ATX Case

An Advanced Technology eXtended (ATX) case is a computer case made to ATX industry standards. The ATX standard is a format for manufacturers of computer hardware that ensures interoperability. The ATX case will accommodate an ATX power supply and ATX motherboard.

The ATX case grew out of shortcomings of prior standards, namely the AT and Baby AT standards. As technology improved, significant changes have been made in hardware that required a newer style case. The ATX case is the natural evolution in computer case design. For example, component-laden computers require more power today than they did in the early 1990s and more cooling capability. An ATX case often comes with a power supply, or the consumer can purchase an ATX power supply separately, knowing it will work in any ATX case. The back of the ATX case has also changed to accommodate ATX motherboards with built-in ports that drop into place to form a portion of the back wall. This replaces the old style Baby AT cases that were designed for empty IDE slots, with the only built-in port being the keyboard port. The holes in the ATX motherboard also align with ports on the ATX case.

An ATX case comes with fans in most cases. The size and number of fans varies between models. There are innumerable styles of cases to choose from. An ATX case is a fairly inexpensive item, considering it houses your computer, provides the power and keeps it cool.