The first thing you notice about the Silverstone Lucid LD03 is the glass. There is a lot of it. The better part of three sides of the case is covered in trapezoidal panels of dark tempered glass. This glass is highly reflective and very dark, which gives it a mirror-like quality. You have to be careful when handling it though because, while tempered glass is more durable than the acrylic panels of yesteryear, it collects fingerprints very easily and can be tricky to clean. Gloves and a microfiber cloth are your friends when handling this case.
The second piece of the Lucid LD03’s distinctive look is the satin black plastic that makes up the top and bottom edge of the case. It is smooth to the touch and fingerprint resistant, lending a suitably premium feel to the case. It may not be aluminum or some other more exotic material, but it doesn’t feel cheap. Panel gaps are minimal, and there is no awkward plastic to metal transitions like you tend to find on budget cases. The only branding on the case is a small beige Silverstone logo near the bottom right vents on the front panel. While beige is not my first choice for logo color, it is pretty inoffensive and you probably won’t notice it if you aren’t looking for it. The general trend towards more subtle branding is something that I personally appreciate.
The only features worth noting on the bottom of the case are the large dust filter and the rubberized feet at the corners of the case. The dust filter clips on to the bottom panel of the case and covers the entire underside of the system. The rubber feet prevent the case from sliding around on your desk. Even on a fairly slick like mine, it is quite difficult to slide a fully loaded LD03.
The back of the LD03 is the only place on the outside of the case where we see the steel that makes up the inside of the case. The powder-coated finish on the steel is noticeably coarser than the plastic that covers the rest of the case. While I don’t particularly like this finish, you probably won’t see it except when assembling the case. I would have preferred that Silverstone use a smooth finish like what Phanteks uses on their cases, but given how little of the steel is exposed the rough finish is passable.
Also on the back are the dust filter for the power supply and some ventilation for open-air style graphics cards. Removing the dust filter to clean it simply requires pulling on the marked tab.
The top of the case is the part that makes the rotated layout work. The vented top is a cover over the system’s rear I/O and the hole at the back of the case is where the cables from the rear I/O get routed. It isn’t the most elegant solution possible, but it works well. We will take a more in-depth look at this in the next section.
