Corsair Reveals Pricing And Specs For "Link" Cooling / Lighting Kit

Computex 2011 is going on this week, and that means tons of news in our space. Tons of news from companies like Corsair, which has belted out quite a few things to kick the week off. First up is the Corsair Link Kits, described as a modular hardware and software system that provides "comprehensive monitoring and control of PC cooling in lighting." In other words, the company's revealed pricing and specifications for the Corsair Link Cooling Kit and Link Cooling / Lighting Kit.


The two starter packages announced today are complete solutions that allow customers to immediately enjoy the benefits of Corsair Link technology. Customers can then further expand their control with additional peripherals that offer Corsair Link connectivity. The Corsair Link Cooling Kit and the Corsair Link Cooling and Lighting Kit will be available from corsair.com and authorized etailers worldwide in July. The Cooling Kit will be available for a US suggested retail price of $99 USD, and the Cooling and Lighting Kit will be available for a US suggested retail price of $139 USD.

Corsair Announces First Corsair Link Kits
– Revolutionary modular hardware and software system provides comprehensive monitoring and control of PC cooling and lighting –

TAIPEI, Taiwan — May 31st, 2011 — Corsair®, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced pricing and specifications for the Corsair Link™ Cooling Kit and the Corsair Link Cooling and Lighting Kit.

Corsair Link is a modular hardware and software system that provides comprehensive monitoring and control of PC cooling and lighting. The two starter packages announced today are complete solutions that allow customers to immediately enjoy the benefits of Corsair Link technology. Customers can then further expand their control with additional peripherals that offer Corsair Link connectivity.

Corsair Link Commander

At the heart of each Corsair Link system is the Corsair Link Commander. Enclosed in extruded aluminum housing and designed to mount into any available 3.5” drive bay, the Corsair Link Commander connects to the PC via USB and provides eight Corsair Link Digital terminals and one analog Corsair Link terminal for non-digital sensors and nodes.

Corsair Link Dashboard

Corsair Link Dashboard is a Windows application that offers at-a-glance parametric monitoring and sophisticated control options. Cooling can be adjusted manually or automatically, with customizable configurations to provide exactly the right balance of fan noise and system cooling performance for the customer’s needs. Lighting can be set to fixed colors, or programmed to change automatically according to system temperature or other parameters.

Corsair Link Cooling Node and Lighting Node

The Cooling Node and the Lighting Node connect to the digital terminals on Corsair Link Commander. The Cooling Node provides five fan control terminals, four sensor terminals, and three temperature sensors. The Lighting Node provides two lighting channels, each of which can control up to 33 LED strips. In addition to software control, integrated buttons allow the user to manually adjust lighting values. Each node is finished in plastic housing and includes cables for connecting to the power supply and the Corsair Link Commander.

Corsair Link Kits — Putting It All Together

The Corsair Link Cooling Kit is a starter package that includes:

    * Corsair Link Commander
    * One Corsair Link Cooling Node

The Corsair Link Cooling and Lighting Kit includes the above, and adds a Corsair Link Lighting Node and three LED Light Strips. Each light strip contains three RGB LEDs capable of displaying any of 16.7 million colors. Up to 33 strips can be connected together. Customers who start with the Corsair Link Cooling Kit may also purchase the Corsair Link Lighting Node separately. Corsair Link Dashboard is provided as a free download for Corsair Link customers.

Connectivity with Components and Peripherals

Any component with a Corsair Link Digital connector can be added to the Corsair Link system to provide monitoring and control via the desktop. The Corsair Hydro Series™ H80 and H100 Liquid CPU Coolers, also announced today, connects via Corsair Link Digital to allow precise coolant temperature monitoring and radiator fan control. They join the Airflow Pro™ in the first group of products to offer Corsair Digital connectivity.

The Hydro Series H60 Liquid CPU Cooler contains an analog Corsair Link connector which allows monitoring of coolant temperature from the desktop.

Corsair plans to publish specifications for the Corsair Link Digital interface, allowing open development of components that can be monitored and controlled by Corsair Link Dashboard.

“Corsair Link is a complete ecosystem of kits and components that will bring a new level of cooling and lighting customization to the PC enthusiast market.” said Ruben Mookerjee, VP and General Manager for Components at Corsair. “Fan and lighting control has traditionally required manual adjustments, and that’s the problem we’re solving. The Corsair Link Dashboard software offers complete on-the-spot or automatic control, and it’s fun to use.”