Multipurpose NAS - Synology DS418play or DS918+ or Something Else

[Damiangjy]

Hi all,

 

I intend to set up a NAS for my family with the following few uses (in order of priority):

1. Storage hub for consolidating decade's worth of family media (photos, videos)
2. Data hub for backing up important documents/installation files for old programs with RAID redundancy
3. Streaming server for downloaded TV shows/movies for the entire family
4. Hosting dedicated game servers so that my friends can game when my computer is not turned on

The last point can be ignored if that isn't possible on a consumer grade NAS.

 

I intend to use this NAS for a looooong time, like 7-10 years minimally, thus allowing me to stretch my dollar. My budget is about $600 USD/$750 CAD for the NAS itself (without the drives). Altogether, I expect to spend $1000 CAD initially for the NAS and at least 2 HDDs for a RAID 1 setup.

 

I have these two models in my shortlist as I like the idea of the Synology Hybrid RAID, giving me the option of upgrading my storage incrementally as my needs increase, perhaps a couple of years down the road. However, I'm open to suggestions for models from other reputable brands if there is a compelling enough justification. For the sake of upgradability, I've also thrown out all 2-bay NASes from consideration.

 

This is the first NAS unit I'm buying and those are all the important stuff I've gathered so far.

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!