I have been overlaying NAS and storage offers for just a few years now, and there hasn’t been a lot pleasure on this space over the past 12 months. With most producers specializing in managing inventories, we did not get numerous offers in 2022.
Fortunately, that is altering for Prime Day 2023; most NAS producers are rolling out attractive offers on their newest merchandise — I already rounded up the finest Prime Day NAS offers — and one server I need to spotlight is the Synology DiskStation DS723+. I reviewed the DS723+ when it launched earlier this 12 months, and mentioned that the upgraded AMD {hardware} together with the flexibility to make use of an M.2 drive for storage — a function that has lengthy been within the works — gave it a definite edge over its predecessors.
The DiskStation DS723+ debuted for $449, however for Prime Day you may get your palms on it for simply $359 — a full 20% low cost from its launch worth. Given the {hardware} on supply and the truth that the brand new SMD Ryzen {hardware} is considerably quicker than the Intel Celeron-based DS720+, the DS723+ is a no brainer for those who’re out there for a brand new NAS server primarily for streaming media over Plex.
The DS723+ is a 2-bay server, and like all different NAS fashions, it’s bought in a diskless verison — you may must furnish your individual laborious drives. There are wonderful offers on that entrance, with an 8TB WD Crimson Plus drive going for simply $122 proper now. I have been a fan of IronWolf drives, and an 8TB IronWolf drive is on sale for $129 — 26% off its typical worth.
The largest differentiator for the DS723+ is the software program; the DiskStation Supervisor interface delivers a cultured design and a smorgasbord of utilities, together with the flexibility to host your individual media server, mail and be aware server, VPN, and a lot extra. The DS723+ comes with 2GB of RAM out of the field, and that is ample for media streaming and different each day use circumstances.
You will discover a native installer for Plex on the DS723+, and organising the service takes lower than ten minutes. The one caveat with the AMD Ryzen R1600 that is powering the DS723+ is that it would not have {hardware} transcoding for Plex, a function that was a mainstay on earlier Intel-powered fashions. That mentioned, I have not discovered any limitations on this space, and most up-to-date TVs, telephones, and tablets should not have any points enjoying mainstream media codecs.
For those who suppose two drive bays aren’t sufficient, it is best to check out the DS923+. I am engaged on a long-term overview for the NAS, however I can share my testing notes — the DS923+ makes use of the identical basis because the DS723+, however you get 4GB of RAM and 4 drive bays. The remainder of the options are largely equivalent, and the DS923+ is now on sale for $479 — $120 off its launch worth.
