1. Do ordinary people need NAS?
I often see friends asking in the comment area of NAS articles, "Do ordinary people really need NAS?" I have been tossing NAS for more than five or six years, and I have some of my own opinions and experiences on this topic to share with you.
To put it simply, a NAS is a network storage device, and we can think of it as a simple network server that provides file management
Online services such as audio-visual entertainment, and collaborative office can be summarized in three words: network, management, and service.
In the early days, NAS was mainly used in enterprise data management, not to mention the use of NAS, and most people have never heard of the term NAS. Later, with the advancement of technology and the increasing demand of gamers, home NAS, which focuses on daily needs such as file management, audio-visual entertainment, and online office, has been favored by ordinary users such as digital gamers and audio-visual entertainment.
The application scenarios of home NAS are relatively simple, through network management files, NAS as the core to build a home audio and video system, etc., I can store photos and videos from my computer and mobile phone to the NAS, share a good life with friends and relatives anytime, anywhere, and download movies and watch them online 24/7 without turning on the computer.
If you have these needs or are very interested in these features, then NAS is the right choice for you.
Part 2: What are the advantages of NAS compared with network disks and mobile hard disks?
Speaking of which, some friends may have such doubts: in terms of file storage and carrying, mobile hard disk is more convenient than NAS, and in terms of network sharing, network disk is easier to use than NAS. At first glance, this may seem true, but despite the rich functions and expansion of NAS, file management alone is the most practical and reliable for NAS!
● Mobile hard disk, small capacity, slow speed, large size, you have to carry a "brick" with you on a business trip, think about it is a burden. After a long time, you have to buy another piece after it is full, and day after day, the files are scattered on different devices, and it is troublesome to find.
● Although the network disk also shares files through the network, data security is the biggest problem, you know. Moreover, basically all network disks need to be openedVIP to enjoy high-speed download services, otherwise they can only download at a turtle speed of 100KB/s, which is too embarrassing.
NAS is a simple network server built locally, the significance is to store the files in the mobile phone, computer, and mobile hard disk in a unified manner, the hard disk capacity is large, the expansion is also simple, and the installation of several large-capacity hard disks can basically be done once and for all; the user himself has the greatest management authority, there is no limit to the upload and download speed, and the private goods stored in the NAS will not "disappear suddenly" for no reason. NAS basically solves all the drawbacks of mobile hard disks and network disks, except for the need to invest a little money in the early stage, there is nothing else "wrong".
3. QNAP NAS Recommendation
With more than 20 years of experience in the NAS field, QNAP has been working in the NAS field for more than 20 years, from software to hardware, from junior to senior, tailoring NAS solutions for users, suitable for diverse groups of people and all-scenario applications. With excellent professional technology and rich expansion gameplay, it has gradually developed into the top of the industry.
In this article, I would like to use flowers to offer Buddha and recommend a few home NAS from the QNAP brand that are suitable for ordinary users.
双盘位:TS-216、TS-264C
The TS-216 is equipped with RK3568 quad-core Cortex-A55 processor with ARM architecture and up to 2.0GHz frequency, built-in 4GB RAM, two Gigabit LAN ports, and two SATA 6Gb/s hard drive bays. It has a built-in separate GPU and NPU module, which has strong audio and video functions in the entry-level NAS, supports 4K decoding and 1080P encoding, and the NPU module can be used for lightweight AI applications, such as the QNAP AI Core image recognition engine, which can quickly recognize faces and similar scenes for intelligent planning and management.
From the hardware configuration, it is not difficult to see that the dual-bay TS-216 and the four-bay TS-416 are positioned as entry-level, cost-effective, and more than enough for home file management, enough to meet household needs such as file storage, backup, sharing, and synchronization.
Powered by an Intel N5095 processor, the QNAP TS-264C features a quad-core and four-thread design with a maximum turbo frequency of 2.9GHz, two 3.5/2.5-inch SATA hard drive bays, and two built-in M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 3 x2 slots.
