Pros: Slim and sleek
Very tight tolerances on the case design and build
Tool-less design

Cons: Not cons per se, but warnings
-Requires half-height add in cards
-No packed in instructions on how to use tool-less components
-Tight space and power leads will limit future flexibility, but are sufficient
-Mostly ideal for builds that have specific usage criteria, not as a general use platform for frequent and varied upgrades

Other Thoughts: Based on my observations above, I believe that this case is most suited for specific use rig builds. Size and power limitations and part requirements make it less suitable for general purpose builds that may be adapted in the future to incorporate newer types of components.
I my situation, I had a Sandy Bridge i7, mainboard, RAM, and SSD laying around from a previous build. Rather than sell these parts for a fraction of their worth, I decided to build a home theater PC that could also be used as a test bed for playing around with SteamOS or other some other OS, perhaps. Because this component would be prominently displayed right in my A/V area, the design requirements were that the system had to be low profile, sleek and visually consistent with the other components. Large boxy towers/mid-towers or garish multi-colored units need not apply. After a lot of searching I settled on the In Win line of products, the case in this review, specifically. Before I understood this whole slim case thing I got a half length video card. It was then I learned about half-height cards. Back it went and I ended up getting a Gigabyte GTX 750 Ti half-height card and a half-height Intel Wifi card that also had Blue Tooth for controllers, if needed.
The build went very well once I figured out how all the case components fit together. There are no instructions packed in, so I went to the Newegg page to see the photographs of the case. After that it was easy to figure out, but really, In Win should think about adding in at least a photocopy the basics. Once I got into it, I was really impressed on how tightly everything fit together. And by tight, I mean close tolerances. I guess the process of the "old days" of bending sheet metal and clipping racks in are giving way to more wide spread CAD and manufacturing to get it all within a gnat's eyelash. The low sides make installing the mainboards and parts so much easier. Each main component (Optical drive, HDD, SSD) all have their own bays. But for one of each only. Again, this case it meant for designed use IMO, not as a parts caddie. I wonder if RAID could even be done with this case?
The power supply has ample leads for the limited number of components that can be added in. By virtue of the many different types of mainboard layouts and the rather generic length of the cables, elegant wiring will be tough to achieve. I tried to wrap and wiggle everything, but after awhile, it became an exercise of 'just get it in and don't block a fan'. This also applies to the SATA cables. My SATA ports are almost right next to the drives. Although it would add cost, it might be a nice extra to pack in two half-length cables for those of us who don't have experience, or parts, to do these small build justice. I only installed a temporary DVD to get Windows installed. If I had tried to add a DVD for full time use then my space headaches would have been even worse. If you are going small case, invest up front in short cables!
Once I got everything in, it didn't start. Joy. A quick look around and I noticed that my power plugs were not fully seated. This is partially due to board flex as the case does not provide lugs for all mounting holes in my microATX board. No harm, i seated the plug and it started right up.
Once it started, I installed Windows, and driver utilities, then removed the temporary DVD and sealed it up. What intrigued me was how blissfully quiet the unit is! My mainboard only has a standard Intel cooling fan (good luck getting anything else in there!) The case has one ventilation fan. As I navigated around, the silence was noticeable. I guess my builds that use 4 or 5 fans to control the heat of gaming components has sullied my ears. As I continued to fiddle with the software and listen, I couldn't help but think that this is the closest I would ever get to building a console. The quietness of the system and the performance of the SSD made the boot time and speed of this system almost utility like.
I may never need another slim case. But If I need a larger case, I will certainly keep In Win in mind! For purpose built rigs, this is a very nice case.
Thanks for reading!

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Scott,

Thank you for leaving feedback on our CE685 chassis. We appreciate the very detailed review because it provides us with useful information to improve our products in the future. We will forward this to our R&D team for future product consideration. Thank you for choosing In Win.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: I wanted a low-profile slim case to use for a Gaming/HTPC for the living room. The reviews on all cases of this kind seemed mixed, but this one looked good and had reasonable reviews. I definitely made the right decision.

I really like the tool-free design for the hard drive, SSD, and optical drive, which was really painless (other than cabling, see below). My board is the A68HM-GRENADE, which is actually smaller than the size of board this case will handle, and I was able to use screws on 5 of the 6 screw holes in the board with this case. My RAM with heat spreaders and my stock APU fan fit in the case without issue. Unlike other reviews I read, I had no issue with the lengths of any of the cables with my board or components.

