Chris Raper — Retired North Carolina law enforcement (40+ years) · U.S. Air Force Security Police · NRA-certified Pistol, Rifle & Shotgun Instructor · NC DOJ-certified Concealed Carry Instructor · Founder, Concealed Handgun Carry, Inc. (Elm City, NC, 2006)This guide draws on my own research and what my students bring into the Concealed Handgun Carry class every week. The method line at the end of the article says exactly how this guide was built.
Of all the gripes I hear about quick-access safes, the fingerprint reader tops the list. A student will tell me his safe opens fine at the kitchen table, then won’t take his finger when his hands are wet, greasy or rough from a day’s work. The XEGIS Palm Vein Gun Safe goes after that problem by reading your palm without you touching anything.
My verdict: it’s a low, compact bedside box with three ways in and some useful extras, built around a newer kind of reader that doesn’t have much of a track record yet. It suits one pistol if you keep it charged, practice with it and know where the key is.
FYI, prices and ratings are accurate as of time of writing.
Specs from the manufacturer listing · owner feedback summarized and labelled · hands-on test notes being added · How we review
XEGIS Palm Vein Gun Safe – Best Contactless Biometric Pistol Safe
HIGHLIGHT:
A touch-free palm scanner backed by a keypad and a key, in a box listed at 2.65 inches tall.
OUT OF THE BOX:
XEGIS lists an anti-theft rope, five hex screws, a hex wrench and a charging cable in the box. In the photos you can see the kit laid out: a coiled security cable, two keys, a small driver, a few screws and the charging cord.
The seller backs it with a 2-year warranty and a 30-day return window. Use that window. Charge it, enroll your hand, set your code and work all three ways in during the first week, while you can still send it back.
FRONT PANEL & PALM SCANNER:
Everything is on the front edge. The close-up shows the display on the left, a dark square sensor window in the middle, and a ten-number keypad with an OK button on the right, with the key lock below. In the photos you can see a hand held flat over the sensor with the fingers spread, not touching it.
A palm vein reader looks at the pattern of veins inside your hand. XEGIS claims it opens in 0.1 seconds, works in total darkness, and reads hands that are wet, greasy, sweaty, peeling or covered in lotion. It also says the palm data stays on the device and that it holds up to 50 users. Those are the seller’s claims. The listing is new, so there isn’t much independent information yet to back them up.
The advice I give on fingerprint safes holds here. Enroll each hand several times, at slightly different angles and heights over the sensor. Then practice from the spot you’ll be in at night: sitting on the edge of the bed, half awake, lights off. Fifty slots is more than any family needs. Give them to the adults who should have access and nobody else.
KEYPAD & BACKUP KEY:
When the scanner won’t take your hand, you go to the keypad. Pick a code that isn’t a birthday, a street number or anything a teenager could guess in three tries.
Then the key. In the photos you can see a key going into the lock under the keypad. I tell every class the same thing: the backup key does not live in the drawer with the safe, and it never lives where a child can find it. Put it on your key ring or in a second locked spot.
The listing doesn’t spell out how the key override works if the battery is fully drained. Find that out on day one, not the night you need it.
INSIDE ROOM:
XEGIS gives the outside at 9.64 inches deep, 12.08 inches wide and 2.65 inches tall, and no inside measurements. The seller says one to two pistols and describes a padded interior with built-in LED lighting. In the photos the lid lifts on egg-crate foam lit blue from inside, and a front shot shows the underside of the lid and the foam floor with the key in the lock.
Under three inches on the outside is low. I’d plan on one compact or a slim full-size laid flat, plus a spare magazine, and I’d measure before I believed the word “two.” A red dot or a weapon light adds height fast. Measure your gun at its tallest point, and ask the seller for the inside numbers before you order.
DISPLAY, LIGHT & SILENT MODE:
The close-up of the display shows humidity at 51 percent, the temperature at 76 degrees and a battery icon. XEGIS lists that temperature and humidity readout, along with LED lighting and a silent mode.
Silent mode matters in a bedroom. You don’t want to announce to the house, or to whoever just came into it, that you opened the gun box. The light helps you see what you’re grabbing. The humidity number tells you when a room runs damp. It isn’t a rating for what the box can take.
POWER:
The safe runs on a built-in rechargeable battery, and the seller says one charge lasts up to six months, with a low-battery indicator on the display. Six months is the maker’s figure. How often you open it, how much the light and display run, and heat and cold will all cut into that.
I’d check the battery icon on the first of every month and charge it on a set schedule, say every time the clocks change. A dead safe at 3 a.m. is just a locked box, and the key had better be where you can reach it.
BUILD & STEEL:
The listing calls the body aviation-grade alloy steel. It doesn’t give a gauge, a wall thickness, a latch design or any pry test, and no fire rating is listed. In the photos you can see a raised panel on the lid with the XEGIS badge in the middle, and a hand resting on the lid for scale.
The listing also has a childproof line that mentions compliance with agencies. I can’t tell from the listing what that means or what paperwork stands behind it, so I wouldn’t lean on it. Ask the seller for proof if it matters to you. This box keeps kids and curious hands out, and it slows down a smash-and-grab. That’s the job.
