OCZ Gladiator MAX CPU Cooler Review

Packaging and Accessories

While the box design of the Gladiator MAX is very similar to the Vendetta 2 we reviewed just awhile ago, it does have a very unique color scheme to help distinguish apart from other OCZ coolers. It seems OCZ has listened to the criticism of the thickness of their packaging material used with the Vendetta 2 and has taken steps to correct this on the Gladiator. All in all this box is made out of cardboard which is still not as thick as some other manufacturers specifications, but is thick enough to quell any fears we have about its integrity.

As with the venerable Vendetta 2 model this packaging scheme comes with loads of information and high quality photos.


When you open the box up and look inside you are once again greeted a sight that is very similar to the Vendetta 2’s. The white medium density foam is form fitted around the heatsink, and as with the previous review noted we like this setup. Hwoever, it does have the exact same weakness as that cooler: the fan is not protected by anything more than a thin plastic film from the great outdoors.


When it comes to the accessories list, we are pleased to say they are of the exact same standard as the OCZ Vendetta 2. The upside to this is all the accessories included are made of top notch quality, but those damn rubber fan mounting grommets are still being used! We really wish OCZ would take a page from Sunbeam and make the fan mountable in a sane manner (i.e. a tried and true wire tension setup).

The full list of accessories OCZ gives you is: a folded manual, a ketchup style “one shot” applicator of TIM, mounting equipment for both AMD and Intel architecture (though it is a push pin style mounting bracket for Intel 775), and four of the above mentioned anti-vibration fan mounting fasteners.