced water coolers, which have an absolute advantage over tower supercoolers in terms of cooling level and noise emission.

Despite belonging to the “Closed Cycle LSS” class, its performance is as close as possible to custom water coolers, and the manufacturer recommends using it to cool top 8/12/16-core Intel Core and AMD Ryzen processors. It is also suitable for working in tandem with AMD Threadripper server chips. The device comes with a set of mounts for mounting on motherboards with processor sockets, including the latest Intel 1200/1700 and AMD AM4/AM5/TR4/TRX4 sockets.

The Kraken 280 is an all-in-one cooling system where all parts of the system fit together and are ready for assembly. The key element of the system is a 280 mm aluminium radiator with a copper substrate and a coolant unit connected to it. Heat dissipation from the radiator is carried out using two NZXT F140P fans, which support PWM speed control. At minimum load, the turntables spin at low speed, making virtually no noise.

At peak load, the speed of the turntable blades can accelerate to 1500 rpm, and the noise level they produce rises to 32 dB. A distinctive feature of this model is the decorative water block with a 1.54-inch LCD display built into it. It can display various important data about the system status, set a static image (for example, YouTube or Twitch channel branding) or animation, which will look especially cool when the case is open. According to the manufacturer, such a solution should attract bloggers, streamers and ordinary gamers who want to give their PC a recognizable look.