Article Index Review: Adata HM 850W Power Supply Specifications and Features Photo Gallery and Closer Look Installation and Test Procedure Power Efficiency, Verdict and Conclusion

Introduction 

Adata is well known for producing memory products and SSDs. So when they announced that they were going to release a range of power supplies, I was a little intrigued. Having said that, many manufacturers have already dabbled in this market due to its lucrative profit margins. Take for example Corsair, who normally specialise in memory products have already released award winning PSUs over the past few years. Other manufacturers who have also started to produce PSUs include, Arctic Cooling (coolers), Sapphire (graphics card) and Lian-Li (chassis). So it comes as no surprise that Adata is following the rest of the pack.

I'm not sure if you are aware, but a lot of branded power supplies on the market are produced by only a handful of OEM manufacturers. In other words, the branded power supply that you currently have in your system, may not actually be made by that brand themselves. Instead, most PSU companies generally use an OEM power supply that matches their requirements, and then rebrand it as their own. This quite the norm, and helps to reduce production costs. In fact, a majority of PSU on the market ... I'd say 70% of all PSUs, are probably be made one of only a few OEM manufacturers, such as FSP Group, Seven Team or Delta Electronics. These are just a few from the top of my head.

So how will Adata's power supplies compare against other brands on the market? Will it be a hit or a miss? If their power supplies are as good as the quality of their memory products ... then I have no doubt in my mind that it will be a success.

In this review, we'll be taking a look at the Adata HM 850W power supply. It has a powerful +12V single rail @ 70A and offers a maximum power output of 850W. It features a large 140mm "intelligent" dual ball bearing LED fan with tri-colors, that indicates the current load of the the power supply (green for low load; blue for normal load; red for full load). The Adata HM 850W, like many higher-end power supplies is made with high quality Japanese solid capacitors that gives it extra stability and longevity. It's also nVIDIA SLI ready and certified 80Plus Bronze, with minimum power efficiency rating of 82% and reaching up to 85% at typical loads.

Other features include the modular cable management system, which I think is great. And I have to say, nine times out of ten, I would prefer to choose a power supply that has this feature. One of the main reasons for this include, the total freedom of having to use only the cables which required to get the system up and running. Less cables means more room inside the chassis, and therefore more air-flow. The other interesting feature of the Adata HM 850W, is the scratch resistant paint. I'm not sure if it really matters, but I guess it's an added bonus.

It will be interesting to see if the Adata HM 850W is fully 80Plus "Bronze" compliant. Remember a minimum of 80% power efficiency at FULL load is required for 80Plus certification. However, there are varying levels of the 80Plus standard, as listed below (taken from 80Plus.org).

• 80Plus Gold = 87% Power Efficiency
• 80Plus Silver = 85% Power Efficiency
• 80Plus Bronze = 82% Power Efficiency
• 80Plus (Minimum) = 80% Power Efficiency

Thanks to HKSTP - Science Park, we able to use their industrial labs for testing our power supplies. We will be using 3 test modes ... standing gaming (320W), enthusiast gaming (650W) and PSU maximum (850W). It will be interesting to see how well it will under the 3 different load conditions.

OK, now let's move on and  take a closer look at the specifications of the Adata HM 850W power supply ...

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