Showing posts with label storage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label storage. Show all posts

Sony CDPCX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer Review

Sony CDPCX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I owned a perfectly wonderful Pioneer, 100 Disc CD changer. Since my CD collection had approached the 400 mark, I decided to purchase the Sony CDP-CX455 unit, so that I could randomly listen to my entire collection, without constantly changing CD's. After reading some of the reviews on Amazon, I was reluctant to purchase this unit. Unable to find another unit that would accomodate 400 CD's, I decided to take a chance and went ahead with the purchase. Big mistake! After spending hours loading the CD's into the system and setting it to play on random(shuffle), I soon discovered that several of my CD's were skipping. I am meticulous with the handling of my CD's, so I know that the problem was not caused by my mishandling of them. I removed the CD's that were skipping, hoping that this was an isolated incident. The next day, I turned on the unit and again set it to play songs randomly. Once again, some of the CD's started skipping. When I removed them from the unit, I noticed that there were scratches on both CD's. I then called up Sony to explain to them that this particular CD changer has an engineering defect, and that it scratches CD's. Their response was that they have had no reports of such incidences. I asked to speak with a supervisor, who informed me that this CD changer has been taken off the market and is not being replaced with a similar unit. He said that stores still had them in stock, but once the stock was exhausted there would be no more available. I then asked him why they were not replacing this unit with another 400 CD changer model, and was told that they are getting out of the CD changer business, in favor of DVD/CD combo units. I offered the comment that the reason they are not replacing the CDP-CX455 with a similar unit, is because they know that the CDP-CX455 has an engineering defect, and they are not capable of building a 400 CD unit that is problem free. At any rate, I called the store where I purchased my changer from, and told them that I was returning it because it was scratching my CD's. I then started the long process of removing the CD's from the system and was astounded to find that almost 1 out of every 3 CD's had been scratched by this CD changer. I called back Sony, and their attitude was basically that they couldn't care less. Once you buy a Sony product, you are on your own. Their customer support is non existent. Despite the fact that over 100 of my CD's have been damaged by this unit, their response was that they were sorry, but there is nothing they could do about it. Based on this incident, I will never purchase another Sony product again. If you are planning to purchase this CD player, my advice to you, "Buyer Beware."

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony CDPCX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer

Sony's CDP-CX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer is perfect for your extensive CD collection. Access your CDs with ease using Twin Jog Dial and enjoy MP3 and CD-R/CD-RW Playback. Utilize features like Custom File Memo, MegaChanger Control, Optical Digital Output, CD Text, and 2 Repeat Modes (Disc or Track) to make the most of your music. Keyboard Input, FL Display, 32 Step Program Play, Control A1 II, and a Remote Commander Remote Control are also included. So take control of your CD listening experience with the CDP-CX455!This 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer stores and plays CDs only

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Sony CDPCX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer

Read More...

4.0TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 4 Bay eSATA,FireWire 800+USB 2.0 Enterprise Hardware Desktop RAID Review

4.0TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 4 Bay eSATA,FireWire 800+USB 2.0 Enterprise Hardware Desktop RAID
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I have recently received this item and am currently waiting for 4 2TB drives to arrive to load it up.
EDIT I installed the 2 TB drives - again no problem and am in the process of copying over about 1.5TB of data.
In the meantime I put 3 500MB drives in that I have laying around and set it up as Raid 5. Set up was a breeze and the unit was ready for data within minutes.
I connected it with the firewire 800 interface.
I copied over about 300 megs of music and photos and the typical copy speed was around 30 meg/s.
Subsequent read speeds were a little higher as was to be expected.
I have just artificially caused and error my removing one drive. Within a minute or so the alarm sounded to alert me to the failure. The data was still intact and available. I replaced the drive and the raid in now rebuilding.
EDIT - It took about 45 minutes or so to rebuild the RAID with about 300 meg of data.
The unit construction is very solid and has a nice look and feel - all metal - no plastic.
When I first powered it up the fans were running very loudly, but in a minute or so they stabilized and the unit is very quiet - about the same noise as my Imac.
Overall I am very satisfied and if it continues this way the I will purchase another unit.

