Overclockers Pulse - Hardware Review Blog » Post Topic » In Win Allure: A feminine touch to computing?

In Win Allure: A feminine touch to computing?

Posted by other_guy | Published in Computer Cases | [-no comments-]

It is obvious that not many computer cases are designed for the ladies. The good folks at In Win happen to have a model considering this audience.

The In Win Allure has soft lines and elegance without removing the subtle features that make life easier for a user. At first glance you will notice the graphics and crystals. Upon deeper inspection. You start to realize. This overall, was a well thought out package. It is a journey into femininity, from opening the box to using it.

When you start to remove items from the box. You are greeted with a (box) booklet containing the usual assortment of manual and mounting screws. This is where you start to notice. This is not a testosterone filled gaming monster. It is as subtle as a cup of fine tea.

The front of the insert box itself is similar to the finish and motif on the case. Minus the silk screening and crystals. instead In Win opted for a subtle embossing, attending the name of the case Allure itself. When opening the booklet up. You are greeted with a bookmark and a few replacement gems. Inside a clear cello package Under that is a gray version of what the design of the case shows. The special touch here. Is a nice empathetic saying embracing the feminine heart. The rest of this package is what you would expect . Screws and a manual. The manual is easy to understand and choosing to use images as instruction. It is a great way to eat up space, but yet makes it easy and understandable. Also inside is a package of screws for various mounting needs. Also you get a power supply cord that is at a right angle. Since this case does not include a power unit, I see this as another perk. The Allure of this case continues. As we move on to the case itself. It is packed well. This reviewer received the Allure in a double packed box. One for shipping rigors. One for display. Your packing may vary depending your point of obtaining it. I did not note any damage or flaws in the inner packing methods. The packaging was another point in In Win’s favor.

Case specs:
Micro ATX(mATX)
Steel Chassis with plastic outer shell
Front ports USB,
Audio, IEEE 1394
6(six) drive bays 2x 5.25” CD/DVD 4x 3.5” [2 can be used for floppy or hard drives]
Case dimensions 14.5″x 7.5″ x 18.5″

The Allure as it is pulled out and seen for the first time. It will show its soft rounded lines. The only note I can make here about any harsh square lines is the top. It is a hard ridged, ribbed surface. This in itself, to me is an unusual feature for a case. It seems the top of this Allure case. Would lend itself to be a surface for sitting things. No coasters needed. As tempting as it would be to sit a beverage there. I assume the surface would be better suited for media discs and the holders for them. Not stretching it, a users keys or cell phone, even a media device like an iPod. This top surface seems to be made durable and adds a nice color balance to the overall pastel look of the case. On a space cramped desk, this is a very nice forethought. Utility and contrast in one spot.

There are many things to like about this case. One of the obvious features is the art work on the front and side panels. This theme is translated to many parts of the overall product. The case itself lends a sparkle effect from the attached crystals. The plastic outer shell is a satin, pearl like finish. This reviewer asked a few others to take a look at the case itself. More then not, it was the art work itself not the crystals or satin finish that caught the eye first. Another subtle thought In Win integrated. Without making the crystals a central part of the Allure. The silk screening and application of the ‘gems’ are effectively pleasing to the eye, without any flaws I can see.

On to the front of the Allure.

Looking at the front of the case. You notice the Allure has no traditional front bezel. It has the normal front inputs. The variety of front outputs should serve the average user well. The drive door is a mechanical actuated design. Which when the lower part of the door is depressed, allows the user access to the ROM drives. The spot to depress is easy to locate by the 6 raised dots. The instruction manual does address how to do this.

With the door open. You are greeted with 2x 5.25” slots for a CD/DVD ROM drives. This should be adequate for most users. The micro ATX cases are not for packing as much as you can fit in. It is for saving a little bit of space. Also there is 2x slots for floppy drives or similar devices. Once the door is closed. It is well tucked away. To remove the knock out plate. The end user must detach the front bezel. It is not difficult to do so and is easy as releasing the clip. The instruction manual does address how to do this.

The rear of the case.

The case sports 4 rear slots and a standard I/O plate for the micro ATX. One thing of note here. The case does have a rear 92MM outbound cooling fan. The grill for this fan is actually nice compared to many I have seen. The combination of the lager fan and open grill should allow a good amount of exhaust. Also located in the rear part of the case. Is two release buttons for the side panel and card slot retainer clip. The instruction manual does address how to do this very well.

The inside of the Allure

Overall this is a well built case. Being a small form factor case might be a limit for some parts. In Win has done some crafty work working around the Micro ATX size limits in cooling and hardware mounting.

As the side panel is opened up. The first thing that is seen. Is the ducting for the CPU cooling. It draws air directly from the holes in the side panel. This should address the cooling requirements for this part of the inside. There is passive inlets on the (front) chassis of the case. this should allow a little bit of fresh air to feed any cards on the motherboard slots you might utilize. Another thing this reviewer noticed. The ducting is in a fixed position. It is only able to swing out to install or service parts contained inside the case. Not allowing for varying positions of the CPU socket. The spare AMD Athlon XP Micro ATX board I had lying around did not line up perfect. Though, it was not so far off that it would effect the cooling. I would of liked to have a slight adjustment of this aspect. A caveat I would like to mention to readers. Larger tower coolers may not fit under the shroud. The Gigabyte 3D Pro cooler I tried to fit under it, did not allow the ducting to close fully. Again I was left wanting some adjustment here. Removing the fold out shroud seems easy enough, via 4 small screws in the rear of the case. Though this negates any benefit, the purpose of the shroud may offer. For stock cooling solutions or near stock height, this will not be an issue I can foresee. There is adjustment here to make the space between the duct and intake of the CPU fan itself less. Courtesy of an adjustable sleeve, which can be slid off to gain a little bit of room if you have the need. This is the only adjustment I can see, besides swinging the shroud assembly out of the way for servicing.

The upper drive bays are of a tooless design. Easy to use and operate. The top two are the 5.25” and the lower are the 3.5” floppy. The nice thing here. Since Micro ATX case space is very limited. The in Win Allure did something very right here. Beginning with the 3.5” bays. There is a space between the back of the case and the drive bay. At first glance. I seen it is going to allow enough space to let a board go under and it is installed. Since the ducting might hinder straight down installation. So inserting a board t an angle is probably what most are going to be doing. This space allows that very well. Something this review always looks for and found it on the Allure. Space to tuck excess wiring out of the way. I think this same space is going to hide the extra wires very nicely.

The swing out 3.5” drive bay. I Like this feature a lot actually. Drives are one of the hardest things to install. Usually the hard drive are installed early. Due to limits of mATX space. The Allure lets you get at this when you want. Not as one of the first steps installing hardware. The locking system and cage they implemented here is solid and works well. I can foresee servicing and upgrading hard drives as a simple process now. Easily getting to the back of the drives for any wires I would need to access. Overall the handling of drive mounting is done very well and has no serious flaws, only perks.

Any user should be more than satisfied with this part of the case package.

Overall this is a great case for it’s price range. While for some, they may be faced with size limits due to the Micro ATX case size. It makes up for it, in the small footprint it is going to take up from features built in. The package overall is well thought out to cover limits of the form factor. The fit and finish of the parts are well made and engineered. The plastic shell surrounding the steel chassis should reduce any excess noise inside the case while offering a solid durable structure. It is not just a good looking case. It is a package into the feminine side of computing. Any girl would be happy to have this sitting on her desk. It is a recommended subtle addition to any desktop.

OCPulse Style Award