Good for backups. Geared for HD and limited 4K multimedia. Many apps available but the 512mb memory will limited performance.
PROS
- Lowest Cost
- Gigabit Ethernet Port
- Holds up to 32TB of storage
- Limited Transcoding
CONS
- Limited Memory (512MB)
- Memory Not Upgradable
- Limited Software Transcoding
Good for backups. Geared for HD and some 4K multimedia. Many apps available but limited performance for multiple user environment.
PROS
- Low Cost
- Gigabit Ethernet Port
- Holds up to 24TB of storage
- Limited Transcoding
CONS
- Memory Not Upgradable
- Limited Software Transcoding
Great for backups, HD and some 4K multimedia, and Hot-swap drive replacement and backup functions (copy button). Compared to the DS218play it has increased memory and copy button.
PROS
- Lower Cost
- Gigabit Ethernet Port
- Holds up to 24TB of storage
- Limited Transcoding
CONS
- Memory Not Upgradable
- Limited Software Transcoding
Great for all multimedia (HD, 4K) and easy backup functions (copy button) and is upgradable RAM, Hot-swap drives. The most powerful synology (2 bay) NAS in 2020.
PROS
- Works Great for 4K Transcoding
- Two Gigabit Ethernet Ports
- Holds up to 32TB of storage
- Powerful hardware
- Upgradable Memory
CONS
- No M.2 slots (SSD caching)
Included Synology Features
Video Station
Video Station (DS Video app) helps you manage all the movies, TV shows, and home videos on your Synology NAS. Moreover, it can stream videos to various devices — computers, smartphones, media players, and TVs — to provide you with non-stop, fun watching experience.
Audio Station
With Audio Station and its mobile app DS audio, you can enjoy high-quality playback, listen to radios, manage your music collection, create personal playlist, and share with friends anywhere.
Moments
Users can instantly upload photos to their private storage and let auto-sort take care of the rest. Moments is the brand new photo solution for personal and home use.
PLEX Media Server
Enjoy Live TV & DVR, a growing catalog of great web shows, news, and podcasts. It's finally possible to enjoy all the media you love in a single app, on any device, no matter where you are. With the Plex server you can stream your video, music, and photo collections any time, anywhere, to whatever you want.
Synology Drive
Online File Syncing, Backup and File Sharing. Across multiple devices mobile phones, laptops, desktops and even other synology nas devices.
Desktop Backup
Simplified backup solution for your Mac, PC, and mobile devices.
Surveillance Station
Protect your business, home, and other environments with reliable, intuitive Surveillance Station, delivering intelligent monitoring and video management tools to safeguard your valuable assets.
File Server / Web Server
Powerful built-in file management and sharing services.
Snapshot Replication
Schedulable and instantaneous data protection for shared folders and iSCSI LUNs for disaster prevention.
Security
Comprehensive built-in security tools are constantly updated to protect your devices against evolving threats.
Do I need an expensive NAS to use Plex?
You don’t need an expensive NAS unless you need to transcode videos for other devices. Transcoding takes a lot of processing power. If you plan on streaming to DVD/Bluray players, roku, chromecast or mobile phones you will probably need to be able to transcode your videos. We recommend getting the DS220+
What is transcoding?
Transcoding is converting a video/movie into a different format, bitrate or quality. Some devices may not have the processing power to play your video file without transcoding. If you want to make sure the majority of your devices will work we recommend the DS220+. The DS220+ has a powerful processor and hardware transcoding to tackle the hard job of transcoding.
Device that may need transcoding.
- iPad or Android Tablet
- iPhone or Android Smartphone
- Smart TV or DLNA supported monitor
- DVD/Bluray players
- Roku, Chromecast
- DLNA Devices
- DLNA Sound systems such as Bose, Sonos and Sony.
- PS4, Xbox One and Nvidia Shield
Transcoding can be a benefit for those with limited internet bandwidth, download limits or low powered devices.
| NAS Device | Software Transcoding | Hardware – Accelerated Transcoding | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SD 480p / 576p | HD 720p | HD 1080p | 4K SDR 2160p | 4K UHD HDR 2160p | SD 480p / 576p | HD 720p | HD 1080p | H.264 * 2160p | HEVC SDR 2160p | HEVC UHD 2160p | |
DS220j | YES | YES | SOME | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
DS218play | YES | YES | SOME | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
DS218 | YES | YES | SOME | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
DS220+ | YES | YES | SOME | NO | NO | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES |
Our Pick
All of these NAS do a great job as a file server or backup device but if you want a NAS enclosure that can transcode and be upgraded in the future the DS220+ is the clear winner.
Visit amazon to see the latest price and reviews.
| DS220j | DS218play | DS218 | DS220+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
CPU Model | Realtek RTD1296 | Realtek RTD1296 | Realtek RTD1296 | Intel Celeron J4025 |
CPU Architecture | 64-bit | 64-bit | 64-bit | 64-bit |
CPU Frequency | Quad Core 1.4 GHz | Quad Core 1.4 GHz | Quad Core 1.4 GHz | 2-core 2.0 (base) / 2.9 (burst) GHz |
System Memory | 512 MB DDR4 non-ECC | 1 GB DDR4 non-ECC | 2 GB DDR4 non-ECC | 2 GB DDR4 non-ECC – upgradable (6Gb Total) |
Network interface | 1 x Gigabit Ethernet | 1 x Gigabit Ethernet | 1 x Gigabit Ethernet | 2 x Gigabit Ethernet Link Aggregation / Failover |
Internal File System | EXT4 | EXT4 | Btrfs, EXT4 | Btrfs, EXT4 |
Internal drive bays | Two (maximum 16TB each bay) 3.5-inch HDD 2.5-inch HDD/SSD (via optional mount) 32TB of total storage | Two (maximum 12TB each bay) 3.5-inch HDD 2.5-inch HDD/SSD (via optional mount) 24TB of total storage | Two (maximum 12TB each bay) 3.5-inch HDD 2.5-inch HDD/SSD (via optional mount) 24TB of total storage | Two (maximum 16TB each bay) 3.5-inch HDD 2.5-inch HDD/SSD 32TB of total storage |
Hardware Encryption Engine | Yes | Yes | Yes | AES-NI |
Hardware Transcoding | No | No | No | Yes |
Transcoding Engine | 10-bit H.265 4K Ultra HD or single channel full HD video transcoding | 10-bit H.265 4K Ultra HD or single channel full HD video transcoding | 10-bit H.265 (HEVC), MPEG-4 Part 2, MPEG-2, VC-1; maximum resolution: 4K (4096 x 2160); maximum frame rate per second (FPS): 60 | H.264 (AVC), H.265 (HEVC), MPEG-2 and VC-1; maximum resolution: 4K (4096 x 2160); maximum frame rate per second (FPS): 30 |