MOUNTING & PLACEMENT:
XEGIS lists it as a tabletop model and says it suits a nightstand, a drawer or a vehicle. The rope, the five hex screws and the hex wrench are in the box, but the listing is vague on whether the base screws down, so check before you plan a bolted install. One photo shows the box sitting on a paper target with a cable attached.
As an old lawman, my first thought on any small box is the burglar who tucks it under his arm and leaves. The rope won’t stop bolt cutters. It will stop the quick grab-and-go, so loop it around something that can’t be lifted off, like a bed frame.
On a nightstand, turn the sensor so your strong hand reaches it from the bed without moving the box. In the photos you can see a hand over the sensor on a nightstand next to a lamp, and the box sitting on a dresser. In a drawer, make sure the lid has room to open. In a vehicle, heat and cold are hard on batteries, and the rules on storing a gun in a car differ from state to state.
If you have children in the house, this part isn’t optional. North Carolina’s safe-storage law (G.S. 14-315.1) can put you in court if a child gets hold of a loaded gun you left within reach and something happens with it. Other states have their own versions.
WHAT TO CHECK BEFORE YOU BUY:
Where it earns its keep: Palm-vein recognition is fast and generally more consistent than fingerprint readers, it opens instantly even in total darkness, and three entry methods (key, keypad, palm) support multiple users.
Where it falls short: The metal feels thin and lightweight for a gun safe, closer to a lockbox than something pry-resistant, the built-in rechargeable battery is not documented in the manual, and the palm-vein reader may be less consistent than hoped on some units.
Who it’s for: Anyone who prioritizes cutting-edge biometric speed and convenience over maximum physical security; skip it if you need pry-resistant, heavy-gauge steel.
WHAT TO WATCH:
Proof is the big one. Few customer reviews so far, no steel gauge, no fire rating and a compliance line nobody explains. After that comes the low interior with no inside numbers, and the open question of how the key works on a dead battery.
WHO SHOULD BUY IT:
Buy it if fingerprint readers have let you down and you want touch-free entry for one pistol at the bedside. At the time of writing it sat in the $100 to $200 range. Skip it if you want a reader with years of buyer feedback behind it, a box with no battery to charge, or any kind of fire protection.
SPECS AT A GLANCE:
| Spec | What XEGIS lists |
|---|---|
| Outside size | 9.64″ deep x 12.08″ wide x 2.65″ high (no interior size listed) |
| Capacity | 1 to 2 pistols |
| Ways in | Palm vein scanner, keypad, key |
| Users | Up to 50 |
| Body | Aviation-grade alloy steel (no gauge listed) |
| Power | Built-in rechargeable battery, up to 6 months per charge (seller claim) |
| Mounting | Tabletop; anti-theft rope, 5 hex screws, hex wrench |
| Extras | LED light, silent mode, temperature and humidity display |
| Color | Charcoal grey |
PROS & CONS:
Pros
- Touch-free palm entry with keypad and key backup
- Rechargeable battery with a low-battery indicator
- LED light, silent mode and a humidity readout
- Room for up to 50 enrolled users
Cons
- Few customer reviews so far to back the seller’s claims
- No steel gauge or fire rating listed
- Low box with no published inside measurements
$139.99 & FREE Returns on Amazon (as of Oct 31, 2026, 12:05 AM EDT – details)
Rather have nothing to charge? Read my StopBox USA review.
XEGIS Palm Vein Gun Safe FAQ
How does the XEGIS palm vein gun safe open?
The seller says you hold your open palm over a contactless sensor and it opens in about 0.1 seconds, with a keypad and a key as backups. Palm data is stored on the device, and up to 50 users can be enrolled.
How long does the XEGIS battery last?
The seller says up to six months on one charge, with a low-battery indicator on the display. Real life will vary with use and temperature, so check the battery icon monthly and charge it on a set schedule.
What size pistol fits in the XEGIS palm vein safe?
The seller says one or two pistols. The outside is listed at 9.64 by 12.08 by 2.65 inches, with no inside size given. Measure your pistol’s length and height, optic or light included, before you buy.
Can I mount the XEGIS safe to a nightstand or drawer?
It’s listed as a tabletop model and comes with an anti-theft rope, five hex screws and a hex wrench. Loop the rope to a fixed object, and check the listing on screw-down mounting before you plan on bolting it.
What if the palm scanner won’t read my hand?
Use the keypad, and if that fails, the key. Re-enroll your palm if reads get spotty, keep the key away from the safe, and learn how the override works with a drained battery.
All product photos on this page were taken by our team.
Chris Raper
Chris Raper is the founder and lead reviewer of Conceal & Carry Network. A retired North Carolina law-enforcement officer with more than 40 years of service and a U.S. Air Force Security Police veteran, he founded Concealed Handgun Carry, Inc. in Elm City, NC in 2006 and has taught the state-approved NC Concealed Handgun Carry class there ever since. He is an NC Department of Justice certified Firearms Safety Instructor, an NRA Pistol, Rifle and Shotgun Instructor, an NRA Range Safety Officer and a graduate of Massad Ayoob's Lethal Force Institute. He reviews the carry guns, holsters, safes and sight tools his students ask about every week.