Our goal is to select a NAS unit which enables us to move off of our file server PC to a NAS unit which can support the PCs till will have Smartphones and their Apps up and running. At which point we are going to power down and shut down the nine personal computers and radically reduce the amount of time spent on administering the complex PC network.

Selection Criteria

I was a little surprised when I looked at the websites for PC magazines in how little information they provided for the project. If I had been looking for a laptop, a printer or a camera – I could have found many lists where those technologies were ranked in order for application to this project. There were NAS reviews but just in piles and not ranked therefore I had to create my own criteria and then apply it through individual reviews I found on Amazon (primarily but some other sites as well).

The criteria I laid out as the most important was features, speed and support. By features I mean that the NAS unit takes into consideration that we are talking about PCs and Smartphones and is not a barebones design. I had my file server for 11 years in my current network and only upgraded it once. Therefore I would like to have this NAS unit for 5 or 6 years and this is why a bargain unit will lack features and will force to replace it sooner. It was for this reason why I wasn’t focused on price. If I buy the more expensive unit and it lasts for several more years, then return on the investment will be worth extra expense upfront.

The second feature is speed. I hate waiting for anything. My youngest has learned this from me and waits even less patiently. So as the line in the movie goes – I feel the need for Speed! Now when I said support I mean more than just people said they had good experiences when they needed support. First I meant that they had upgraded from a manufacturers prior NAS unit because they loved it so much. That tells you how much they loved the sum in features and support.

The Short List

I visited a few discussion boards on NAs units and came up with the following three NAs units which are currently considered top of the NAS small business market:

QNAP

Synology NASes

Netgear readyNAS ultra (4-bay)

There was a 4^th model (Thecus) but I had never heard of them before and when I read the reviews of their products their support was rated poorer than the other three makers. I eliminated them as a result. Here is a link to the discussion as to why the 4^th NAS unit was removed from our short list. http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showthread.php?t=3716

The Top Three

Netgear is a major network manufacturer and as a result they have the largest support organization as they have so many hubs, routers and switches in the marketplace. However their unit is slow compared to the other two and has far fewer features. If installing and configuring a NAS unit scares you to the core then could consider the Netgear unit so long as you understood that you will likely be replacing it in a year or two maximum as it’s processor is only a single core verses dual cores with the other top two units.

The point of this project is not to predict a change which is not yet happening but rather to see if Smartphones and the surrounding technologies have matured to the point where they can replace the need to sit in front of a PC in future. The shift to completely mobile computing is going to dramatically change how we communicate and work together in the future. It is for this reason why I rated the Netgear box in 3^rd place as they did not give us any utilization tools or view of their vision for the Smartphone driven future.

Pricing for the Netgear unit along with a photo: Netgear readyNAS

Then There was Two

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I will admit that once I began reading the reviews on Amazon that I began to lean towards the Synology. The complaints about the unit were primarily based on how difficult it is to take the covers off the unit and how long it takes to format the drives. Since I intend to use the unit for years these complaints for were of little concern. If it takes me two days to get the unit online I am perfectly pleased given the features it has. Also when I compared the QNAP website to Synology website I felt like Synology gets it. Meaning that QNAP website was dominated by all the different hardware boxes with a mention of an App for Smartphones. While the Synology website was evenly balanced between hardware and the Apps they have designed to expand the multi media uses of thier NAS units.

The QNAP unit had features, even Apps for Smartphones along with speed going for it just as the Synology unit but had a major knock on the service side. I read where the QNAP folks only provide email support and was not very fast turning even email issues around. I did not find a service knock against the Synology unit. If you would like to see a list of the specific techie components comparison between the two units - check out this link.

Pricing for the QNAP unit along with a photo: QNAP NAS TS-419p+

The One

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An online review of a Synology DS410 from CNET. Though we are really looking at DS-411+, there are no videos of it and therefore I posted the DS-410 as they are very similar. The case that made itself to me beyond all of the postive reviews on Amazon was how Synology is positioning themselves for the future in the NAS space. They aren't just throwing a single App in for the most popular Apple devices (Ipad, Ipod, Iphone etc). Rather Synology has built full blow applications to extend thier NAS products functionality. Not just we do PCs and a couple of other really cool devices but more along the lines that the NAS unit can enable your network to do stuff without PCS, multimedia for your TV, Smartphone access to your files from anywhere etc. As I haven't used thier Apps yet - I can't say that they are terrific. For me it is more of a strategic statememt as to where they are headed that interests me. Finally the Synology's web based access/software was rated as easier to use and more functional by most reviewers. Last word however - it was very close between the two units. Had the luxury of money - I would have loved to test both of these NAS units head up for myself.

Synology's Disk Station Manager version 3.1 --> Streaming videos and tunes to your TV and Stereo.

Synology's Mobility App --> Smartphone & mobility support.

Synology's utility for file manipulation --> File Sharing.

Pricing for the Synology unit along with a photo: Synology Ds-411+

Amazon reviews of Synology's NAS unit: AMAZON.

As I have an eye Dr appointment in a few minutes I will post what I have so far as I don't know how long it will be before I can see to read & type again. The next leg of the project will be to select a place to buy the Synology DS-411+ and to determine which hard drives work with the unit and order the four hard drives which will live inside of the NAS unit.

Peace - Leo