The best NAS devices of 2023
The best NAS devices of 2023
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Top network-attached storage devices: Synology, QNAP, Asustor, and more
If you work for a large company, you undoubtedly have remote access to a corporate file server. But if you work for a small business or you’re working from home, your file server is likely to be in the cloud powered by the likes of Dropbox, AWS, Google, or Microsoft.
And while Cloud-based servers are great — and can save your neck more than once — cloud services may not always cut it for some folks, especially fully remote workers. Similarly, video editing is a much slower upload and download process on a cloud-based server (even if you have a fast pipe). So, if you’re doing anything with video (or other large files), you’re unlikely to find cloud storage practical except, maybe, for backup.
Also: The best home battery and backup systems (plus how they work)
Cloud servers can also get kind of expensive. Sure, if you’re equipping a NAS, you’re paying for drives, but once you pay out the expense for the NAS and drives, you’re done. You don’t have to pay for it month after month after month. Don’t get me wrong. I strongly recommend cloud storage as one leg in a 3-2-1 backup strategy, but for home and small office use, a NAS can be invaluable.
An NAS is fast, easy to get to, allows you to segment shares for family members or workgroups. Additionally, many NASes offer a wide range of additional applications that turn your box into a local, private, on-premises general-purpose business server. Based on extensive and regular testing, research, and expert opinion, here are ZDNET’s top picks for the best NASes available right now.
- The excellent DSM UI
- Good price per bay
- Excellent apps
- Ample USB ports
- No native 2.5GB Ethernet ports
- No HDMI ports
- No SSD-only models
Synology DiskStation DS1522+ tech specs: Drive bays: 5 | Max capacity: 90TB | Max w/expansion units: 270TB | RAM: 8GB DDR4 (32GB max) | 1GB Ethernet ports: 4 | 10GB Upgrade: with Gen3 x2 upgrade | USB 3.2 ports: 2 | eSATA ports: 2 | M.2 slots: 2
By far, the standout feature of any Synology NAS is the company’s exceptional DiskStation Manager (DSM) software. While the Synology hardware is on-par with many other NAS offerings, it’s when that hardware is combined with the DSM software that Synology’s offerings become best-in-class.
Also: We test the Synology DiskStation DS1817+ RAID
Synology’s DS1522+ ships with built-in enterprise-grade data software and support for dozens of applications, OS and SaaS services. Featuring five hard drive bays by default and expandable up to 15 bays total, the DS1522+ is a compact and economical NAS solution with plenty of room to expand as the user’s data storage needs grow.
Running DiskStation Manager 7.1, DS1522+ comes complete with Synology’s suite of enterprise backup solutions. This includes Active Backup for Business which allows users to backup Windows PCs, VMs, SaaS applications like Microsoft 365 and more. All licenses and subscriptions are free. Active Backup for Business has a number of useful features baked in, including the ability to restore accidentally deleted instantly or destroyed data.
In fact, CEO Victoria Mendoza chose this model for her company, MediaPeanut.”We chose the DS1522+ for its scalability, allowing us to easily expand storage capacity as our needs grow,” she said. “The Synology DiskStation DS1522+ has been an excellent addition to our storage infrastructure. Its robust features and reliability have significantly enhanced our data management capabilities.”
Also included is Synology’s Hyper Backup software which allows you to backup your entire NAS or specific files and folders to most major cloud service providers. This flexible and free backup software gives the user enterprise-grade tools in an easy-to-understand format. This makes setting up a proper 3-2-1 backup environment a breeze, no matter what devices or how many you are responsible for.
“It’s like the cool kid in the block that can handle all sorts of data and has a knack for impressing tech enthusiasts and small businesses alike, says user Kacper Rafalski, demand generation team leader at digital acceleration company, Netguru.
The DS1522+ is also a certified storage devices for VMware and is compatible with most major virtualization platforms, including Windows Server, Microsoft’s Hyper-V and Citrix. In addition to being ideal for standard iSCSI storage, DS1621+ also comes with Synology’s Snapshot Replication software which gives users the ability to Snapshot specific LUNs or shared folders and replicate them to an offsite Synology device.
