Conclusion

If you are not overclocking or running a very demanding system a fanless PSU could be a great option, even if you are concerned about system temperature and stable power, though they may not be cheap. Each power supply did well in the testing and in a way, they are all winners.

In another, more accurate, way the Antec Phantom 350W is the winner. This PSU was one of the more expensive in the roundup but it delivered lots of power without heating up our system. Fanless equipment is expensive and if you are going to spend $129 on a less expensive one, it makes sense to invest the extra few dollars and get the additional performance. Personally I really liked the SilverStone supply but the lack of power at 110V is problematic. Considering the power demands of something like a Prescott processor or some of today's video cards, 250W is not going to cut it for a lot of people. That being said, I was recently informed that the SilverStone PSU is actually based on a 560W server PSU, and can deliver up to 400W of power if called upon. It was able to deliver the most stable power and it was the best looking PSU in the roundup though. Unlike the Antec it does not include a 24-pin connection and or a PCIe power connector, but it does have an Active PFC.

Even though we had to pick a winner each power supply in the roundup would be a solid choice. It would be interesting test them again in a few months once some dust has accumulated, but I have a hunch that the more expensive two would beat out the others again, though the Thermaltake would probably outperform the Coolmax. Another interesting issue is that given that each PSU is over a hundred dollars, the manufacturers add in a few extras to justify the cost, even though fanless PSUs are more expensive to produce than fan-cooled ones. These extras are well appreciated, though they can be something as simple as an LED indicator, lighted On/Off switch, sleeved wiring, or a 24-pin connector.