Click Here to see more reviews about: 4.0TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 4 Bay eSATA,FireWire 800+USB 2.0 Enterprise Hardware Desktop RAID

4.0TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 eSATA,FireWire 800+USB 2.0 1U 4-Bay Enterprise SATA Desktop RAID Solution with selectable RAID 0,1,5,10 Hardware RAID Mode, NRAID Span Options. Oxford 936 chipset, 5 Year Warranty.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about 4.0TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 4 Bay eSATA,FireWire 800+USB 2.0 Enterprise Hardware Desktop RAID

Read More...

Synology Disk Station 5-Bay 2.5 TB (5 x 500 GB) Network Attached Storage DS509+ 5050 (Black) Review

Synology Disk Station 5-Bay 2.5 TB (5 x 500 GB) Network Attached Storage DS509+ 5050 (Black)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I purchased the DS209+ and installed two 2TB drives, great media server but I soon ran out of storage space. I really like the Synology product that I was using but needed to grow. I purchased the DS509+ and installed 5 2TB discs. Setup was same as 209+, very easy. The performance of the 509+ is outstanding. I use as a media server, high definition video. A very nice piece of hardware with all the software supplied in the package. Media server(video, music, and photos), print server, backup software, and web server software (that I have not used). Highly recommend for anyone looking for a media server with speed and ample storage.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Synology Disk Station 5-Bay 2.5 TB (5 x 500 GB) Network Attached Storage DS509+ 5050 (Black)

Synology Disk Station DS509+ offers PC server equivalent performance for efficient data sharing and backup. Its high performance coupled with sophisticated Synology Disk Station Manager 2.1 provides an ideal solution for cross platform sharing, secure server backup, Windows ADS integration, business mailserver, and corporate surveillance. The plug-n-use Synology DX5 easily expands the DS509+\'s storage capacity up to 10 hard drives on the fly.Synology Disk Station DS509+ supports various volume types, like basic, RAID 0/1/5/6, and RAID 5+Spare to fit users\' needs. Advanced operations allow RAID expansion and RAID type changing to provide flexible management experience.S.M.A.R.T. is a monitoring system for hard drives used to detect and report various attributes of reliability, helping to anticipate malfunctions.The Link Aggregation feature provides share-loading and failover support for Synology Disk Station DS509+.When running out of the hard drive capacity on Synology Disk Station DS509+, users can expand more storage with Synology DX5. By attaching it to Synology Disk Station DS509+, the plug-n-use connectivity and eSATA 3.0 Gb/sec definition allow users to expand volume from Synology Disk Station DS509+. No firmware installation is needed.Synology Network Backup allows users to back up files from one to another Synology Disk Station or any rsynccompatible server, the Local Backup allows backups to external hard drives via USB or eSATA, both providing flexible scheduling options.The Local Backup provides Synology Disk Station DS509+ with the ability to back up data to a shared folder or, to external USB or SATA hard drives.Synology DX5 delivers a perfect backup solution for Synology Disk Station DS509+, too. By attaching it to Synology Disk Station DS509+, the plug-n-use connectivity and eSATA 3.0 Gb/sec definition allows users to create an independent volume on the DX5 as a good backup target. No firmware installation is needed.Now with 5x500GB HDDs

Buy NowGet 1% OFF

Click here for more information about Synology Disk Station 5-Bay 2.5 TB (5 x 500 GB) Network Attached Storage DS509+ 5050 (Black)

Read More...

