ASUS' Arctic Square is the first Asus CPU cooler to arrive in our labs. Since Asus recently "entered" this market, we were very curious to see how this cooler would perform, when compared not with Intel's stock fan, but with another good performer, the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro.

The test results showed that the Asus Arctic Square kept the temperature of our overclocked processor 2° cooler than the AC Freezer7 Pro on average, while the difference ranged between 2° to 5° Celsius throughout the duration of our 11 minute test.

The performance was great, but how easy was the installation? Well...not very easy. I have to admit I had to read the installation guide several times to understand how all the components mount onto the motherboard. While the figures do indicate the proper steps, several important details are missing, and you have to figure them out for yourself.

Last but not least, the retail price of the Asus Arctic Square is around €48. That's almost double the price of the AC Freezer 7 Pro. There's no doubt that compared with Intel's stock fan, you get much better results and overclocking possibilities, but you also spend more money. If you can afford it, the Asus Arctic Square is a good choice, provided that you understand the installation procedure, an area where the AC Freezer 7 Pro "shines"...

Performance
Value for money
Installation