There is an HDMI 2.0 port on the back of the machine, which supports 4K video streaming and real-time transcoding. At home during the Spring Festival and annual holidays, sitting with your family, watching movies with fruit snacks on a large screen, the comfort is directly full.
In addition, the NAS has two 2.5GbE Ethernet ports, supports link aggregation, and achieves up to 5 Gbps transmission bandwidth, while also supporting SMB multi-lane transmission, which doubles the transfer speed.
Even now, this machine can still easily handle home application scenarios.
四盘位:TS-462C、S-466C
QNAP TS-462C is a 4-bay mid-range model launched in 2022, powered by an Intel Celeron N4505 processor with a maximum turbo frequency of 2.9GHz. It is also equipped with 1 HDMI interface and 1 2.5GbE network port, which is a good hand for building soft routes and home audio.
At present, the activity price of QNAP TS-462C is about 1900 yuan, which is quite cost-effective. This machine is one of the few white shells of QNAP, and it has a touch of elegance compared to the cookie-cutter black.
The QNAP TS-466C is the flagship of the current 4-bay series, equipped with a mainstream flagship processor Intel Pentium Silver N6005, four cores and four threads, a maximum turbo frequency of 3.3GHz, 16GB (8GBx2) RAM, 4 SATA hard drive bays, 2 M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 3 slots, support SSD caching function or create high-speed storage pools, and 2 x 2.5 The GbE network port supports multi-link aggregation and SMB 3.0 multi-lane, and can achieve 5 GbE transmission performance without the need to upgrade the network card. In addition, the TS-466C has a built-in GPU-accelerated video transcoding and one HDMI 2.0 port, allowing you to directly connect to a large screen to enjoy an immersive viewing experience.
The QNAP TS-466C is basically fully equipped and can be played as much as you want, making it more suitable for geek gamers and small businesses who pursue efficient transmission.
In terms of appearance, the TS-466C has no significant changes compared to QNAP's other 4-bay devices, but the hard drive bay has been changed to a lockable hard drive bay to prevent accidental hard drive removal and protect data security.
Five-bay: TS-564
The QNAP TS-564 is powered by an Intel N5095 quad-core processor with a turbo frequency of 2.9 GHz, 8GB of RAM, two 2.5GbE Ethernet ports, and a built-in Intel OpenVINO AI logic inference engine that provides a stronger AI-optimized environment.
This NAS is a unique 3+2-bay design, supporting 3 x 3.5-inch HDDs + 2 x 2.5-inch SSD dedicated bays, which can build a highly secure RAID 5 disk array, and supports SSD caching technology and Qtier auto-tiered storage. The hybrid storage architecture allows users to easily configure SSDs while enjoying the large storage capacity of HDDs, greatly improving the performance of dense access applications.
The TS-564 features a wide range of expansion ports, including HDMI 4K output, one USB 2.0, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and two Type-A USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, to meet the needs of both casual users and enterprises.
Six-bay: TS-664
The QNAP TS-664 is the flagship 6-bay model, and in my opinion, the most stylish and sophisticated machine in a home NAS. It is powered by an Intel N5095 processor, 8GB of RAM, two M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 3x1 slots, two 2.5GbE ports, and an HDMI 2.1 video port. The TS-664 also provides one PCIe Gen 3 x2 slot for a dual-port 10GbE LAN with M.2 SSD for high-speed read/write performance, fulfilling the needs of high-bandwidth users.
Under normal circumstances, the TS-664 can be equipped with six 22TB hard drives for up to 110 TB storage. With a storage expansion enclosure, it can accommodate up to 18 hard drives, with an exaggerated 300 TB of storage space, which is fully suitable for small business needs for huge data storage, backup, and long-term storage.
Fourth, summary
The above recommendations are mainly based on the interpretation of hardware configurations, and there are some things to say, the hardware supporting solutions of NAS have certain limitations, and the difference between competing products of different brands at the same price is not large, and the core competitiveness of NAS is the system and software, functions and gameplay. It is said that QNAP's QTS system will have a big upgrade recently, and I just recently couldn't help but buy a four-bay flagship TS-466C. Stay tuned!