- HDMI opens lots of media center doors
- Very fast Ethernet
- Enormous app selection
- Some other QNAP machines can be configured with a LOT more RAM
- No M.2 slot
QNAP TS-453D-4G tech specs: Drive bays: 4 | Max capacity: 72TB | RAM: 4GB (up to 8GB) | 2.5GB Ethernet ports: 2 | USB 3.2 ports: 2 | HDMI: HDMI 2.0, real-time transcoding | Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 600 processors | PCIe Gen 3 x4 slots: 1x PCle Gen 2 x 2 slot | M.2 slots: Optional via a PCle adapter
Don’t think of this box as just a NAS. Instead, think of it as a server with RAID and NAS capabilities. This is not just a file server. It could very well be equipped as a small departmental bare-metal VM or container server. And if you use it at home, it can be the hub of your media center.
The selection of applications QNAP offers is nothing short of ridonculous. Not only can you install the usual NAS suspects, but you can run a Chrome browser or even install a full Ubuntu on top of the NAS capabilities.
QNAP QTS environment keeps getting better and better. Plus, this NAS continues a relatively unique QNAP tradition of offering NAS boxes that can serve as complete media center machines, complete with HDMI output. But this can also perform as a pro machine, with the availability of PCIe extensibility
So where does this fit in our overall pantheon of recommendations? Put simply, it’s an appliance server. But not just a file or web server. This can serve up containers and VMs, making it quite possibly the core of a small business or department.
- Ample M.2 slots
- Reasonable RAM capacity
- Built-in HDMI
- ADM software schedule is adequate, but not great
- Customers report slow tech support
Asustor Lockerstor 6 Gen 2 tech specs: Drive bays: 6 | M.2 SSD slots: 4 | Max capacity: 120TB + M.2 capacity | RAM: 8GB | 2.5G Ethernet ports: 2 | USB 3.0 ports: Dual 3.2Gen 2×1 | PCIe Gen 3 x4 slots: Support PCIe 3.0 on M.2 SSD | HDMI: HDMI 2.0b
This Asustor Lockerstor model bridges worlds in a number of ways. First, by providing six hard drive bays as well as support for four M.2 sticks, it’s possible to do some very interesting performance tiering work, both automatically and manually. Second, like the QNAP, the Lockerstor has HDMI output, possibly moving this from the server closet to the family room.
The internal 8GB RAM is respectable, and ZDNET was impressed with the 2.5G Ethernet port. However, be aware that many switches and routers don’t support 2.5GB, so that you might be limited to the performance of a typical 1GB Ethernet feed.
The Lockerstor 6 uses the ADM 4.0 operating system. ADM has more than 200 App Central applications, including various tools, business applications, office applications and digital home entertainment.
- Affordable
- Solid performance
- Streams video without glitches
- It isn’t an external hard drive
- Limited app selection
- No HDMI port
WD My Cloud EX2 Ultra tech specs: Drive bays: 2 | Max capacity: 36TB | RAM: 1GB | 1G Ethernet ports: 1 | USB 3.2 ports: 2
Western Digital has a pretty broad selection of NAS devices, but we realized we hadn’t provided you with a lower-cost entry-level unit. At under $200 (without drives), the EX2 can add considerable value to your network, provide you with some fault tolerance, and help protect your data.
App support wasn’t as comprehensive as some of the other vendors we’re spotlighting here, but if this is your first NAS or you’re just getting started sharing and protecting files on your home network, this is a great go-to starting point.
While we faced some issues with an early WD RAID device during our 2017 testing, all indications are that the company best known for its network drives has overcome any early reliability problems. In fact, the biggest complaint we found among user reviews was that this is not an external hard drive, as the reviewer thought it was, but was instead a full-function NAS. It is, in fact, a very nice full-function NAS and gets our nod as best entry-level NAS.
- Fast
- Good UI
- HDMI port
- A bit more expensive than TerraMaster’s earlier offerings
- Fewer apps than Synology and QNAP
- Some users report reliability issues
TerraMaster F4-423 tech specs: Drive bays: 4 | Max capacity: 80TB | RAM: 4GB | 2.5G Ethernet ports: 2 | USB 3.2 ports: 2 | HDMI port: 1 | M.2 slots: 2
Our experience with TerraMaster is a solid storage space at a budget-friendly price. We found the user interface to be clean and well done and the overall usage experience to be solid. Now, to be clear, this is not a QNAP or Synology, but those devices are considerably more expensive.