QNAP Pro II 4-Bay Desktop Network Attached Server TS-439 Review

QNAP Pro II 4-Bay Desktop Network Attached Server TS-439
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I have owned my TS-439 ProII for a couple months now and have been very happy with it. The build quality is high, the unit is quiet, it has been reliable, and has met or exceeded most of my expectations. I have witnessed a few quirks with the software which is to be expected on a device this feature rich and new (No show stoppers). The good thing is that QNAP does very regular firmware updates, constantly improving the features and fixing known bugs. QNAPs forums are also a great resource to learn about the NAS and get assistance from fellow users when needed. Over the course of my ownership there was one human error induced issue I had and QNAP's support was quick to respond and get my NAS squared away. It will take more time and use for a full review, but after two months I am still very happy with my purchase and would purchase another without a second thought if the need arose.

Click Here to see more reviews about: QNAP Pro II 4-Bay Desktop Network Attached Server TS-439

QNAP TS-439 Pro is the new generation 4-bay model of the worldwide award-winning Turbo NAS Series, providing superior performance for massive data sharing, powerful all-in-one business server features, advanced RAID data protection, built-in iSCSI target service, AES 256-bit volume-based encryption, and rock-solid hot-swappable hard drive design for business. Powered by Intel 1.6 GHz CPU, 1GB DDRII memory, the TS-439 Pro delivers superior performance for multiple business applications. Advanced RAID configurations, including RAID 0/ 1/ 5/ 6/ 5+Spare, JBOD, Online RAID Capacity Expansion, and Online RAID Level Migration are all supported.

Buy NowGet 8% OFF

Click here for more information about QNAP Pro II 4-Bay Desktop Network Attached Server TS-439

Read More...

Synology DiskStation 5-Bay 5 TB (5x 1 TB) Network Attached Storage DS1511+ 5100 (Black) Review

Synology DiskStation 5-Bay 5 TB (5x 1 TB) Network Attached Storage DS1511+ 5100 (Black)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
After owning NETGEAR, WD and QNAP; Synology is the only brand I operate.
Pros
- very well built
- *packed* with features
- gorgeous, PC and web-based management software (there's a great demo on their website)
Cons
- although on par with other NASes, it's pretty expensive
Synology builds a solid piece of hardware with useful things like 4 USB, 2 eSATA, and 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports. And since it's a "Disk Station" the dives are hot-swappable. Although, that's standard stuff for this kind of device. What makes their products truly great is their fantastic software. The feature set is too long to list here, but it's basically a file/backup/web/email server, media streamer, and download manager jammed into a cubic foot box. Which, thanks to their software developers, can be almost completely configured in about 10 minutes.
The software is the same on all their models, so if you only need 1 or 2 drives, save a little money and get a smaller one. But really, who doesn't want to RAID 15 hard-drives together?
I've been running 2 DS509+ (with DX5 expansions), a DS710+, and now 2 DS1511+ since they were released. All the units have never given me a bit of grief since I first set them up. They are by far the best NAS devices out there.
I highly recommend any Synology model, but this one is awesome!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Synology DiskStation 5-Bay 5 TB (5x 1 TB) Network Attached Storage DS1511+ 5100 (Black)

Synology DiskStation DS1511+, bundled with 5x1TB HDDs, offers a high-performance, scalable, and full-featured network attached storage solution that meets the needs of small and medium-sized businesses that require an efficient way to centralize data protection, simplify data management, and rapidly scale storage capacity with minimal time spent on setup and management. The Synology DS1511+ is backed with Synology\'s 3-year limited warranty.

Buy NowGet 1% OFF

Click here for more information about Synology DiskStation 5-Bay 5 TB (5x 1 TB) Network Attached Storage DS1511+ 5100 (Black)

Read More...

