INTRODUCTION

   As things are right now consumers are divided into two separate categories, the ones who support that building your own server from old or new computer parts is the way to go if you want power and the ones who'd rather purchase an standalone NAS server and be done without having to go the extra mile. Personally i think that each solution has both pros and cons with NAS servers getting slightly ahead not only because they are ready to use right from the box with all the applications anyone could wish for pre-installed but also due to their small size and very low power consumption. Of course for people who also want to use the server for games it goes without saying that a normal PC/HTPC is suited for the task. Now for the past 12 months we've covered quite a few NAS server solutions by both QNAP and Thecus but today we will be covering an NAS server from Synology a name we haven't seen in a while and since we have managed to secure a brand new DiskStation DS213+ for our giveaway it only makes sense for us to show all of you what will end up in the hands of our lucky winner.

   Founded in 2000, Synology is dedicated to develop high-performance, reliable, versatile, and environmentally-friendly NAS servers. Our goal is to deliver agile and cost-effective solutions, solid customer service, and ultimately to ensure individuals and business the versatility of choices. Synology provides an affordable way to centralize data storage, simplify data backup, share and sync files across different platforms, and access data on-the-go. The “5S” serve as the pillars to Sinology’s core values which are realized in products, features, and the direction we head. Responsive and flexible data management is a crucial challenge for today’s users. Home users and businesses alike must find ways to harness the ever increasing data and to use it efficiently. Synology is committed to develop NAS solutions for efficient and easy data management. Taking innovation as the key drive, Synology NAS solutions encompass complete product lines of storage hardware, the software operating system, and a diverse array of services and applications. Synology makes a NAS more than a file server. We bring together the accessibility of public cloud and the security which private cloud possesses to form a hybrid cloud solution with a web-based platform. The web-based platform transforms NAS from being a pure file server to a multi-functional device suitable for different purposes. It’s the first time that anyone in the industry has done so.

   This review was actually planned to go live almost a week ago prior to us announcing our Synology giveaway but due to heavy workload we were simply unable to make it. So the DiskStation DS213+ is the latest dual bay SMB oriented NAS server by Synology and as the + (plus) clearly states it's the second highest dual bay model they are making, right beneath the DS713+ (which however is much more expensive and mostly ment to be used with the DX513 expansion unit). Specs-wise under the hood the DiskStation DS213+ packs an Dual Core 1067MHz CPU, 512MB DDR3 RAM, single Gigabit Ethernet LAN, two USB 3.0 Ports, one USB 2.0 Port, one eSATA port and an SD card reader. Sure the DS213+ doesn't have the most exciting list of specifications and i am the first to admit that but as you will all see later on thanks to the latest DiskStation Manager software by Synology (v4.2) it actually did extremely well in all our tests and almost on par with more expensive units.