The fan is very quiet, perfect for how I'm using it, the power supply handles my hardware and had the right number of SATA power connectors, and I also love the screw-less cover.

Cons: The only real down side is that within 10 minutes of opening the case and removing the front cover, I accidentally put a box (empty, but large) on it and snapped one of the little tabs that holds the front cover on. Fortunately, I was able to superglue it back on and all seems well, but it was more brittle than I would have anticipated. Be careful with it.

Other Thoughts: Not really a con, but you will need to attach your SATA and power cables to the hard drive before installing, because it's otherwise too cramped to get in there and attach it. Just be aware of that; I had to pull everything out again to attach it. Probably best to hook up your SSD before putting it in as well, and that whole corner of the case is stuffed full of cabling to keep it out of the way.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Mark,

Thank you for leaving feedback on our CE685 chassis. We are glad to hear that the case met expectations and was easy to build in for the most part. It's always nice to hear from another satisfied customer. Thank you for choosing In Win.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: Nice case, like the removable drive enclosure.

Cons: Two of the mounts for mini-ATX boards missing. Had one out of 7 with mis-marked plugs - difficult to get the computer running when the power switch and power LED plugs are switched.

CPU power cable could be longer. I had to rout it diagonally across the motherboard and cable tie it to the cooling fan for support because it wasn't long enough to go around the side.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello John,

Thank you for leaving feedback on our CE685 chassis, we are glad to see that you still liked building out of the case despite missing some parts. Please email our Customer Service department: customerservice@in-win.com and we will try and replace some of the missing parts. Thank you for choosing In Win.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: Very Attractive
Well Constructed
Very nice and truly tool-less design that doesn't make you run for a bag of screws to actually secure your components (besides the main board of course)
It is a simple, good priced, well made chassis, except for the ONE really big complaint (for me at least, along with a critique on In-Win customer service)

Cons: Plainly...it's the external 3.5" bay, which is clearly (internally in the chassis) marked as a media reader bay (which is exactly what most people will want to populate in that area as the days of floppy drives are long gone).

Unfortunately...although it is a standard 3.5" wide, it is FAR from a standard depth. I am the systems and server builder for the MSP I work for. I am constantly testing new configurations and builds with various components (including new and different chassis designs). As such, I have a wide variety of components at my disposal, including MANY brands and types of 3.5" card readers.

With that said...not a single on will fit in the allotted space. Removing the fan (the one and only fan) is not an option because the screw-less design on the bay puts a "backstop" on the bay before reaching the fan itself. Removing the fan does not remove the "backstop design" of the screw-less rails.

I took the time to compose a well written and very friendly email to In-Win and made a simple inquiry about what brand and/or model of card reader that they tested with their design and where might I obtain a reader that actually fits the chassis.

This is their response (copied and pasted without any edits or omissions):

"Dear Jason,

Appreciate your thoroughly explanation of your information and concerns.

The 3.5” card reader bay of CE685 is standard, not the proprietary according from the production team.

I am very sorry that we do not have the specific model or brand to suggest you.

Thank you so much.

Best Regards,
In-Win Customer Service
customerservice@in-win.com"

This isn't the first underwhelming encounter I've had with In-Win customer service (I've made similar inquires about quirky designs in the past that have stumped me (unavailable to purchase accessories, etc..) only to get a similar lack of actual customer service with a canned response that is simply NOT TRUE.

I replied back to this email pointing out the fact that their statement is not true and if they actually took the time to simply look at the chassis with their own eyes and hands and took the 5 minutes it would take to REPLICATE the concern, they would see my complaint is, in fact, true and real.

I simply wanted to know what brand and/or model of card ready they intended to fit in this allowed space. Their response was basically "I have no idea".

Very sad indeed.

Other Thoughts: If you're in the market for a chassis of this design and DO NOT need the external 3.5" bay for ANYTHING AT ALL, then this is a great chassis.

Until I'm shown a brand make/model of card reader that can be used with this chassis that DOES NOT require you to modify the chassis or card reader in anyway, then I hold firm in my statement that this is a flawed design and what is the point of putting an external 3.5" bay opening if it is 100% useless?