This time, TerraMaster is upping its game. Instead of a budget device, this is a performance machine, but at a mid-tier price. It’s got two high-speed Ethernet ports, an HDMI port that lets you turn this into a media center server, and TerraMaster’s clean UI. Overall, a very solid offering for higher-stress loads at an approachable price.
- Could survive a hurricane or fire
- Probably would survive a nuke
- Might survive a two-year old
- Uses Synology’s great UI
- USB port for peripheral connections
- Pretty expensive by comparison
- Somewhat sluggish
- Very heavy
ioSafe 220+ tech Specs: Drive bays: 2 | Max capacity: 32TB | RAM: 2GB DDR4 | 1GB Ethernet ports: 2 | USB 3.2 ports: 1 | USB 2.0 ports: 1 (for peripheral device connections)
Face it. No matter where you work or what you do, one day, the #&@! is going to hit the fan. It doesn’t matter if it’s earthquakes or hurricanes (two things my home office had to live through) or some other form of disaster; it’s likely that your drives will be at risk, at least part of the time.
Now, let’s be clear: We never recommend you store all your data in one place. In fact, the 3-2-1 backup strategy we recommend involves storing three copies of your data, using at least two different types of storage mechanisms and at least one copy of which is stored off-site. But restoring from off-site can be difficult and time-consuming, and cloud backups get very expensive as your data usage goes up. It’s not a bad idea to have a robust storage solution in-house.
That’s where ioSafe comes in. ioSafe builds NAS boxes inside boxes that are, essentially, safes. They’re fire and water-proof. They also weigh a ton and are rock solid, so (especially if you attach them to a floor or closet with an available bracket), you can prevent them from walking away. As a bonus, the ioSafe machines use Synology’s DSM software, making them very easy to use.
I use an ioSafe machine as a second backup to my main Synology box. It comes on once a week, accepts a backup, and then shuts off. That way, even if my network is breached, the ioSafe is powered down except for a few hours each week. My drives are protected physically and (mostly) air-gapped from the internet. You can implement this strategy, as well.
I have a five-bay model, but I’ve recommended a two-bay model here simply because they are quite expensive due to the added protection. Also, expect to pay $50 to $100 for shipping because these machines are very, very heavy.
Also: NAS Wars 2017: We test the ioSafe 1515+ battle-hardened RAID
What is the best network-attached storage?
We still have to give it up to Synology’s NAS offerings. At a competitive price, they offer the very best UI in the business, a wide range of apps, and great features. All the offerings we’re presenting are good, but Synology does it all right.
|
Best network attached storage |
Price |
Bays |
Max capacity |
Ethernet |
|
Synology DiskStation DS1522+ |
$700 |
5 |
90TB |
4 1GB ports |
|
QNAP TS-453D-4G |
$400 |
4 |
72TB |
2 2.5GB ports |
|
ASUSTOR Lockerstor 6 Gen 2 |
$809 |
6 |
120TB |
2 2.5GB ports |
|
WD My Cloud EX2 Ultra |
$200 |
2 |
36TB |
1 1GB port |
|
TerraMaster F4-423 |
$425 |
4 |
80TB |
2 2.5GB ports |
|
ioSafe 220+ |
$930 |
2 |
32TB |
2 1GB ports |
Which is the right NAS for you?
So, how should you choose? In this case, the decision tree is pretty straightforward. You need, of course, to determine your budget and storage needs. Almost all vendors offer models in two bays (room for two drives) and up.
If you need a ton of storage, get more bays. I’m running two eight-bay units, one four-bay unit, and one five-bay unit here at Camp David, but I produce a lot of video and need a lot of media asset storage.
