Conclusion
Once again, Synology offers a particularly nice high end product with good construction, a fine interface, a variety of quality functions and (especially) the high raw performances. The sustained SMB speeds of the DS508 literally blow the competition away. New functions are impressive and the Surveillance Station is very user-friendly. The cherry on the cake is that the evolution from four to five drives only has a limited impact on sound levels and power consumption. Moreover, this last aspect can be optimized with the startup planner. Overall, the DS508 is a success.
However, we think the DS508 could mature a little more. Indeed, we had the impression that Synology didn’t always go all the way in certain areas: the DS508 takes up to 5 drives but does not offer tolerance for a two drive failure or the support for two spare drives; it has two Ethernet ports but these are not 802.3ad compatible; raw speeds are excellent but this NAS still has a weakness in the transfer of small sized files; a startup planner is finally available but has limited capabilities; and finally, NFS management requires specific operations instead of being directly activated in the interface (and it isn't like there were no efforts made in this domain). In short, the DS508 proves to be a bit frustrating and we almost feel like it is a sports car but stuck in third gear.
Luckily, it was announced that some of these complaints (notably, Raid 6 and 802.3ad) will be taken into account by the next firmware update planned for September. Obviously, good intentions are not enough and we will have to wait and see what actually happens.
So how does the DS508 compare to the competition? The Thecus N5200BR Pro, its direct rival, has the following advantages: iSCSI, Raid 6, spare drive, USB Wifi, and Wake on lan support; evolved Raid migration functions; a third USB port with automatic loading of storage that is connected to it; an LCD display; a complete startup planner; and an integrated 4 port switch (on the “R” version). In addition, it has better performances with small files while the version without the switch enables saving almost 120€ (taxes included) versus 70 € for the version with the switch.
However it does have its disadvantages: a less refined interface with fewer options overall (notably with too few parameters for some functions) which is poorly translated; no encrypted FTP support; no ITunes, Web PHP/MySQL or photo server; no downloading utility or USB speaker support while the sound levels, temperature of drives and power consumption are higher. Performances in reading are also largely inferior.
Finally, we should point out that Synology will also release the DS508 in rack version. The RS408 will thus have a new physical architecture (Freescale circuit and 512 MB of memory) but capacity will remain the same at four drives like the RS407. In addition, another version with an uninterruptible power supply, called the RS408-RP, will be released. Also, keep in mind that there are no plans for a CS408, at least for this year. The CS407 will therefore still be in the catalogue for some time.
We liked:– the raw performances!
– five drives in hotswap ;
– the interface, the variety and quality of functions, notably the Surveillance Station ;
– the startup planner;
– the eSATA port ;
– the finishing touches, robustness and look ;
– sound levels were equivalent to those of the CS407.
We didn’t like:– performances with the copying of small files;
– limited Raid migration functions;
– no Raid 6 or spare drive support;
– no 802.3ad compatibility;
– startup planner doesn’t let you set the specific week day;
– activation of NFS requires a Telnet connection;
– not entirely silent yet!
