Over the last few years, we’ve reviewed a couple of network-attached storage (NAS) devices from Synology. We first got our hands on the entry-level DS215j, one of the predecessors of the modern-day DS218j, and then we tested the enterprise-focused DS716+II, which has since been succeeded by the DS718+. Synology is one of the leading manufacturers of NAS devices, providing versatile boxes that will find favor with enthusiasts as well as small- to medium-sized businesses.

We’ve used one of our previous reviews to describe at length what a NAS is and who might need one, so if you aren’t sure whether you need one, we suggest you read up before proceeding further. The model that we will be reviewing today is the Synology DiskStation DS218+, which sits in between the two models that we’ve reviewed earlier.

The DS218+ is a two-bay NAS that’s powered by an Intel Celeron J3355 dual-core processor capable of speeds up to 2.5 GHz. It has 2GB of DDR3L RAM that, Synology says, can be expanded by 4GB by utilizing the second available memory slot. Like other Synology units, you can put 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch SATA drives (hard disk or SSD) into each bay. The DS218+ supports drives of up to 14TB each, giving you a maximum internal raw capacity of 28TB.

You get three USB 3.0 ports, 1 Gigabit Ethernet port, 1 eSATA port, and a copy button that can be used to quickly copy data from an external drive, as we’ve described earlier.

The Synology DS218+ looks like the DS716+II/ DS718+ at a glance, but this one has a front cover that has a tendency to come loose rather easily.t least this isn’t something you’d be mucking about with on a daily basis. Like its siblings, the DS218+ is pretty unobtrusive, measuring 165mm x 108mm x 232.2 mm and weighing 1.3kg without drives.

The fan does a decent job of keeping the enclosure cool without getting loud, though with an operating temperature range of 5°C to 40°C you will want to use it in relatively cool environments, by Indian standards. Synology says the unit is capable of reaching speeds of up to 113Mbps for encrypted reads and 112MBps while performing encrypted writes, but that depends on a variety of factors including the drives you use.

The DS218+ comes with a few enterprise-grade features such as AES-NI hardware encryption, a virtual machine manager, and a MailPlus Server license allowing you to run a hosted email solution. It supports more concurrent users in Synology’s Office, Drive, and Chat collaboration apps as compared to other consumer NAS units in the company’s lineup, though something like the DS718+ is obviously still a step-up. Synology has a strong portfolio of apps — called packages — that you can install via the Package Centre, a sort of App Store for your Synology NAS.

You can search for packages, browse through the store to see what catches your eye, and update them, similar to the Mac App Store or the app stores on your mobile device. At the time of filing this review, around 60 packages were are available from Synology itself and roughly another 70 from third parties. You can also sideload packages from third-party sources. In our previous reviews, we’ve covered some of the consumer- and enterprise-focused Synology packages as well as apps for mobile devices