Home NAS for Backups and Media

[Enquiries]

Hi,
I'm looking to find a NAS that serves the following use case best:
1. My family has multiple Macs at home. I want to run Time Machine Backups via WiFi. So that it just works and regulary makes backups without anyone having to worry about it at any time.
2. I want to put all my media files on the NAS, i.e. Movies (different formats incl. mkv containers), GoPro clips, iPhoto Library etc. to free up space on my MacBook but keep them easily available.
3. All those media files and time machine backups have to survive an HDD failure (RAID5 or similar?)
4. It has to be easy and comfortable to see all these media files on the TV, either via direct HDMI output from the NAS or via streaming. Client for e.g. Plex most probably would be an Apple TV or Fire TV stick or sth similar. Possible but annoying alternative would be VLC on an iPad connected to the TV via HDMI.

Ideally all that is easy/streamlined to set up and reliable to run. Not keen on new brands. Hence, 925+ or TS-464? Thanks, D

[ed]

Thanks for the message. Based on what you’ve described, both the Synology DS925+ and the QNAP TS-464 will handle your needs very well, but they differ in how “hands-on” you want the setup and daily management to be.

If your priority is simplicity, reliability, and seamless integration with macOS, the Synology DS925+ is the better fit. DSM (Synology’s operating system) is easily the most user-friendly NAS platform available and handles Time Machine backups automatically over WiFi. It also includes Synology Photos for managing GoPro and iPhone libraries, and RAID 5 (or SHR) protects against a single drive failure without much manual setup.

If you prefer a bit more flexibility and want HDMI output and direct media playback, the QNAP TS-464 has the edge. It can run Plex directly through the HDMI port or stream to your Apple TV or Fire TV. It’s slightly more technical to configure but offers faster expansion options, better hardware for Plex (Intel N5095 with Quick Sync), and room for NVMe SSD caching.

For your plan of 4 × 4TB drives, RAID 5 is the right balance between capacity and safety. Use NAS-rated drives such as WD Red Plus or Seagate IronWolf.

In short:
• Go for the Synology DS925+ if you want everything to “just work” for family backups and photo storage.
• Choose the QNAP TS-464 if you want direct HDMI playback, more control, and stronger Plex performance.