Group test: what's the best NAS device?

5. Iomega StorCenter px6-300d

• Reviewed on: 21 May 12
• RRP: £1300 with six 1TB disks; around £550 diskless
• Rating:

Strong support of enterprise server and virtualisation packages, along with other useful business credentials recommend the Iomega StorCenter px6-300d as a relatively cost-effective storage solution for small business use. Consumer add-ons make the unit of interest to home use too. Its read-write performance is decent, if a little down on write speeds compared to competing NAS units.

4. Netgear ReadyNAS Duo v2

• Reviewed on: 14 December 11
• RRP: £150 inc VAT (diskless)
• Rating:

We were very impressed with the design and performance of this versatile two-bay NAS drive. It has an approachable interface, a key feature, even if storage veterans may have to learn a little Netgearspeak to translate familiar RAID terms. Topping the package is a very competitive price for the diskless unit.

 

3. QNAP TS-419P II

• Reviewed on: 23 May 12
• RRP: £425 inc VAT
• Rating:

QNAP’s TS-419P II is one of its most affordable four-bay NAS drives at around £425 without disks, but it can still form the hub of a versatile and capacious online storage system.

2. Zxyel NSA325

• Reviewed on: 9 February 12
• RRP: £145 inc. VAT
• Rating:

If you need a NAS drive for storing and sharing files on a network, you have two choices: buy a unit prestuffed with hard drives that's simple to set up and use, or get a diskless enclosure to which you must add your own storage. If you're willing to sacrifice the simplicity of a pre-built unit in return for greater configuration control, and demand strong performance and useful functions, you're exactly the type of user Zyxel had in mind when it designed the NSA325.

1. Synology DiskStation DS412+

• Reviewed on: 24 May 12
• RRP: £520 inc VAT
• Rating:

Like QNAP, Synology is a Taiwanese brand that focuses solely in NAS technology – and this specialisation shows. The Synology DiskStation DS412+ is an extremely capable network storage unit that will have a very broad appeal. It also has superb read/write performance. Thanks to its best-in-class interface it can be tackled by non-specialist users, whether applying it into service as a powerful home media server or business storage and virtualisation device.