Mechatronics Art Raspberry Pi 3 Aluminum Cooling Case - Gunmetal Grey Metal Case

I had used a similar design from Odroid for XU4 before purchasing this one here for RPi made by Mechatronics Art (a company in Montreal, Quebec, Canada). If you think this one is expensive, Odroid charged even more for their XU4's. I was ecstatic when I saw this product as I am a believer of original and functional designs. When I received this enclosure, I almost had the same "high" when I first saw iPhones. The craftsmanship of this case is world-class. Once I got my hands on this product, I understand why it costs so much.I used my RPi as my OSMC media center, so I leave it on 24/7. Although RPis do not run as hot as XU4s, I like the idea of having an effective silent cooling system for my RPi so I can leave it there and not to worry about it.I followed the suggestion from the other here to clip off some long soldering legs to avoid shorting the circuit (did not experience it myself, but after eyeballing the tight space of the based plate, such suggestion makes sense to me). It takes a bit of force to push the RPi 3B in. Make sure you have the HDMI edge locked in position at an angle first prior to pushing the RPi in all the way. I was hesitant at first as I was afraid to break anything with such force. As it turns out, the tightness during installation was by design. The reset button works fine. Once a simple soldering job was down, I tested it out before the assembly. Please note that it's not for on/off, rather a reset button. For RPi 3B+ owners, pay attention to the instruction on the Mechatronics Art website for installation of RPi 3B+s to add the “shutdown -h now” (or another user defined) command for the button.The enclosure is very robust and rugged. The all metal design not only serves as an effective heat sink, but also minimize the carbon footprint! If your RPi application requires a casing that can endure abuses (and stay cool all the time), this is the case for you. If you recycle plastic bottles, papers, etc., this is a RPi enclosure for you for the same reason. In parts of the world that are extremely hot, just add an external USB fan.Note: I paid for this product in full and have no association with Mechatronics Art.

Great raspberry pi case made to exceptionally high strength standards. This is CNC'd from of a solid piece of aluminum. Why would any one pay this much for a case which protects something that's worth less than itself, but they say manners maketh man.Warning. There is a chance of shorting the raspberry pi with this case. Ethernet leads and GPIO pins (maybe even some others) on the opposite side of the raspberry pi 3 board could touch the bottom aluminum plate. With a wire cutter I snipped any leads I thought would cause a short. Before I did this the raspberry pi was shutting off as soon as Ethernet activity occurred. I do not reduce a star for this because everything else is truly well made, down to all the parts included (twice the number of thermal pads). A hobbyist-tuned warning (on the next batch of assembly guides) would be a nice touch to make this product of unquestionable high quality. Well made. I will purchase another 2.

Pretty nice case. Good fit and finish, but I ran into two problems with mine:First, my RP3B board wouldn't actually fit into the case without grinding down the corner of the RJ45 Ethernet jack (I've seen other similar complaints).Second, the screws that hold the I/O header cover were completely seized. I tried to remove them with a good quality hex driver, and the screw heads stripped without budging the screws at all. Those screws are going to have to be drilled out and the holes re-tapped.I expected better for $50.On the plus side, it includes thermal pads and a nice reset switch and a mating 2-pin header for you to solder onto the board. It also included an extra set of rubber feet.