Lacie Big Disk Network 3TB Nas Review

Lacie Big Disk Network 3TB Nas
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
This is an outstanding Network Attached Storage Device. Very relilable, easy to install and use. Highly recommended.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Lacie Big Disk Network 3TB Nas

Item #: BC3050. The LaCie Big Disk Network offers professional, reliable, central storage for instantly storing, sharing, and backing up from any computer on your network. Manage your home or small office network easily with this full-featured file server, recommended for networks with up to 50 users. Get extra security and increase data portability by backing up your LaCie Big Disk Network - on your own schedule - to an external hard drive through its USB port using the built-in backup system. The LaCie Big Disk Network comes also with Genie Backup Manager Pro for Windows and Intego Backup Manager Pro for Mac to install on each PC/Mac for client backups to the NAS. With the LaCie Big Disk Network, it's easy to download big files using its integrated torrent server, without even needing your computer to be turned on. You can also play your media files stored in your Big Disk Network directly on any UPnP AV-compatible device or via a Digital Media Adapter (DMA). In fact, the Big Disk Network has been developed to be compatible with any DLNA multimedia device, and also works with iTunes. Controlling access is simple; you can assign various security levels to shares, groups, user profiles, and public access. With Windows ADS domain support, there's no need to recreate existing user and group accounts of your Windows domain, making it easy to manage for IT Administrators. Thanks to the wake-on-LAN feature, the LaCie Big Disk Network can be switched back to operating mode from the client side. Device Type: NAS serverHost Connectivity: Gigabit EthernetTotal Storage Capacity: 3 TBDimensions (WxDxH): 1.7 in x 6.8 in x 10.7 inWeight: 5.5 lbsHard Drive: 3 TB standardNetworking: Network adapter - Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit EthernetSystem Requirements: Microsoft Windows 2000, Linux 2.4 or later, Microsoft Windows XP SP1, Apple MacOS X 10.2 or later, Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Microsoft

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Lacie Big Disk Network 3TB Nas

Read More...

Synology DiskStation 2-Bay 2 TB (2 x 1 TB) Scalable Network Attached Storage DS710+ 2100 (Black) Review

Synology DiskStation 2-Bay 2 TB (2 x 1 TB) Scalable Network Attached Storage DS710+ 2100 (Black)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Synology NAS products have a great feature set and the chassis on this particular DS710+ model looks sharp. The problem for me, however, was the level of "thumping" noise periodically coming from the chassis. With two Seagate Constellation ES ST32000644NS drives installed the level of thumping noise was enough to outright annoy me, but even when I put a single Western Digital WD4000AAKS drive in, as a test, I could hear the periodic thump above the overall background noise in my computer room.
We have a Netgear and Drobo NAS at work, both with four HDDs installed in them, and neither of them produce a level of noise that bothers me like what was coming from the Synology DS710+ with two or even just one drive installed. My hunch is that the HDD noise is being amplified by the type of materials (plastic) used and the overall design of the Synology DS710+ chassis. I'm sure there are plenty of people, perhaps most, who wouldn't be bothered by the noise level, though, and for those people this would be a fine NAS for features and performance.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Synology DiskStation 2-Bay 2 TB (2 x 1 TB) Scalable Network Attached Storage DS710+ 2100 (Black)

Synology Disk Station DS710+, with 2x1TB Disks, is a 2-bay NAS with the flexibility to expand to up to seven bays for 14 TB of storage by adding the DX510 expansion enclosure. DS710+ offers a high-performance, scalable, and full-featured network attached storage solution that meets the needs of demanding small and medium-sized businesses that require an efficient way to centralize data protection, simplify data management, and rapidly scale storage capacity minimal time spent on setup and management. The 2-bay Synology Disk Station DS710+ is backed with Synology\'s 3-year limited warranty.

Buy NowGet 5% OFF

Click here for more information about Synology DiskStation 2-Bay 2 TB (2 x 1 TB) Scalable Network Attached Storage DS710+ 2100 (Black)

Read More...