Pros: Slim, Looks and Feels solid.

Cons: Front power switch doesn't turn power on with a normal finger push. I always have to press very hard to turn my PC on but can't continue to apply the same pressure to turn it on because this causes my finger to hurt. I don't think it was intentionally designed to work this way BUT would like to hear from IN WIN to see if they have a solution for this. By the way, when I remove the from panel and I push the power switch mounted to the frame it work great with minimal pressure. I wish I could advance the switch position slightly forward so it can make good contact with panel's switch cover.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Fadhl,

Thank you for your valuable feedback. Please contact our customer service department about potentially replacing the suggested part at customerservice@in-win.com. Thank you for choosing In Win.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: Looks nice
Easy to work with

Cons: Poor airflow
CPU temp hit 80+ Celsius with fan jumping to 100% a few minutes after shutting the case door.

Other Thoughts: Probably my 95 watt AMD 8 core CPU just dumps too much heat into the case, but I've got it in another SFF tower case and that case manages just fine. Just doesn't look as nice as this case, which is why I gave this one a try. Returned to newegg today.

Case would probably be fine if it had some intake holes above the cpu socket, but as it stands it didn't work for me.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Lawrence,

Thank you for leaving feedback on our CE685 chassis. We are sorry to read that you didn't have a great experience, and we will forward your comments to our R&D department to better improve our future products.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: its cute. the build was easy for a non novice, it takes some tinkering to figure out the drive bays otherwise easy

Cons: where do i start. the case fan is in such a bad spot. there is a useless 3.5" bay with the only case fan, right behind it, so you can't use it without deleting the only fan not attached to the cpu. this thing gets really hot, even just downloading or streaming and there is little that can be done about it. I tried 3 different board/cup configurations, and it just could not function with the top on.

Other Thoughts: I tried an AM3, a FN2+ and even a 775, thinking maybe its low power may make this thing work and all overheated. OF NOTE, none of these were overclocked, all had factory heatsinks and fans, since most have clearance issues. maybe someone else has suggestions i have not tried

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Rita,

We apologize for you experience with our CE685 chassis. If you would like assistance or help with the chassis, please give us a call at (909) 348-0588 or email us at customerservice@in-win.com. You may also contact us through any of our social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter or Instagram).

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: It's well built.

Cons: Purchased to build a replacement for a CNC machine. There are 2 major shortcomings in this case and they wouldn't be a bother in an MPC application. First, you can't use an IDE hard drive in this case. Period. No clearance for the power connector on an IDE hard drive. Second, the stated internal 3½" drive bay is unusable by... Well, just about anything. Any device longer than 3" will not fit there. In my applications I need room for an IDE hard drive and a floppy drive. Not gonna happen in this case. Yeah, I know. You aren't going to have those problems.

Other Thoughts: Can't use IDE hard drive or Floppy drive

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Carl,

We are sorry to read that you are displeased with our CE685 chassis. We try our best to include all product information in the product description. In the future, if you have any questions about any of our products, you are more than welcome to contact us through any of our social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) or call us at (909) 348-0588. We will forward your critiques to our R&D department to improve our future products.

Best regards,

In Win Development Inc.

Pros: Slim, nice-looking, easy to work on.

Cons: Power-source DOA and slim... can be hard to find replacement.
Also, the case, while slim, is LONG, so it still can be hard to fit into your entertainment center.

Other Thoughts: Just wish it came with instruction manual and a decent power source.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Edward,

In-Win Power Supply carries 3 years warranty. Please contact us at rma@in-win.com for replacement. Thank you very much.

Best Regards,
Customer Service
In-Win Development

Pros: The case is very well built and a great size for a mini ITX motherboard. The 5.25" bay is completely screw-less as is the HDD bay below. Nice gap for a filter on the main case fan.

Cons: I am building a HTPC using a Gigabyte GA-F2A88XN motherboard. The front panel wires are not long enough to reach the USB and front panel connectors on the motherboard - in fact the power cable just barely makes the connection. The MB has it's connections on the opposite side from the case power supply. These cables need to be about 6" longer.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello Gegjr,

Thank you for your valuable opinion on our CE685. We will forward it to our R&D and Marketing department for improvement.

Best Regards,
Customer Service
In-Win Development