Introduction

I would like to thank iTwin for supplying the review sample.

iTwin is a new start-up which made some waves with their USB 2.0 dongle which allows to create a secure connection between two system across the Internet.

The company CEO describes the inception and reason for the iTwin's existence:

"I wanted to check on some personal investments and finances that were stored on my computer at home. I was at the office and I realized that there was a need for a simple and secure remote file access solution. The secure stuff was way too complicated to configure, and the simple stuff was way too insecure. That led to the invention of iTwin."

So today we have the pleasure to actually look at one of the iTwin devices. It is available in lime green or gunmetal gray - we received the green one for this review. Having worked at a software firm which produces encryption software for quite some time, it will be interesting to see how the iTwin performs and how well the user interaction works.

Specifications

• Encryption: AES-256
• Weight: 50g
• Width: 2.1 cm
• Thickness: 0.8cm
• Height: 9.0cm
• Operating temperature: 32° to 158° F (0° to 70° C)
• Relative humidity: 5% to 95% non condensing
• Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)
• Compatibility: XP, Vista, Windows 7

Packaging

The iTwin ships in a compact black cardboard package. An image of the device has been placed on the front, with the company logo on the very top. As iTwin is currently only offering a single product, the company name and that of the device are identical. The rear goes into some detail about what the device is intended for and how it should work. As you can see, it will work with Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7. It would have been great to see Mac OSX compatibility on top of that.


The iTwin is embedded in foam, and a simple manual shows you how to set up the unit so that both ends work well and then allow you to establish a connection across the Internet.