Netgear NAS Duo (v2) vs. Synology DS213

[blakemiller]

Due to some pressing small office networking issues (low space on my "server") and a new Mac user joining the network) and a long time desire, I've quickly jumped on the NAS bandwagon and got myself a NAS Duo (v2) w/ a pair of 2TB WD Red Drives. Got is setup okay and main files sent over. Got some user accounts setup and R/W issues squared away (after a few nagging permission issues unexpectedly)

It's been a rough week or so, but things are settling out. Albeit, I have yet to get into other aspects of my NAS goals (remote access, FTP, Dual NAS Sync / remote backup, media server, etc.) I am reading alot of grief online, and they just seem to be behind the times a bit - even though I'm a noob NAS user, I'm a pretty solid Power User otherwise and my gut just doesn't sit 100%

During the rough week of lots of forum browsing and research, I'm second guessing my choice and have been looking at a Synology DS213. Everything with Synology seems to kick Netgear's butt, and definitely a great reputation online and a strong following.

Without a ton of NAS experience, I'm not sure if they merely "appear" to be stronger? Cuz I felt that way with the Netgear .. until about 10-12hrs of getting things up and running and research.

Question is do I pull the plug and get the Synology, or get through my Netgear at least for a year or two or three? I have just over a week left to return my Duo, meaning I'd have to order my DS within a few days.

Finally, is the + series on the DS line worth the extra $100. Seems to be merely performance related? And not apps/functionality?

 

[stevech]

I did a lot of reading, user experiences/reviews, and applied my own experiences with Netgear's irregular quality over the years. I narrowed it to Synology and QNAP and decided on the former.

Netgear's software and support for NASes was the concern. I've owned Netgear pro products and even with those, the tech support is like the Bangalore experience. But more important is the NAS software feature set and stability.

In the end, I think Synology and QNAP are better as they do one thing well, unlike Netgear or Buffalo or Seagate in NASes. And both Synology and QNAP have a good prognosis of corporate health. I suspect their income is mostly from SOHO, video surveillance, and video editing, rather than home consumers.

None the less, Netgear does have some market share. As does the oddity called Drobo.

 

[Drobo Inc.]

Hi Blake,

Sorry to hear about your NAS troubles. We encourage you to check out our Drobos as your data solution. Have you scheduled a Live Demo yet? http://info.drobo.com/blog/live/pro Come check us out! We'd be happy to answer any questions you have and make sure you get the right Drobo to fit your needs.

- Drobo Team

 

[blakemiller]

I did a lot of reading, user experiences/reviews, and applied my own experiences with Netgear's irregular quality over the years. I narrowed it to Synology and QNAP and decided on the former.

Netgear's software and support for NASes was the concern. I've owned Netgear pro products and even with those, the tech support is like the Bangalore experience. But more important is the NAS software feature set and stability.

In the end, I think Synology and QNAP are better as they do one thing well, unlike Netgear or Buffalo or Seagate in NASes. And both Synology and QNAP have a good prognosis of corporate health. I suspect their income is mostly from SOHO, video surveillance, and video editing, rather than home consumers.

None the less, Netgear does have some market share. As does the oddity called Drobo.

Thanks! "Irregular Quality" . . that's exactly how I felt after just a few days. I just wanted to update ya in that I went ahead and purchased the Synology DS213 and will be swapping it out ASAP . . in time to return the Netgear.

Looking forward to it!!