Qnap TS-231P

[HEXUS]

An affordable dual-bay NAS for today's connected home.

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[j.o.s.h.1408]

Can u install ftp, torrents and various other network apps?

[Irien]

Yes, QNAP units (I have vanilla x31 unit, not newer x31P) allow for many apps. FTP handling is built-in, just tick the appropriate box. The pre-loaded "download station" will handle torrents, although I've never tried myself. There's also stuff like iTunes server, DLNA server, and things like Plex (best downloaded from the Plex site, though). There aren't quite as many apps for the ARM-based QNAPs as for the (more expensive) Intel ones, but it's not far off, and frankly all the core bases are covered.

Unless you have a need for the higher end features like virtualisation, or perhaps hardware transcoding (but be careful with this, Plex doesn't use hardware, and the default codec pack has "lost" Dolby/DTS abilities, so this was a bit underwhelming) the x31/x31P series make for excellent NAS units.

[Spreadie]

£180 for a box that can barely transcode and doesn't have HDMI? No.

I like QNAP boxes, but the prices are out of whack.

[NightshadowUK]

Yes, QNAP units (I have vanilla x31 unit, not newer x31P) allow for many apps. FTP handling is built-in, just tick the appropriate box. The pre-loaded "download station" will handle torrents, although I've never tried myself. There's also stuff like iTunes server, DLNA server, and things like Plex (best downloaded from the Plex site, though). There aren't quite as many apps for the ARM-based QNAPs as for the (more expensive) Intel ones, but it's not far off, and frankly all the core bases are covered.

Unless you have a need for the higher end features like virtualisation, or perhaps hardware transcoding (but be careful with this, Plex doesn't use hardware, and the default codec pack has "lost" Dolby/DTS abilities, so this was a bit underwhelming) the x31/x31P series make for excellent NAS units.

Can second this, my TS-431 has been doing me proud for just under 2 years now and I'm still yet to use 2 of the bays.

I just wish ISPs wouldn't be so stingy with upload speeds...

[NotoriousPyro]

You can get an old server off eBay like a Dell T310 for this price and that has a Xeon, 4 disk bays, and WAAY more functionality than a QNAP device.

I stopped using QNAP this year. Junk.