Hello,

I'm looking for a budget 2-bay (Raid 1 for failure backup) NAS. Primarily for phone photo/video storage, and easy phone sync/viewing as an alternative to a Google Photos subscription. Prioritizing an "out-of-the-box" setup due to limited time.

I'm aware of the newer UGREEN DH2300, but I'm open to older entry models from the big names (Synology DS223j? QNAP TS-233? Others?).

What are your recommendations on the offerings in this price bracket? I'm happy to spend a bit more if a feature (2.5GbE?) would be worth it for my use case or future proofing.

How concerned should I be about long-term updates for older entry devices allowing safe continued use?

Does scheduled snapshots and an external USB backup drive offer robust protection against ransomware threats?

Do any of the main brands have a predictable release cycle I should consider, and given that Black Friday is soon do they typically see price reductions that would make waiting worthwhile?

Thank you!

Hey there Robbie & Eddie, I hope you guys are both doing well.
I’m considering upgrading to bigger drives (no larger than 18TB disks) in my QNAP TVS-872X so I have a quick question.
For 24/7 operation running backups, document access and occasionally serving media would it be best to go with enterprise class drives e.g. WD Gold/Seagate Exos or would it be best to stick with NAS specific drives like WD Red/Pro or Seagate Ironwolf/Pro?
Thank you

hi there, was looking for a nas storage for watching movies etc

Good afternoon, I’m planning to replace a 4 TB drive with a 12 TB drive in my DS920 and would like to back up my files first, as you suggested.

I’m considering the Seagate Expansion Desktop 20 TB, but I’d appreciate your thoughts on this model versus the WD 20 TB Elements Desktop External Hard Drive or any other drive you’d recommend in a similar price range.

My main use for my NAS is as a Plex server for personal movie storage shared with my family.
Thanks in advance for your advice.

Love your video and I now have a Terramaster F8 SSD plus that I want to use 100% as a Plex media server. During set up it seems to default to BTRFS. I also read that this does not play well with RAID 5 or 6. Which file system should be used and which raid for a plex media server. I know NAS is not back up so have have copies of video files elsewhere. Just need to know which file system and RAID would be most reliable for a Plex only use.

Thanks soooo much

I am looking for a very quiet home linux server (bit more than a NAS, could be a web server for outer world, running something like Piwigo etc., also ssh server etc. -- probably on the higher end wrt. CPU power

For the moment I am eyeing fanless mini pcs with N305 / N355 processor, by CWWK, SJRC, AdvanElink... typically on Amazon, I even noticed a good local offer on an MSI Cubi 5 12M-001BEU with i7- 1255U CPU but it is not fanless unfortunately.

I travel occasionally to other EU countries, could get a delivery to a hotel if planned in advance.

Hi. I cant find ds220+ here in our country, do you have an advice which newer model I could purchase? I have read about 223 224 225 and they have lots of complaints. What I want is basic but powerful in media and photos aside from being a back up server for personal use. Like pictures and video.

Thank you.

Hi,
I'm looking to get a NAS or equivalent type of solution for my organisation. We are 3 video editors working in one space and we need alot of space that is fast enough to edit off of as well as redundancy to make sure we don't lose any material. We also have some colleagues in other countries who we would like to give some access to be able to access footage on the drive or maybe even copy footage onto it if possible.
I would like to get your expert advice and if possible even have a meeting discussion to discuss possibilities. Would be open to do it as a consultancy that we would pay for. Reach me on my email to discuss further.

Regards,

Presently use Twonkey to serve video and sickbeard/ sabnzb as will as main video, photo, music and file repository. Is backed up regularly to external hdds.

Would like to explore home automation on a more modern device.

We require a low-cost 1-bay NAS with factory-installed 2TB NAS-grade HDD (WD Red / IronWolf equivalent), branded “TesseractUK”, DDP India, target landed price ₹6,000–₹7,000/unit. Initial order 500 units (scalable to 2,000+). Request 2 engineering samples, 48–72h burn-in with SMART logs, per-unit test reports, unique serial numbers, retail packaging and printed quick-start. Minimum specs: 1×GbE, 1–2GB RAM, USB3, SATA III bay, external 12V PSU. Firmware: SMB/NFS, DLNA, mobile auto-backup, OTA updates, English UI and documentation. Provide sample & MOQ pricing (500/1000), sample lead time, production lead time, certifications (RoHS/CE, support BIS), tooling/NRE, payment terms, warranty/RMA policy, and IP/firmware ownership. Include DDP, EXW/FOB quotes, sample price and MOQ tiers. Reply within 5 business days.!