Maelstrom, Full Tower, 11 Bay Review

Maelstrom, Full Tower, 11 Bay
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I bought this tower since it was supposed to fit the SSI-EEB server form factor. However the technical data on Amazon is incorrect (I have since sent in a correction) and this is NOT the IW-PV689, however since e-atx is very close to SSI-EEB I went ahead and drilled some new holes in the case and used it anyways. Overall the case seems good, airflow is nice and it is easy to get to the parts.
The only things I didn't like about this case were that the power supply is on the bottom, and as usual the power on the motherboard was on the top, it was very close and my power cable is uncomfortably close to one of my heatsinks. The other thing I don't like is the stupid "Handles" on the front, that have a big sticker on them saying "These are not handles". Other than that I am very impressed by the case.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Maelstrom, Full Tower, 11 Bay

MAELSTROM, FULL TOWER, 11 BAY, BLACK;

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Maelstrom, Full Tower, 11 Bay

Read More...

4 Bay 3.5" Sata To Esata Port Review

4 Bay 3.5 Sata To Esata Port
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I bought this to add 4TB of storage to a Mac Pro via an eSata connection.
Pros:
-Assembly is simple.
-Box is good looking.
-Box runs cool.
-Sata drives are hot swappable.
-Box is relatively quiet (see below).
Cons:
-Small amount of fan noise.
This product met my need at a good price point. Recommended!

Click Here to see more reviews about: 4 Bay 3.5" Sata To Esata Port

4 Bay 3.5" SATA to eSATA Port Multiplier & USB 2.0 Removable Aluminum External Hard Drive Enclosure for Mac & PC - Retail.This impressively new MB561US-4S 4 Bay Series is built with single e-SATA port multiplier and USB connection. With the port multiplier e-SATA connection, you can either connect to port multiplier JBOD adapter to access four drives via e-SATA connection, or connect to the port multiplier RAID controller card for the RAID solution. This is convenient for those who do video editing through Mac or PC and wants configurations of RAID 0 (Striping) settings for massive transfer speed. Additional USB connection is for quick hook up to any computer system (especially to laptops), which allow user to access up to four hard drive

Buy Now

Click here for more information about 4 Bay 3.5" Sata To Esata Port

Read More...

QNAP TS-439-PRO2 4-Bay superior performance NAS with iSCSI and VMWare Ready for business users Review

QNAP TS-439-PRO2 4-Bay superior performance NAS with iSCSI and VMWare Ready for business users
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Anyobe who needs a NAS, with Active Directory security, can use this product. A bit bulky, i prefer the 19" rack models. Great speed, dual lan adaptors.

Click Here to see more reviews about: QNAP TS-439-PRO2 4-Bay superior performance NAS with iSCSI and VMWare Ready for business users

The TS-439 Pro II is the powerful 4-bay network attached storage (NAS ) server, which is designed to provide an affordable and easy-to-management solution with iSCSI service for virtualized and clustered environment. The TS-439 Pro II also offers versatile business applications to maximize the efficiency of the data center in the business environment.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about QNAP TS-439-PRO2 4-Bay superior performance NAS with iSCSI and VMWare Ready for business users

Read More...

QNAP TS-639 Pro 6-Bay Dekstop Network Attached Server Review

QNAP TS-639 Pro 6-Bay Dekstop Network Attached Server
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I truly love my QNAP NAS. It was reasonably priced for all the capability that I got. I have a mixed office of MacIntosh, PC , and Unix systems. Getting this device to work with all of them was virtually plug-n-play.

Click Here to see more reviews about: QNAP TS-639 Pro 6-Bay Dekstop Network Attached Server

