In Win Ammo 2.5-inch HDD RFID Enclosure

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

In Win has definitely developed a unique product that will likely appeal to a many first-person shooter gamers. As pictured above, the Ammo enclosure was closely modeled after the ammunition cartridge of an AR-15. Even the groves down the cartridge are in similar positions. Even one end of the Ammo enclosure is angled in order to give the illusion that the clip is curved when, in fact, it is not.

Besides having a uniquely themed product with a practical purpose, In Win also brought data security to the table. This will no doubt be an important feature to this market as most anyone would rather know their data is secure in case the enclosure was lost or stolen. Without an included RFID tag, the drive is locked down and does not even show up in Windows until the enclosure is unlocked.

While the RFID Encryption feature was disabled while we used an SSD, we were able to use the SSD in the Ammo enclosure as a standard external drive. Since In Win does not indicate an SSD is compatible, we assume this is intended behavior. Once we used a 2.5″ hard disk drive, or HDD, the Ammo’s RFID technology was automatically enabled and we were able to follow the included instructions to enable the drive.

We did have a few issues that seemed to be temporary around unlocking the drive and the drive being visible in Windows. When we encountered this issue, we were able to correct it by disconnecting and reconnecting the Ammo to the PC. The only other concern we have is that the device only supports USB 2.0. With eSATA becoming more popular and USB 3.0 now available on some motherboards, this enclosure will not have as much appeal to some since it is limited to just USB 2.0 transfer speeds.

With the RFID Encryption feature, there is a bit of a price premium for the In Win Ammo enclosure. At the time of publication, the In Win Ammo could be picked up for $26.99. Given that an 80GB HDD can be had for $45, consumers can have a secure USB 2.0 external hard drive for around $75. While this price is significantly higher than other 80GB external hard drives, the Ammo’s theme and data security feature will likely appeal to many consumers.

Legit Bottom Line: From the gun enthusiast to the FPS Gamer, the In Win Ammo will have a lot of appeal. Add on the fact that you get hardware-level RFID encryption for data security and In Win will likely have a winner on its hands so long as USB 2.0 transfer speeds meet your needs.