The top of the cooler has a shroud on the top that just about allows for some channeled airflow. There is also a structure of alternated fin stacks, the M9i and the M9a have a wider air intake area and higher fin density air exhaust area to squeeze out air, heated air is supposed to exit the system faster.
It is small, L87 mm x W102 mm x H124.6 mm including the fan and weights 425 g including the fan too.
Underneath you have the main heatsink and a mini heatsink that sandwiches the base-plate to the heatpipes. The base is smooth and looks machined well, but as we always say, it can always be taken further if required. If you rub thermal paste into the base plate before mounting, this will fill a good number of scratches or imperfections that may cause performance issues.
Cryorig M9i Intel CPU Cooler Review
Package - 8
Performance - 8
Price - 8
Consumer Experience - 7.5
7.9
As a direct replacement for the stock Intel cooler, it's a very good choice. It's surprisingly good at managing temperatures and sound levels at stock settings, and with a CPU that doesn't produce 91W TDP stock, it's going to outperform the stock cooler in every-way.