Friday, November 26, 2021
Network-attached storage (NAS) enclosures are small servers that allow you to do some incredible things at home and in the office. Whether you plan to create and run a media server using Plex Media Server or manage a file storage solution, the best NAS for home enclosure is precisely what you require. The thing is, it's easy to buy the wrong NAS.
Black Friday NAS deals:
There are so many models to choose from, and multiple vendors offer similar enclosures at varying price points. This does mean you can score some deals on new enclosures, especially as we move towards the end of the year. We're here to help you make the right decision and save some money in the process this Black Friday.
Choosing the best NAS for Plex is a little trickier since the processor becomes vastly more important, if not the most important, deciding factor. If you plan on storing and streaming 4K content, you'll need to make sure your recipient devices (TV, consoles, PCs, etc.) support the same format your media is saved in. If not, the NAS will need to transcode it, which requires considerable performance.
Best Black Friday NAS deals
Choosing the best NAS involves a few factors, namely price, processor, and the number of drive bays. The better the processor, the more drive bays available, and advanced features like 10Gb networking can inflate prices quickly. Whatever you happen to be looking for in a NAS, we've rounded up some of the best enclosures available on offer right now.
Synology DiskStation DS220+ | Save $60!
$240 at Amazon $300 at Walmart
The Synology DiskStation DS220+ has everything you need, including an Intel Celeron J4025 processor, 2GB of DDR4 RAM (upgradable to 6GB), and two drive bays for a total storage capacity of 32TB. This is one of the best NAS enclosures for the home, Plex, and for beginners. It's a steal at this discounted price.
QNAP TS-451D2-4G | $50 off
The QNAP TS-451D2 is one of the company's best enclosures for the home and office, offering excellent value. This server has four drive bays, an Intel Celeron J4025 CPU, and 4GB of DDR4 RAM. If you want to run anything from a file server to a Plex Media Server, this is a great system.
QNAP TS-230 | $20 off
The QNAP TS-230 is an affordable two-bay NAS enclosure with a Realtek RTD1296 ARM processor, 2GB of DDR4 RAM, and a single 1Gb LAN port. It's not the most powerful NAS around, but it's perfect for your first enclosure or for some file storage.
QNAP TS-253D | $84 off
The QNAP TS-253D is another two-bay NAS, but has an Intel Celeron J4125 quad-core processor, two 2.5Gb LAN ports, plenty of USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports, and an excellent OS. Remember to use discount code BFFRDY36!
QNAP TS-431K | $30 off
This is an affordable NAS with four drive bays, allowing you to pack it full of HDDs. Inside, the QNAP TS-431K is powered by AnnapurnaLabs Alpine AL214 ARM processor, 1GB of DDR3 RAM, and two 1Gb LAN ports.
QNAP TS-251D-4G | $40 off
The QNAP TS-251D is a great NAS for the home. It has 4GB of DDR3L RAM, an Intel Celeron Apollo Lake processor, two drive bays, and a 1Gb LAN port. If you want to set up a backup machine, file server, or home media streaming platform, this is a solid place to start.
Buffalo Terastation 5410DN | $600 off
If you want hard drives to already be installed, configured and the entire NAS ready to go, the Buffalo Terastation 5410DN is a good choice. The price is high largely due to 32TB of storage being pre-installed with all four drive bays populated. Then there's 10Gb LAN, an Annapurna Labs quad-core processor, and 4GB of DDR3 RAM. Use code BCMAY22327 at checkout to get the full discount.
QNAP TS-453D-4G | $110 off
The TS-453D-4G has the requisite hardware for Plex 4K transcoding, and with 2.5GbE connectivity, four drive bays that can hold up to 64TB, three USB 3.0 ports, and HDMI out, you're not missing out on any features here. Combine that with easy-to-use software and you get a great package.
Where to find the best Black Friday NAS deals
Black Friday NAS deals are expected to start soon (if not already), and we're keeping tabs on the best sales right here. However, you can always check out individual stores to see for yourself what kind of deals are currently available. Amazon is one of the more popular destinations, but you must be wary of third-party listings and inflated prices.
- Amazon: Great prices, just watch for third-party listings
- Newegg: Another great retailer to check some NAS deals
- Best Buy: Numerous discounted NAS drives are listed at this retailer
When do Black Friday NAS deals begin?
It's possible some NAS enclosure deals will go live in the run-up to Black Friday. We'll see the full brunt of promotions on Nov. 26, but retailers are attempting to get ahead by guaranteeing prices right now. Be sure to keep tabs on the aforementioned retailers during the actual week of Black Friday, starting Monday, Nov. 22, when we're hoping to see deals go live.
Don't be shy if a product you've been after for some time is now available for less as the retailer may guarantee the price throughout Black Friday, so you won't feel left out. Just watch out for the guarantee messages to be sure you're not going to see a lower price closer to Black Friday.
Plex Pass lifetime
Plex Pass is an amazing service for anyone with countless GBs worth of movies, shows, and music. It's what allows you to transform a small NAS enclosure into a powerful media hub. Just remember to use the code LIFETIMEOFCOMFORT to get the 25% discount!
Black Friday NAS deals: Drives
You could install some old desktop-class hard drives inside a NAS enclosure and call it a day, but that wouldn't work well. Hard drives used in desktop PCs simply aren't designed to run continuously and be hammered by countless users. It could work, but you'll likely run into reliability issues.
WD Red Plus 4TB | $35 off
Western Digital's Red Plus series of hard drives are specifically designed for NAS use, and the 4TB model is on sale at Best Buy for just $85. Considering the 1TB entry drive is usually $60, this is excellent value for packing your server with storage. It's a 5,400 RPM drive with a maximum transfer rate of 150MB/s.
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