QNAP TS-639 Pro is the new generation 6-bay model of the worldwide award-winning Turbo NAS Series, providing superior performance for massive data sharing, powerful all-in-one business server features, advanced RAID data protection, built-in iSCSI target service, AES 256-bit volume-based encryption, and rock-solid hot-swappable hard drive design for business. Powered by Intel 1.6 GHz CPU, 1GB DDRII memory, the TS-639 Pro delivers superior performance for multiple business applications. Advanced RAID configurations, including RAID 0/ 1/ 5/ 6/ 5+Spare, JBOD, online RAID capacity expansion, and online RAID level migration are all supported. The TS-639 Pro can serve as a NAS and an iSCSI target server. The built-in iSCSI target feature provides an affordable IP-SAN (Storage Area Network) alternative for SMB. The server managers can set up the NAS to expand the storage capacity for existing application servers, such as database server and mail server in an economic way. Moreover, the innovative -InchVirtual Space Allocation-Inch (Thin Provisioning) feature is provided which allows the server managers to flexibly allocate the capacity of iSCSI LUN (Logical Unit Number) at the beginning regardless of the physical volume capacity. The TS-639 Pro supports file sharing across Linux, UNIX, Mac, and Windows platforms. Different applications are supported, e.g. file server, FTP server, printer server, web server, and encrypted remote replication . Also, windows AD (Active Directory) is supported to help create an easy-to-access environment and lower the maintenance cost. SSH login and web page SSL login enable users to transfer, store, and share data securely.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about QNAP TS-639 Pro 6-Bay Dekstop Network Attached Server

Read More...

Apricorn 80 GB Aegis Mini Hard Drive with USB 2.0 Interface Review

Apricorn 80 GB Aegis Mini Hard Drive with USB 2.0 Interface
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I run my own photography business and I'm a teacher so I tote a lot of files back and forth with me between several different computers and locations. I was using a 4GB flash drive on my keychain, but I kept hearing nightmares about how coworkers have suddenly lost all the files on their flash drives and that flash drives weren't meant for permanent storage.
This was the smallest (in size, not storage) portable hard drive I could find, and while it's a big jump from something you can carry on a keychain, the piece of mind of its reliability is well worth the extra ounces in my purse. Compared to this drive, all other "portable" hard drives were enormous and offered much more storage than I needed. I have connected it to about 5 different computers including Vista and a Mac and had NO compatibility issues. It's also come in handy for transferring files from one computer to another.
I only wish Aegis would come out with something even smaller in size... something that might fit on a keychain because I've left this at home several times when I really needed it (that didn't happen when I could keep my files on my keychain), but I suppose that's wishful thinking. Fantastic product, 2 thumbs up, 5 stars, a perfect 10!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Apricorn 80 GB Aegis Mini Hard Drive with USB 2.0 Interface

The Aegis Mini ultra-portable 1.8" hard drive instantly adds up to 80GB of capacity which is ideal for storing sharing or backing up your valuable data. It's the perfect companion for travel between home and the office or for extra storage on the go.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Apricorn 80 GB Aegis Mini Hard Drive with USB 2.0 Interface

Read More...

Ultra X4 1200W Atx Black, Active Pfc Review

Ultra X4 1200W Atx Black, Active Pfc
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
You won't be disappointed with this P/S. It has all the connections you need and more. I have a modified workstation built into a desk and the modular design makes it easy to remove my pc from my desk, leaving behind the P/S. This makes cleaning my system a breeze. Before I had a P/S that wasnt modular and I had to disconnect everything to remove my workstation from the desk. It is hard on the motherboard and all the hardware as well. With this P/S, all you have to do is disconnect everything at the P/S and within a minute have the PC out for maintenance or hardware changes. The fan is big but super quiet and it adjusts the speed automatically when needed. I havent heard it running since I fired it up though. The cables are top quality and the velcro straps on each cable make cable management a breeze. I didnt spring for the 1600W version due to the length of it and also I dont have a power outlet to support it. If you need the extra power and you have a unique case set up, I would recommend this P/S. You wont regret it.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Ultra X4 1200W Atx Black, Active Pfc

Ultra Products X4 ULT40323 ATX12V & EPS12V Power Supply ULT40323 Power Supplies

Buy NowGet 17% OFF

Click here for more information about Ultra X4 1200W Atx Black, Active Pfc

Read More...

Sp Xeon 3420 Atx 6DIMM Review

Sp Xeon 3420 Atx 6DIMM
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I have two of this server motherboard. Very stable, no problem at all. Just remember, it takes dual-channel DDR3 memory only. Check the compatibility chart first before you buy his memory.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Sp Xeon 3420 Atx 6DIMM

ASUS MOTHERBOARD P7F-E INTEL XEON3400 LGA1156 DDR3

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Sp Xeon 3420 Atx 6DIMM

Read More...

