Aoostar WTR Max strange practices

[Enquiries]

Hi! I have followed your reviews of the WTR Max from Aoostar with great interest. Seems to be a good fit for my needs. However, Aoostar seem to never have it in stock, only occassionally offering pre-sales of certain configurations. I am curious why this may be the case. Sales tactics? Lack of parts?

[ed]

From what I’ve seen and heard directly from other users and distributors, it looks like a mix of factors:
1. Limited Production Runs – AOOSTAR doesn’t manufacture in large batches like Synology or QNAP. They tend to release a limited quantity, wait for feedback, and then refine or relaunch. This keeps costs down but makes availability very unpredictable.
2. Pre-sale Driven Model – They often use pre-orders almost like a Kickstarter system. It allows them to gauge interest, secure components, and then build just enough units. That’s why you’ll see certain configurations appear briefly for pre-sale, then vanish for weeks.
3. Parts Availability – Especially with their higher-end builds (like models including i5/i7 CPUs and 10GbE), they may be struggling with consistent access to CPUs, SSDs, or specific chassis components. These smaller brands are typically at the back of the supply chain queue compared to major OEMs.
4. Sales Tactics? Possibly – There’s also an element of manufactured scarcity here. Keeping stock low may help generate buzz and urgency. But in AOOSTAR’s case, I believe it’s mostly about capacity limitations rather than strategy.

If you’re considering the WTR Max and spot a configuration that fits, it’s usually worth grabbing during one of those windows. Alternatively, if you want a similar spec and more consistent availability, I can suggest some comparable options depending on how you plan to use it (e.g. 30TB of storage, home server workloads, Docker, Plex, etc.).