I recommend this NAS box for easy media streaming and backup

Price When Reviewed

$409.99

Best Prices Today: Synology BeeStation Plus (8TB)

$409.99

$409.99

Want your personal private OneDrive, Dropbox, iCloud, or Google drive with out the mega company or superior community savvy that’s sometimes required? Perhaps you’re trying to arrange a private streamer to your large assortment of digital music and films you’ve ripped from discs over time. If you might be, you must check out Synology’s BeeStation Plus, a NAS field that may function as your personal private cloud and streaming service.

The BeeStation Plus not solely lets you entry your information and private media from wherever and on any compute-capable system–laptop computer, cell phone, pill, and so forth–it’s exceptionally straightforward to arrange. You don’t even want so as to add storage, there’s already an 8TB exhausting disk drive inside.

The solely doable concern is that Synology’s rigorous concentrate on simple-to-set-up-and-use means most of the options discovered within the firm’s different NAS packing containers are lacking right here. NAS aficionados–the acronym stands for Network Attached Storage, by the best way–will care about that; the mainstream viewers Synology is focusing on with this product in all probability gained’t.

Specifications and options

Jon Jacobi/Foundry

As you might need guessed from my introduction, the BeeStation Plus is a simplified NAS field and media server. Stripping out a few of the different options that NAS packing containers are identified for render it a lot simpler to arrange and use than extra strong merchandise that may curiosity hardcore customers or the SMB crowd (permit me to spell out that acronym, too: it stands for Small to Medium-sized Businesses). the BeeStation Plus is definitely simpler to arrange than another NAS field I’ve examined. So a lot in order that it in all probability deserves its personal classification.

The field itself is a well-ventilated, rounded-corner, darkish grey rectangle measuring 5.8 x 2.5 x 7.7 inches (HxWxD). It weighs in at simply north of two kilos, with its mechanical exhausting drive little question accounting for many of that bulk.

The entrance and sides are barren apart from logos, whereas on the again there’s the facility button, USB-A and -C ports, a reset pinhole, a gigabit ethernet port, and an influence jack.

There’s no video output, as some packing containers have, so your solely entry to the recordsdata saved on the field is thru Synology’s on-line portal and its native consumer apps, not less than initially. You can allow SMB entry to succeed in the unit regionally through Explorer (Windows) or Finder (macOS) in addition to through a browser with out routing by way of the portal after preliminary setup. (In this context, the acronym SMB stands for the protocol Server Message Block.)

The BeeStation Plus will function a vacation spot for macOS Time Machine backups (with a 4TB restrict), and the native desktop consumer will sync folders to the BeeStation. There are additionally BeeFiles apps for backing up your Android and iOS gadgets.

Synology provides a full backup choice in BeeProtect, an internet storage service that prices $120 per 12 months for as much as 8TB ($60 for the 4TB BeeStation model). Those costs aren’t half dangerous given the quantity of storage get, however there’s a 3-month free trial if you wish to give it a take a look at drive first.

Less apparent is the small textual content hyperlink beneath the BeeProtect advert that tells you you can additionally again as much as exterior storage, one other NAS field, or Synology’s own C2 cloud storage service if in case you have an account. But just one is allowed; so with out BeeProtect, you’ll have to improvise a 3rd copy of your information.

That makes this nearly as good a time as any to remind you that that is single exhausting disk drive storage that should be backed up if there’s any irreplaceable information on it. While HDDs are way more dependable than they was, they’re nonetheless mechanical gadgets and way more liable to failure than SSDs.

The BeeStation Plus helps as much as eight customers, and each will get their very own non-public storage space. At the second, the one performance past file storage and backup is media streaming through Plex media server (with a 4TB restrict on media recordsdata). More on that in a bit.

Note that whenever you connect exterior storage, it doesn’t present up till you make the most of a operate that requires it. The storage part of the interface didn’t present both of the USB SSDs I hooked up, although I may nonetheless use them for switch capabilities and see them as USBShares in Windows Explorer and macOS Finder.