Synology America Corp DiskStation 4-Bay USB 2.0 Network Attached Storage DS411slim Black Review

Synology America Corp DiskStation 4-Bay USB 2.0 Network Attached Storage DS411slim Black
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
As far as I'm aware this is the first 4 bay 2.5" NAS on the market. It came out over a year ago but hasn't received very much attention, which blows my mind, because it truly is a wonderful device. It combines an incredibly small form factor, a gigabit ethernet port, and a wealth of advanced options like a webserver, bittorrent client, FTP server, IP camera system, intelligent RAID configurations and Synology's renowned Disk Manager software. When you consider how many features are packed into this tiny box, its low price, and its lower noise and power consumption compared to much larger and more expensive NAS enclosures, the 411slim is a no brainer.
Currently I have 4 Western Digital 1TB Scorpio Blue drives in this enclosure in a RAID5 array. At the time of this review, 1TB is the largest 2.5" drive available, so yes, you're limited to half the storage capacity of a normal 4 bay 3.5" NAS. However, don't let this scare you away. 1.5TB and 2TB 2.5" drives are right around the corner, and as long as those drives don't exceed 12.5mm thickness, you should be able to scale upwards to 8TB and subsequently get some real bang for your buck with this machine.
Speed is on the slow side - don't expect it to rival a ReadyNAS with aggregated ethernet. But considering the way I use this NAS - as a repository for all my video, music and photos, with direct playback via USB to my Popcorn Hour network media player - speed is secondary. I love having something that is out of sight and out of mind (and out of hearing range). I can always do massive file transfers overnight while I'm sleeping. If speed is paramount to you, look into traditional 3.5" NAS solutions. But if you plan to use this as a backup drive or as media storage, without constant R/W or high-def playback to other networked machines, then this is the perfect NAS.
I can't say enough about the 411slim - it is a remarkable piece of computer engineering, and while it won't rival the performance of a traditional NAS, its other features more than make up for it and set it apart from the rest of the NAS pack.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Synology America Corp DiskStation 4-Bay USB 2.0 Network Attached Storage DS411slim Black

Synology DiskStation DS411slim is designed to provide users with a compact yet feature laden solution for easy file sharing and backup. Snap-in 2.5-Inch hard drives design brings low power consumption, quiet operation, reliability and easy disk replacement in a compact size. The operating system, Synology DiskStation Manager 3.0, delivers rich features for multimedia enjoyments, Internet sharing, worry-free data protection and energy-saving options.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Synology America Corp DiskStation 4-Bay USB 2.0 Network Attached Storage DS411slim Black

Read More...

RPC-4020 4U Server Case w/ 20 Hot-Swappable SATA/SAS Drive Bay Review

RPC-4020 4U Server Case w/ 20 Hot-Swappable SATA/SAS Drive Bay
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Built this for a home media server. I pulled motherboard and power out of old case. I installed 4 drives so far. It is absolutly awsome. Sleek style easy to build and more room than I know what to do with. for the price you can't beat it. BEst money I ever spent. The only minor gripe (fans are slightly loud). I can swap them out. there is more than enough cooling in the case for bazooka storage. Thanks

Click Here to see more reviews about: RPC-4020 4U Server Case w/ 20 Hot-Swappable SATA/SAS Drive Bay

Redundant power connectorsRoHS Compliant

Buy Now

Click here for more information about RPC-4020 4U Server Case w/ 20 Hot-Swappable SATA/SAS Drive Bay

Read More...

