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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.
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Thanks for the message. You’re right that the DS220+ is being phased out in many regions, and its direct replacements — the DS223, DS224+, and DS225+ — have caused some confusion.
Here’s the short version:
• The DS223 is entry-level and uses an ARM processor, so it’s fine for backups and light file sharing but weak for media or Plex.
• The DS224+ and DS225+ are the true successors to the DS220+. Both use Intel CPUs and support DSM 7.3, but the DS225+ has one 2.5GbE port instead of two 1GbE ports on the DS224+. Otherwise, they are identical in performance.
• You can still use these for media, photo management, and personal backups — just avoid updating to DSM 7.3 if you plan to use Plex, because it removes the built-in hardware transcoding engine. If you do update, there’s a workaround using a command line script to reinstall the transcoder.
If you can find the DS224+ or DS225+ at a good price locally, either will give you the same experience and features as the DS220+.