At first we would like to thank CORSAIR for offering us their iCUE ELITE CPU Cooler LCD Display Upgrade Kit for testing and reviewing.

 

About CORSAIR:

"Founded in 1994, Corsair has grown from pioneering the high-performance DRAM market to one of the world’s leading providers of enthusiast-grade PC components and peripherals. Our groundbreaking technology and innovation can be found in our high-performance memory, ultra-efficient power supplies, PC cases, PC and CPU cooling solutions, and solid-state storage devices. Under the Corsair Gaming brand, launched in 2014, we provide gaming keyboards, mice, headsets and mouse mats to eSports professionals and anybody who is passionate about competitive PC gaming.

 

Corsair hardware is regularly featured in showcase “dream systems,” and we have earned the adulation and respect of the press, professional gamers and overclockers, high-end system integrators, and PC enthusiasts worldwide by delivering leading-edge technology backed by renowned service and support.

 

Corsair has developed a global operations infrastructure with extensive marketing and distribution channel relationships, and our products are available through leading distributors and retailers in over sixty countries worldwide."

Product Features:

 

YOUR OWN PERSONALIZED LCD DASHBOARD

Upload your own animated GIFs and images or choose from numerous pre-installed screens and lighting profiles for groundbreaking system lighting and customization options.

BRILLIANT IPS LCD DISPLAY

Showcase your favorite animated GIF, funniest meme, your team's logo, or any images you like on a custom 2.1" IPS LCD screen with 480x480 resolution and ultra-bright 600cd/m² backlight.

EASY INSTALLATION ON CORSAIR ELITE CAPELLIX

Compatible with any CORSAIR iCUE ELITE CAPELLIX Liquid CPU Cooler, utilizing four mounting magnets for quick and easy installation.

UNITE YOUR SETUP

CORSAIR iCUE software brings your entire setup together, creating a fully immersive ecosystem with intuitive control.

 

Product Specifications:

 

Cooling Warranty: 5 Year

CORSAIR iCUE Compatibility: Yes

Screen Size: 2.1"

Native Resolution: 480x480

Max Resolution: 480x480

Refresh Rate: 30Hz

Weight: 0.136

Peak Brightness: 600 Nit

Display Colors: 16.7M (8-bit RGB)

Display Technology: IPS

Display Surface: Glossy

 

Ever wanted to upgrade your existing AIO with the latest version features, without selling and buying a new one? If you already own a CORSAIR iCUE ELITE CAPELLIX Liquid CPU Cooler, the manufacturer has made available the iCUE ELITE CPU COOLER LCD Display Upgrade Kit, which allows you to switch the pump RGB cover with the brand new, IPS display one, thanks to the modular design of the product. Additionally, the switch can be done by most individuals since the installation is easily done by following some instructions!

 

The upgrade kit has arrived in a very compact cardboard enclosure, sporting the newer CORSAIR box art pattern; the top cover does show the pump cover in operation but also the fact that it is driven by iCUE software and features an IPS technology display:

 

 

 

On the side of the box, CORSAIR has noted the saying “Super Chilled”:

 

 

 

Moving on, we will be able to check out the product code name and serial number:

 

 

 

On the bottom, we will get more details regarding the display, along with some sample effects and product dimensions:

 

 

 

After unsealing the box, we will note inside the pump cap with the display, but also a separate compartment:

 

 

 

Besides the pump cover upgrade, we will also receive an Allen key, four screws, an adapter but also a Safety and Warranty Information leaflet:

 

 

 

The adapter allows connecting two different devices to the same USB 2.0 header, a handy accessory considering the nowadays mobos come with less and less headers of this type:

 

 

 

The screws can be also tightened by hand, thanks to their shape:

 

 

 

The pump head does feature a black plastic cover, while in the middle we do have the 2.1’’ IPS circular display; it is also surrounded by an RGB-enabled frame with multiple LEDs, which can be configured individually:

 

 

 

Out of the pump covers we do see multiple cables, one being the 3-pin for connecting to the CPU_FAN header on the motherboard (monitoring only and for avoiding boot errors):

 

 

 

Besides the proprietary cable for the COMMANDER CORE, we will note and extra USB 2.0 cable, which was not present with the stock ELITE CAPELLIX AIO; we’ve also seen that the COMMANDER CORE connector features the full wiring versus the stock pump cover:

 

 

 

All the cables are carefully braided for a better look and to increase durability:

 

 

 

Underside the pump cover, we will note a sticker which informs the customer to update the iCUE software before doing the hardware connections:

 

 

 

By removing this cardboard cover, we will note a sticker in the middle with the product serial number and power rating, a 4-pin header but also the four magnets in the corners:

 

 

 

The first step of the installation implies the removal of the four top black screws from the stock cover:

 

 

 

We can remove the top layer with the CORSAIR logo, and we will only end up with the LED light diffuser:

 

 

 

The light diffuser is held fixed only by the 4-pin header, so it is easy to remove. We will then install the shorter screws onto the pump:

 

 

 

The last step would be to put the pump head in place (which will stay fixed thanks to the magnets) and connect the cables to the interfaces:

 

 

 

After a software update and two reboots, the new lighting setup was recognized correctly by iCUE:

 

 

 

For both the pump head and connected fans, we can choose from one of the many RGB presets and configure separately:

 

Rainbow Wave

Spiral Rainbow

Rainbow

Color Shift

Color Pulse

Color Wave

Sequential

Strobing

 

Visor

Marquee

Rain

Color Warp

Arc

Heartbeat

Temperature

 

Screen Setup area is a novelty item since we can work with the IPS display directly. A handful of presets are available here as well, most of it dealing with monitoring stuff:

 

Concentric

Single Bar

Fade Fill

 

Monitor

Image/GIF

Aperture

Dynamic Bar

Pattern Fill

Dual Bar

Blank

Turbo

Clock

 

When iCUE is not active, we can choose one of the two available presets which will activate automatically; the preset selection will be saved directly to the hardware:

 

Default

Image/GIF

 

The iCUE ELITE CAPELLIX LCD Display Upgrade Kit does really add quite a bit of eye candy to your current setup, while doubling up as a monitoring tool for the internal components. It comes with an IPS panel with a 480x480 resolution and renders video effects at 30FPS, for very fluent animations. The frame of the display is also RGB enabled in order to sync different effects with other iCUE-enabled hardware you may have installed, while the installation can be done by anyone with the help of four mounting magnets so no need of removing the pump from the CPU!

 

During boot-up, the system starts up with a nice CORSAIR animation and until iCUE loads we have the option to choose from the default effect which shows the liquid temperature or use a photo/animation of our own. If the system was not installed properly, the LCD screen will show a red triangle and an exclamation mark, prompting the user to do additional checkups (in this case, usually the COMMANDER CORE connector was not mounted properly and the pump will be unable to start up, hence the error).

 

Here is the list of Pros and Cons for this product:

 

Pros:

 

-innovative design, with a quality IPS display, eliminating the need of other monitoring tools for temperature and other sensors

-30FPS refresh rate for smooth animations

-very easy installation, without the need of removing the pump from the CPU

-full iCUE integration

-Hardware Screen with two selectable presets when iCUE is not loaded/present on the system

-fault signaling mode if connections haven’t been done properly

 

Cons:

 

-price (for some), about 99 Euros

CORSAIR iCUE ELITE CPU Cooler LCD Display Upgrade Kit is Recommended for:

 

 

 

We would like to thank again to CORSAIR for making this review possible!