A relentless launch schedule sees Synology releasing new NAS boxes regularly, and if you wondered where the dual-bay DS214j went, the answer is that you’re looking at it. The DS215j is the successor to the DS213j, with Synology focusing on the budget-friendly DS214SE instead of releasing a new mid-range NAS box. The DS215j is quite an upgrade too.
All of Synology’s NAS boxes use the same operating system, so their core specifications determine their speed and multi-tasking prowess. In fact, the DS215j is much faster than the DS115j that we reviewed three issues ago. The former now includes a dual-core Marvell Armada 375 SoC, which uses the ARM Cortex A9 CPU, as opposed to single-core chips in the DS213j and DS115j. As with the DS213j, 512MB of DDR3 RAM is included, but the DS215j also boasts a USB 3 port – very useful if you regularly need to upload large amounts of files to the NAS. Like its predecessors, the DS215j uses a quiet 92mm fan and is also now equipped with anti-vibration hard disk mounts, which do a good job of reducing hard disk noise.
Synology’s DSM operating system is regularly updated, so it’s no longer included on a DVD in the box. Downloading it is easy, though, and you can upload it to the NAS from any PC on the same network too. There’s the usual plethora of free features and programs to download, but DSM 5.1 has a particular focus on security following the recent ransomware attack on its NAS boxes. A security advisor acts as a built-in anti-malware program, and checks for common security holes and malicious programs.
The File Station file explorer is noticeably easier to use than its predecessors too, and you can create, share and download files, as well as set bandwidth speed limits for shared data, all from the same window.
Whatever devices you plan on connecting to the DS215j, it probably has you covered. It has DLNA, iTunes and Logitech Media Server support, and Plex even has a Synology-compatible media server. What’s more, DSM 5.1 also supports media transcoding.
Meanwhile, Synology’s sharing options are varied and most just require the setting up of a DDNS on Synology’s free server. This is a simple job, though, with the results being a Dropbox-like performance in terms of dishing out your files, with both shared files and folders, and videos via Video Station, being sharable with a URL link. Speed-wise, the DS215j dealt with our large file test rapidly, managing read and write speeds of 97MB/sec and 78MB/sec respectively. Our torturous small file test was more of a challenge, though, with a read speed of 25MB/sec and write speed of 22MB/sec.
The DS215j offers speeds comparable to the more expensive DS214, although the latter is faster when dealing with lots of small files. Their software is identical, though, so if you don’t need the raw grunt of Synology’s more expensive models, the DS215j is a great buy for the money. ANTONY LEATHER
Synology comes up with the goods again. The DS215j isn’t the fastest NAS overall, but its very reasonable price and superb feature set make it an excellent choice.