Silverstone Strider Essential & Strider Plus 500W Power Supply Review

Silverstone Strider Essential ST50F-ES 500W – Page 1

Silverstone supplies the ST50F-ES Strider Essential 500W power supply inside a relatively small, typical cardboard box for a power supply. Inside the box, the power supply is protected by just a basic bubble bag. A bluish pixel graphical abstract and a picture of the power supply itself synthesize the aesthetic theme of the box.

A list of the power supplys special features can be found on the rear side of the box, in several languages. However, the special features are not all that special nowadays, as all noteworthy products have, for example, 80Plus efficiency, PCI-E connectors and APFC.

This is a product designed for maximum value and the bundle (or lack of) reflects that. Inside the box we only found a manual, basic mounting screws and a power cable.

While not as basic as the $20 tin power supplies, which usually are more usable as paper weights, the ST50F-ES is certainly not much to look at. Silverstone sprayed the chassis with a satin black paint and installed a black finger guard, but that is where any aesthetic enhancements stopped. Also, with the exception of the 24-pin ATX cable, the rest of the cables are not even sleeved.

The sticker with the electrical specifications of the ST50F-ES on the right side of the power supply, a spot usually reserved for decorative stickers. The sticker will be visible if the side panel of the case is windowed over the PSU compartment area.

The left side of the power supply sports a large 80Plus certification sticker. Note that it is no Bronze, Silver or any other modern certification level; just the basic 80Plus certification which denotes at least 80% efficiency under load.

As this is a basic, essential unit, the rear side of the chassis is home to nothing at all, with the exception of the hole that the hardwired cables come out from.

Again, the front side of the ST50F-ES is as basic as the rest of the power supply, with just an on/off switch and the power cable receptacle.