From there, here’s a quick chart to help you make your decision.
|
Choose this best network attached storage… |
If you want… |
|
Synology DiskStation DS1522+ |
The best overall NAS. By combining solid hardware and a best-class DSM software, this unit promises comprehensive storage for small businesses and remote workers alike. |
|
QNAP TS-453D-4G |
The most powerful NAS with 2.5GBe. This isn’t “just a file server.” but can serve up containers and VM to even be the hub of your media center or perform as a pro machine. |
|
ASUSTOR Lockerstor 6 Gen 2 |
The best NAS from a reputable brand. This model also features six hard drive bays, support for four M.2 sticks, and uses the ADM 4.0 operating system. |
|
WD My Cloud EX2 Ultra |
The best value storage with solid performance. This entry-level model will add considerable value to your network. |
|
TerraMaster F4-423 |
The best mid-tier NAS with a nice user interface. Coming at a mid-tier price, it still has two high-speed Ethernet ports, an HDMI port, and accounts for higher stress loads. |
|
ioSafe 220+ |
The most durable storage with water and fireproof capabilities. This model uses Synology’s user-friendly DSM software. |
How did we choose these NAS devices?
From personal expertise (dating all the way back to the dark ages, aka 1980s), vigorous testing, verified customer reviews, and conversations with real-life users, ZDNET selected these NAS models based on user-friendly interface, fast performance, the model’s strengths and weaknesses, and the price.
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User-friendly interface: We selected NAS models that are easy to set up, include software models that promote easy use, or even have sharing and collaboration abilities.
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Fast performance: Unlike some cloud-storage services, NASes streamline uploads and downloads, especially for video-editing tasks.
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Strengths and weaknesses: No model is perfect – we know that. So we included the pros and cons of each model to see which features are most beneficial to your security, setup, and workflow.
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Price: Many shoppers are on a budget, so we always look at a product’s price point and take that into consideration.
Should you build your own NAS service?
There is no law that says you need to buy a pre-built box from a vendor. You can repurpose an old PC or even build a very custom NAS solution to meet your exact needs.
For years, I always built my own NAS boxes, including some that were highly customized. But as the NAS offerings from vendors like Synology, QNAP, and Drobo got better, the need to build my own diminished.
If you’re super-comfortable with specing PC parts and building PCs, you’ll probably want to go it on your own. But if you’re new to PC building, buying an appliance NAS is probably the way to go. For a visual representation, be sure to check out this video and dig through the comments for even more conversation.
What is a RAID?
Most NAS devices (and all the ones we’re recommending here) support RAID. RAID stands for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (and a bunch of variations of that). RAID technology takes advantage of the fact that you have multiple hard disks with multiple spinning platters.
Kacper Rafalski explains. “That’s geek speak for Redundant Array of Independent Disks. Imagine a super team of hard drives, working together to keep your data safe and accessible. It’s kind of like having multiple copies of your favorite book – if one gets lost or damaged, no problem, you’ve got backups!”
One form of RAID allows you to write on one, then the other to increase speed. But the RAID we’re most concerned with here is mirroring.
A well implemented RAID array will allow one drive to completely fail without losing any data. I’ve personally been running RAID devices for more than a decade, have had a bunch of drive failures, and lost not a single byte. In a nutshell, RAID is a good thing.
What’s the difference between network storage and DAS?
NAS is network-attached storage. That’s storage that’s on your network. DAS is directly-attached storage, and that’s storage plugged right into your computer.
If you have more than one computer on your network, work with a group, or otherwise need to share files, a NAS is the way to go. If you’re doing high-performance video production on a single machine, you might want to connect a DAS device right to your machine so there’s no delay.
Rafalski comes through with another analogy that makes things easier to understand. “Think about it like this. DAS is like having a personal bookshelf right next to your desk. Quick and easy to reach, but only for you,” he says. “NAS, on the other hand, is like a library – everyone connected to the network can access it, even remotely. NAS is all about sharing and collaboration, whereas DAS is like a superfast personal hard drive.”
Are there alternative NAS drives worth considering?
The following products are all good. We wouldn’t call the very best (those are above), but they provide options you might want to consider, especially at different price points and bay counts.
Best 2-bay NAS alternative
Synology DiskStation DS220+
This straightforward model is an easy fix when you are looking to get started.
Best diskless NAS alternative
My Cloud Pro Series PR2100
This is a diskless model that comes with a ton of choices so you can find exactly the right fit for your best network attached storage.
Best NAS hotspot alternative
SSK 2TB Portable NAS with Wi-Fi hotspot – Best network attached storage hotspot
This mobile hotspot also serves as the best network attached storage.
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