No matter which enclosure you pick, I’d recommend buying them from Amazon, if possible. They won’t win any awards for performance, but they’re excellent for storing files. If you’re just starting out with your very first NAS enclosure, I’d recommend either the Synology DiskStation DS120j or DS220j as Synology’s more affordable servers. Interestingly, no matter which NAS you choose from Synology, you’ll be able to enjoy the company’s excellent operating system, DSM. It has everything you need in a mid-range NAS enclosure, including an Intel Celeron processor, two drive bays, upgradeable RAM, and two 1Gb LAN ports. If I was to pick one, however, my best overall recommendation would go to the Synology DiskStation DS220+. This also goes for Synology’s catalogue of NAS models. There’s no single best NAS for everyone since no two enclosures are built the same and they’re designed for various use cases.

Best 4-bay: Synology DiskStation DS420+ - Intel CPU, 4 bays, 2GB RAM, 1Gb LAN.

Best budget: Synology DiskStation DS220j - ARM CPU, 2 bays, 512MB RAM, 1Gb LAN.Best capacity: Synology DiskStation DS3622xs+ - Intel CPU, 12 bays, 16GB RAM, 10Gb LAN.Best for Plex: Synology DiskStation DS920+ - Intel CPU, 4 bays, 4GB RAM, 1Gb LAN.Best entry-level: Synology DiskStation DS120j - ARM CPU, 1 bays, 512MB RAM, 1Gb LAN.

Best overall: Synology DiskStation DS220+ - Intel CPU, 2 bays, 2GB RAM, 1Gb LAN.

Synology makes numerous models of network-attached storage (NAS) enclosures, but which one would be best for you? I’ve rounded up my favourite models from the company, including an affordable enclosure and one that’s well kitted out for running Plex Media Server.

Best nas for home photos video