The BeeStation desktop app will create an area folder that later syncs with the BeeStation’s inner storage, a la DropBox, OneDrive, Google Drive, and different providers. Basically, that is for efficiency: Transfers throughout the native community can be comparatively snappy with out it, not a lot throughout the web

The BeeStation Plus is NAS for individuals who don’t know, care about, or care to find out about NAS. Plug in its energy wire and an ethernet cable, observe the prompts, and also you’re good to go. Mostly.

How straightforward is the BeeStation Plus to arrange?

The BeeStation Plus setup, whereas not the browse-to-a-local-URL (e.g., 192.168.1.101) strategy I’m accustomed to, is by far the simplest I’ve encountered. At least for the fundamentals. And by “easier-than,” I’m together with private cloud gadgets from trade stalwarts similar to Seagate and Western Digital. No, the “personal cloud” pitch will not be new.

To get underway, you first surf to the Synology BeeStation Web portal. (There’s a QR code for cellular gadgets, though it simply takes you to Synology’s web site.) Next, you create an account, after which obtain the desktop app. You’ll should be bodily near the BeeStation for a few steps, together with the one beneath.

One-time setup is slightly tedious, however the wizard-like strategy ensures that even the least skilled person can get the BeeStation Plus up and working.

That mentioned, I did discover one step to be puzzling: With the entire concentrate on ease of use, why would Synology pressure you to tediously obtain and set up the working system? Just pre-load it on the manufacturing facility and have it test for updates, guys.

Anyway, organising the Plex media server (for streaming films, music, and pictures) isn’t fairly as straightforward as getting on-line and connecting. Mostly as a result of it’s less-than-intuitively positioned underneath the heading “Integration” in the principle net web page. Perhaps it could be higher to label this “Apps,” Synology?

Also, as Plex is presently the one app obtainable and intimately linked to the BeeStation Plus’ usefulness, why isn’t it pre-installed?

Tip: Use the BeeStation’s “Upload media files to Plex” operate, which opens the browser-based BeeFiles on the appropriate location. If you attempt to add media throughout the Plex server, you’ll be confronted with a slightly daunting listing of Linux system folders that precede the folders you really need. Assuming after all, you’d really know what these folders have been.

As talked about above, if you wish to use Windows Explorer/macOS Finder to handle recordsdata as a substitute of an online browser or Synology’s desktop app, you’ll have to allow native entry and SMB within the BeeStation net portal’s superior settings. Why it’s disabled to start with, I can’t say.

I’m very accustomed to native SMB folder entry, so I turned that on. But to be trustworthy, I typically discovered the net browser interface and BeeFiles simpler to make use of. It helps drag-0and-drop file transfers and also you don’t have to guess which folder is which.

How straightforward is the BeeStation to make use of?

While it’s not as useless straightforward because the preliminary setup, utilizing the BeeStation is definitely simpler than your run-of-the-mill NAS field, together with helpful devoted capabilities for transferring your media from present on-line providers; particularly, these utilized by Android and iOS gadgets. That will cowl most folk. I have to say that iCloud help was a little bit of a shock. Apple is legendary for denying entry to 3rd events.

Viewing your media recordsdata, and even PDF and Office recordsdata, could be completed through the net portal, proper throughout the browser. It’s remarkably fast given an area community connection, which the BeeStation routinely makes use of if obtainable.

What NAS options are lacking from the BeeStation Plus?

What turned apparent throughout my hands-on time is that the BeeStation Plus is both a software program work-in-progress (ought to gross sales warrant it), or laser targeted on being a private cloud and nothing else.

That’s admirable and nice for the target market, however there’s loads lacking that you might have in a maybe much less pleasant, extra conventional NAS field similar to Synology’s personal single-bay DS124.

Just a few of the lacking options are: Hybrid Backup/Sync (software program that backs up distant computer systems with out the necessity for native purchasers), safety digicam surveillance, virtualization (Docker and the like), BitTorrent, two-way sync, the HybridMount cloud storage manager, entry to different community places, and fairly much more.

