Corsair One i500 review

Times have changed, and so have gamers. Where we once basked in the glow of RGB lights that’d make Las Vegas locals feel right at home, many of us now crave something with a more natural flair. Call it tech overload, a desire to get back in touch with Gaia, or simply mature the office a bit. Whatever your reason, there are few compact gaming PCs as rustically charming as Corsair One i500.

Wood and PCs don’t tend to mix. After all, it’s a thermal insulator and you ideally want to keep your system on the cool side. Blending the best of both worlds had me fawning over Fractal North and Corsair’s dinky take has me falling in love all over again.

Even unboxing the thing makes you feel like royalty. I tend not to cover packaging in most reviews because the process very rarely differs. However, Corsair has done the cardboard equivalent of reinventing the wheel here. You don’t need a knife to carefully cut into it. You don’t need to flip it upside down. Thankfully, you also don’t need to unceremoniously wiggle it out of its container. Doing away with any unnecessary risk, the top layer of the box seamlessly slides away after unclipping the same plastic handles that allow you to lift it. Inside, your system sits upright in a strong fabric bag, ready for you to carry it to its new home. You can then use it for your shopping. Sure, it’s something you’ll probably never experience again, but Corsair is acutely aware that you only get one first impression.

Going a step further than its earthy rivals, One i500 slips subtle lighting in the seams of its wood panel. You can change the RGB colours by sliding your finger on the touch-sensitive strip above the power button. Holding the strip below the switch for five seconds cycles through animations and switches it off. The default white is my favourite by far, highlighting the star of the show: the dark (or light if you choose) wood grain.

Corsair covers up its sides with a pair of magnetic fabric covers. It’s a small detail, but one that goes to great lengths toward making it an incredible statement piece. Beneath them sits perforated aluminium side panels that are decidedly less easy to remove. I’d have preferred push-button releases for quick access, and the two miniature screws holding them in place are so small they’re easy to strip (sorry, Corsair).

I can’t imagine DIYing the rig for quite some time, though. Our test model is the top-tier spec helmed by a liquid-cooled Intel Core i9-14900K CPU, liquid-cooled Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, 64GB of DDR5 RAM, and a 2TB NVMe SSD. There’s space for a 2.5in SATA drive around the rear if you crave more storage, but remember that there’s limited space here as the case stands just 391mm x 185mm x 300mm (H x W x D). Backed with a 1,000W Gold power supply with headroom for upgrades, a Wi-Fi 6E wireless adaptor, and Bluetooth 5.3, it certainly feels like the complete package.

Far from the enthusiast I am, my partner’s first words were, “That looks expensive,” and she didn’t know just how right she was. The bespoke look starts at £3,499.99 / $3,599.99 / €4,199.99 and our jaw-dropping test spec leaves a £4,699.99 / $4,699.99 / €5,499.99 hole in your bank account. Thankfully, Corsair backs it with a two-year warranty, lifetime 24/7 online tech support, and packs the performance to justify the cost.

Performance

CPU

The 24-core (8P+16E), 32-thread Intel Core 14900K is a chart-topper in single-core Cinebench R23 scores, as 2,297 sits mighty close to what we achieved in our review of processor. However, scoring just 35,085 in multi-core tests, the CPU falls noticeably short of its full potential. This is within 4% of Corsair’s own results, though, so we know all is working as intended. The difference likely comes from BIOS power settings from the MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi motherboard.

Running it through the newer Cinebench 2024, the rig nets 136 in single-core and 2,052 in multi-core scores. We haven’t tested enough systems to draw a comparison, but it’s clear that this is the frontrunner.

Memory

Being a memory specialist has its advantages. Packing 64GB (2x32GB) of Corsair’s own DDR5-6,000 Vengeance RAM, One i500 sails past the competition with 90,010MB/s transfer speeds and an unprecedented 66.9Ns latency. The RAM here won’t steer you wrong and has enough capacity to eclipse game system requirements for years to come.

Storage

Corsair doesn’t tell us what 2TB storage is under the hood but it’s easily the weakest part of the system. Clearly a Gen 4 NVMe, 6,467MB/s sequential read and 4,940MB/s sequential write speeds are plenty for gaming. There are mere seconds between loading times here and the best we’ve tested, so much so that it feels like splitting hairs.

Apps

Juggling apps is no problem for One i500, but it’s distinctly middle of the high-end pack in benchmarks. Do note that we’re still running PCMark 10 version 5.67.1198.0 to keep a consistent comparison, which is where the rig scores 10,130. After all, this is a gaming system first and a work setup second.

Gaming

Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4090 still reigns supreme in gaming, partly thanks to its 24GB GDDR6X, leading the charge with record-breaking frame rates in Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker at max settings. The only time Corsair One i500 loses out to the top spot is when AMD’s top dog Ryzen puts Intel down a peg, in part due to its larger L3 cache. Still, 195fps at 4K and a whopping 318fps at FHD will max out most gaming monitors out there.

Not a single double-digit in sight, as this spec tears through all resolutions at max settings. Even the notoriously difficult Cyberpunk 2077 gives 106fps. Given this is Nvidia’s best and brightest under an AIO cooler, the graphics card also has a secret weapon. You’ll likely be able to get a far higher frame rate using DLSS and Frame Generation in compatible titles. It might even make ray tracing a default setting for you.

Vitals

Such a lofty spec demands to feed, but 610W under load is somewhat lightweight for something so beefy. Considering energy costs today, a mere 80W sipped at idle is a welcome sight, keeping your bills low. Tinker with your game settings and you’ll find yourself with a comfortable frame rate costing you somewhere in the middle.

With its fingers in many pies, Corsair is also a cooling specialist, which comes in handy for small form factor (SFF) PCs. All-in-one (AIO) liquid cooling comes in clutch with 82°C average CPU temperatures and 63°C average GPU temps under load. There aren’t many alternatives when trying to fit a behemoth RTX 4090 in a rig this small, but it’s still fantastic to see the flagship creeping up on RTX 4070 Super temps.

Owing to its AIOs, Corsair keeps its mini PC incredibly quiet. It’s one of the quieter systems I’ve tested, both idle and kicking about in games. With the temperature of such premium components under control, you can’t get much more ideal than this.

Conclusion

Without hyperbole, Corsair One i500 is my dream PC. The mixture of gorgeously natural wood paired with dark or light fabric makes it a fashion statement. It simultaneously blends into your space, adding sophistication, while demanding everyone’s attention. Both form and function, it’s nothing short of a technical marvel under the hood, getting great performance out of a liquid-cooled Intel Core i9-14900K and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090.

A difficult side panel and slower NVMe drive are issues as small as the compact PC itself. They’re easily forgiven for what’s on offer. The main obstacle in your way is price. For any walk of life, £4,699.99 / $4,699.99 / €5,499.99 is a mighty tough pill to swallow. Usually, I’d compile a similar build to judge the cost, but there are several factors going against me here. The watercooled graphics card alone approaches near-£2k, but that’s for a desktop variant. This one’s far more compact and fine-tuned to not throttle in such a cramped space. Paired with an exclusive case you can’t buy anywhere (trust me, I’ve tried), and the price starts to make some sense.

Granted, Corsair One i500 is a big investment and there are premiums to pay for labour and ingenuity. However, for those that can afford such a luxury, few PCs please as much as this one.

Corsair One i500

Verdict: a dream PC-turned-bold wooden fashion statement that’s destined for only the richest gamers.

Pros

Exceptionally beautiful wood
Extremely powerful
Liquid-cooled RTX 4090
Whisper quiet

Cons

Very pricey
Fiddly side panel screws
Slower SSD

Buy