In-Win GT1 Case Review: Fighting an Uphill Battle
by Dustin Sklavos on March 8, 2013 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- In-Win
- ATX
Conclusion: Cutting the Strangest Corners
I want to be more bullish on the In-Win GT1. I actually quite like In-Win and they have some incredibly unique designs in their stable. Maybe not ones suited to pet owners or people with small children, but any of the enclosures in their Frame line has something to offer. I'm even fond of the BUC; while it's not the sexiest case on the shelf, it does have a great personality.
At $69, the GT1 brings a few things to the table. It's for the most part easy to assemble (excluding cabling issues), and it does come fairly fully-featured. The fan controller is funky, but it's there, and for some users the hotswap bay is going to be a compelling add-on. In-Win also seems to be using a thicker grade of steel than competing cases are; the GX700 practically blows over in a stiff wind by comparison. For an inexpensive case, the GT1 is at least trying to offer something to users that its competitors aren't, and I'm glad build quality didn't completely go by the wayside to hit that price tag.
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The problem is that the GT1 is entering an incredibly competitive market. $69 is too much for the case, full stop. At $59 you could argue for it over the GX700; maybe not successfully, but at least the GT1 could be part of the conversation. And while the case materials don't seem to have been where In-Win made their unkind cuts to hit their price tag, there are other weird corners cut in their stead. The single USB 3.0 port is frustrating, and there's absolutely no reason they couldn't have included a seventh drive tray. Does the case need it? I'd argue it does, if only for the sake of being complete.
Then there's the fan controller, and to me that's pretty much the kiss of death. The fan controller sports a single 3-pin header that's been converted to molex, but the connection sequence being incorrect out of the box is inexcusable. A computer case is a computer case: it should just work. They cheaped out on the fan controller with just two speeds, and then they didn't cover their tracks. Does a $69 case even need one? It's appreciated, but if they were going to bungle it they might as well have not included it in the first place.
I want In-Win to do well like any other manufacturer, because competition is always good for the end user and good ideas come from all corners of the industry. Unfortunately, the In-Win GT1 is a bust, and your money is better spent elsewhere.
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MadMan007 - Friday, March 8, 2013 - link
This thing was beaten with an ugly stick from the future.I'm not against angular and showy designs existing even if they aren't for me, but this one is just too inconsistent as if the design team was actually four different teams, each assigned to one section, whose designs were then mashed together.
CeriseCogburn - Tuesday, March 12, 2013 - link
Awesome case, this is the one to buy.All the stupid little complaints are just that, stupid and little.
If it wasn't all black I'd buy two.
The unnotched spot in the drive bay is for any custom install one needs- perfect.
One usb3 up front is fine, there's 2 usb2 and that's what most people have a ton of, depite the elite smarm face the techies here get when they cry and whine about every dollar, indicating usb3 items are something they have NOT AT ALL.
Great case, great price, I really love the whining about it, it's just such excellent entertainment.
I'd wager 90% of the people here see much uglier when they look in the mirror, compared to looking at the case, and yes that does say something about them, lol
Hypocrite, self flagellating.
AWESOME case - if you need more than 6 internal drive bays, you're a stupid freak.
CeriseCogburn - Tuesday, March 12, 2013 - link
Oh goody, it comes in storm trooper white...http://news.softpedia.com/newsImage/CES-2013-Antec...
BOUGHT !
CeriseCogburn - Thursday, March 14, 2013 - link
Major advantages over the crappy antex gx700:1. Good metal, sturdy
2. Hot swap sata bay on top
3. On off on top not middle
4. Top 5.25 accessible not filled with wiring
5. Good 3.5 drive trays just the right flexibility
6. Clear side window ( for all the crybabies about how a motherboard or video card looks, this HAS to be a 300%+ WIN. (of course whiners are not consistent and are so braindead, they usually don't notice how they completely contradict themselves all the time)
7. Removable mid internal tray for long video cards.
8. wins stock cpu temps
9. better on drive temps
Yes, I don't see really what the problem is other than the lemmings who go along with the reviewer like blind rats.
If any complaint is valid, it's the lack of lots of space for cable hiding - that's it.
This case stomps the stupid gx700 into the ground.
hbycr1 - Saturday, April 11, 2015 - link
i bought this case and there's nothing wrong with it.. Everything fits properly if you buy compatible parts.. I think you're just looking for something to complain about.lwatcdr - Friday, March 8, 2013 - link
Lets face it drives are huge today. Unless your building a NAS you do not need 7 drive bays, Frankly you do not need 6 3.5 drive bays.If you someone was going to build a really hot machine today they would probably go with two SSDs in RAID0 for the System drive and maybe two 4Gb HDDs in RAID 1 for data.
I agree about only one USB 3 is a deal breaker.
If I was going to make a version 2 of this case I would
Drop the hot dock on top.
2 USB3 ports
Room in the top for an H110
140mm exhaust fan
shaolin95 - Friday, March 8, 2013 - link
You dont need 7 drive bays, really? So because YOU dont need it the rest of the world is the same right?Skidmarks - Friday, March 8, 2013 - link
This case is targeted at gamers. Do you know any gamers that need 7 drives?CeriseCogburn - Tuesday, March 12, 2013 - link
I have some nutball stupid friends that drool because they have harddrives - and always have to show how they add them over their home lan, it's like a retarded addiction.One example, like 5.6 terabytes of HD space, with 4.2 terabytes free, and the doof wants more harddrives - people have an insane sort of addiction there - a lot of them do - and the older wackadoos think cookies and internet surfing takes up all their memory (that's harddrive space to them, memory - since it "remembers" stuff when the computer is turned off.
I agree though, whining about 6 internal bays is rather crazy.
Omega215D - Tuesday, March 12, 2013 - link
You really are a retarded fuck.