Also lacking is the flexibility to develop inner storage. Multi-bay NAS packing containers mean you can add drives, and/or mirror them for elevated security and availability. All this makes a powerful case for superior customers to go old-school.

What’s this portal factor you’re rattling on about?

Portals are distant servers that relay information from one location/URL to a different. Basically, you log in to the portal along with your information supply system (e.g., the BeeStation Plus), which registers its existence, your possession, and its web location. Then, when you go online to the portal along with your different gadgets and the suitable consumer, the portal directs site visitors to/from the data-serving system.

Portals usually present net interfaces that mean you can configure them, in addition to handle the recordsdata on the server. The BeeStation Plus’ portal is high notch in each regards.

The main upsides to portals are ease of setup and hassle-free entry from wherever (given web freedom, which isn’t common). You additionally needn’t unduly expose your server (the BeeStation) to the web, as you’d for those who configured your router to ahead ports to it. Said configuration may also be fairly trepidatious for much less skilled customers.

On the opposite hand, I can title not less than two portals (Cisco NAS, and PogoPlug) that disappeared, rendering the merchandise that relied on them far much less helpful.

Additionally, your data is passing by way of another person’s servers, which may doubtlessly result in information breaches. Companies can promise all the safety and encryption on the planet, however when all is alleged and completed, in the event that they determine they wish to entry your information, they’ll.

That remark will not be aimed toward Synology within the slightest, I’ve had nothing however good experiences with the corporate. It’s merely inherent to the expertise and it additionally applies to Microsoft, Google, Apple, and each different firm within the trendy linked world.

How a lot does the BeeStation Plus price?

The 8TB BeeStation Plus retails for $409, which isn’t a ton greater than Synology’s own single-bay DS124 when populated with an 8TB HDD (round $340 mixed). There’s additionally a much more inexpensive 4TB BeeStation for $209 obtainable for those who assume that can maintain your film, picture, and music collections.

As HDDs can be found in as much as 36TB today, I’m a bit shocked there aren’t extra capacious choices. The BeeStation Plus is warrantied for 3 years, which incorporates the HDD so far as I can inform.

How quick is the BeeStation Plus?

The BeeStation’s gigabit ethernet and exhausting drive are greater than quick sufficient for many file operations, in addition to for streaming media.

Indeed, the information charges required for multimedia supply aren’t almost as nice as some would possibly assume. Even streamed 4K video is mostly solely a number of megabytes per second, relying on the codec. Blu-ray could be a lot larger, however that’s a unique beast. Audio requires far much less bandwidth, and pictures a relative trickle.

The BeeStation Plus clocked in at round 115 megabytes per second studying, and 90- to 100MBps writing. That’s barely beneath common for a gigabit field, however it’s nonetheless within the ballpark. Transfer speeds to and from a distant location will, after all, rely in your broadband connection.

AmorphousDiskMark was largely in settlement with Disk Speed take a look at (proven above) when it got here to transfers throughout my dwelling 2.5Gbps community. An Apple Studio with an M4 Max and a 10Gbps ethernet port was on the different finish.

The Intel Celeron J4125 CPU made the net interface fairly responsive. Indeed, I used to be pleasantly shocked at how fast the BeeStation Plus navigated, downloaded apps, and adjusted settings. The latter particularly could be laggardly on NAS packing containers.

I had a number of folks concurrently take a look at the Plex streaming and there have been no points. Admittedly, it was all 1080p video and music, and also you would possibly get fewer streams with 4K in play. But there have been no complaints.

In whole, the BeeStation Plus will get the job completed handily, though I wouldn’t complain if it had a 2.5Gbps ethernet port.

Should you purchase the BeeStation Plus?

If you need an easy-to-set-up-and-use private cloud for file entry, media streaming and viewing each in your house and from afar, both the BeeStation Plus or the smaller-capacity BeeStation are unbelievable choices.

Tech-savvy customers who need extra server-grade options can be higher off with a straight-up NAS field that gives far better capabilities, possible for just a few much less bucks. There’s additionally much less probability that such a product may find yourself orphaned.