Thanks to the rapid pace of computer technology, one thing that continues to grow with performance seems to be power consumption. With Nvidia's Triple SLI and AMD's upcoming Crossfire X systems actually pulling in excess of 1 kw of power, and since it's never a good idea to run a PSU at its full rated wattage, we are seeing PSUs that can provide up to 1600 watts of power (while requiring pretty much an entire 20A home circuit to do so).

In the midst of the battle to produce the highest wattage PSU, Tuniq has come up with a 950 watt unit that not only fits the standard ATX dimensions but also comes 80 Plus and SLI certified. This means that the PSU is both highly efficient (greater than 80%) and has enough juice to power a multi-GPU system. Well enough chit-chat its review time!

The Miniplant comes in a pretty unassuming black box with a plastic handle on the top, although the handle is pretty useless since this unit is both light and standard sized.

The list of included connectors even includes a pair of 8-pin PCI-e connectors, making it quite future-proof.

On the back of the box we have a quick run down of the features. The one line that caught my eye is the one the mentions "All kinds of protection circuits". The use of "All kinds" doesn't exactly instill confidence in a consumer like me. Note to all companies out there: Avoid using phrases starting with "All kinds".

Once all the packing material is removed, we are left with PSU, a 16 AWG power cable (beefier than standard PSU cables), a pack of 10 black cable ties, two 8-pin to 6-pin PCI-e power adapters and the manual.

The manual is pretty skimpy, but it covers the basics. It's not a big issue though - it's kind of hard to screw up a PSU installation.

Okay - time to check out the PSU itself; first notice the slick titanium finish on the unit.

The back of the unit is well ventilated with the ever popular hexagonal cut-out design.