Synology DS412+ vs. Pogoplug + Raid enclosure

[jbombs16]

I am debating on purchasing either:

1) Synology DS412+ (or a DS413 but leaning to 412+)

OR

2a) Pogoplug v4 (hacking it to run ArchLinux) and purchasing a RAID enclosure to connect to the pogoplug, or

2b) Hooking the RAID enclosure to my router (USB 2.0)

I was going to follow this Pogoplug hacking guide (http://archlinuxarm.org/platforms/armv5/pogoplug-series-4) and was leaning towards a SANS DIGITAL TR4UTBPN 4Bay USB 3.0 / eSATA Hardware RAID 5 Tower RAID Enclosure (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816111149).

I already have 4 Hard drives I picked up on black Friday (Seagate Barracuda 7200 3 TB 7200RPM SATA 6 Gb/s NCQ 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare Drive ST3000DM001).

The cost will be significantly more if I choose to go the Synology route ($679) versus the PogoPlug + Raid enclosure ($40 + 179).

I would be using the NAS for backup, media streaming, Sabnzbd, sickbeard, etc.

It is worth spending the additional ~$400 to get the Synology?

Also, if the Pogoplug (or RAID to Router) option is doable, does anyone know if the hard drives will spin down when not in use? I would want them to spin down to increase the lifetime of the drives.

I would appreciate any comments/suggestions. Thanks in advance.

 

[stevech]

I think PoGo plug is a least-desirable choice. Their products are on the marked-down/clearance pricing at retailers for a reason.

I chose a $200 Synology two-drive NAS. I already had two dissimilar 2TB SATA drives so I used them - as two volumes, one as a time machine history backup. And one 1TB USB3 drive for critical backups to hide from burgulars.

"RAID is not a backup"

 

[jbombs16]

Thanks for the reply. Are pogoplugs that bad even when they are hacked to include arch Linux?

 

[stevech]

I've read that PoGo plugs have slow CPUs so their speed is quite poor. And the company is imploding. Not a good choice, IMO.