Areca ARC-1210 - Storage controller (RAID) - 4 Channel - SATA-300 low profile - 300 MBps - RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 10, JBOD - PCI Express x8 Review

Areca ARC-1210 - Storage controller (RAID) - 4 Channel - SATA-300 low profile - 300 MBps - RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 10, JBOD - PCI Express x8
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I am a Linux user who had been running software mirroring with a couple Western Digital 1TB Black Edition drives and had been having frequent problems with drives dropping out of the RAID when using the SATA ports built into my motherboard. I've read some reviews about Areca a couple of years ago and finally decided to bite the bullet since this card was within my budget.
I installed the RAID controller and hooked up a couple of spare WD 1TB drives I had. At first I could not get into the BIOS to configure the RAID controller, but I was able to use the CLI tool on my 64-bit OpenSUSE 11.3 install. After creating a couple of volumes I went into Linux and partitioned them. I then started restoring everything onto a mirrored array after formatting my main partition as XFS. The first thing I noticed was how much faster it was than software RAID. I was quite pleased.
I then decided I might as well migrate to RAID 5 and so I added the other two drives to the array, setting one up as a spare. It took forever, but the card seamlessly converted everything to RAID 5 and I extended my main RAID volume. I then went to grow my filesystem and realized my mistake with using the Linux LVM on top of it. LVM would not grow the volume (not Areca's fault) so I went back and partitioned it without LVM and restored my data from backup. If I hadn't of used LVM this would have been painless. I also tuned the XFS filesystem to the RAID stripe size and number of drives to further improve performance.
I later went and bought the battery option so I could use the write-back cache reliably and it screams.
The documentation could be a lot better and there are times where it's apparent it was translated to English. This is also apparent when using the web interface, which was easy to set up.
The CLI does crash when I try and look at the SMART results, though the web server has no problem (apparently the latest update fixes this). I contacted Areca a couple of times and they have always been helpful and responsive.
My other choice would have been 3Ware, but I bought an IDE RAID card from them years ago and had a lot of problems with it (though new versions are supposedly a lot better).
Linux had no problems seeing the card since the drivers are open source and included with the kernel distribution.
It would be nice if the card could display additional SMART information like I got from smartmon tools as well as having the web interface be able to display some statistics.
Some people have complained that the fan is loud on this card. I have no complaints as it seems rather quiet. Included is an alternate heatsink without a fan which I did not install.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Areca ARC-1210 - Storage controller (RAID) - 4 Channel - SATA-300 low profile - 300 MBps - RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 10, JBOD - PCI Express x8

The ARC-12XX SATA ll RAID host adapter is a high-performance PCI-Express bus to SATA ll Disk Array host adapter. The controller can provide up to 4 8 12 or 16 SATA ll peripheral devices on a single host adapter. When properly configured the SATA host adapter can provide non-stop service with a high degree of fault tolerance through the use of RAID technology and advanced array management features. Intel IOP333 processor has integrated the RAID 6 engine inside. It offers Areca the advantage of reduced engineering and development costs by having the New RAID6 function build-in and integrated part saves on component costs and internal PCI bandwidth. Intel emphasis on architectural commonality in IOPs allows Areca developers to capitalize on their existing code base. Primary InformationDevice Type:Storage controller (RAID)Form Factor:Plug-in cardInterface Type:PCI-Express x 8Max Storage Devices Qty:4Controller Interface Type:Serial ATA IICache Buffer Size:128 MBFeatures:Chipset: Intel 80332 I/O Processor ; Cache Memory: 128MB on-board DDR333 SDRAM with ECC protectionDimensions&MiscellaneousDepth:2.5 InchHeight:6.6 InchHeader / Model:ARC-1210ExpansionInterfaces & Connections:Internal Connectors: 4x Serial ATA II (2 multi-layer SATA latch connectors)SoftwareSystem Requirements / OS Required:Windows 2000/XP/Server 2003 Redhat Linux SuSE Linux FreeBSDUNSPSC CodeUNSPSC Code:43201500

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Areca ARC-1210 - Storage controller (RAID) - 4 Channel - SATA-300 low profile - 300 MBps - RAID 0, 1, 3, 5, 6, 10, JBOD - PCI Express x8

Read More...