Introduction

I would like to thank Synology for supplying the review sample.


After the DS1621+, Synology's first Ryzen-based NAS which I reviewed a while ago, it was time to evaluate an Intel-powered NAS. The DS1520+ is equipped with a quad-core Intel Celeron J4125 clocked at 2 GHz under normal conditions and at 2.7 GHz when things get tough. It is also equipped with 8 GB of DDR4 non-ECC RAM, which is enough given its operating system is not resource hungry. Besides the five bays for drives, it also has two M.2 drives slots for NVMe drives, typically used as cache storage. If five drive bays are not enough, you can connect a couple of DX517 expansion units and increase this number to 15! Note that these DX517 units are not cheap at around $600. Still, it is nice to have the option to upgrade the server's storage instead of having to move to another server or NAS.

The DS1520+ is not for the average user, who would usually pick a two-bay NAS to keep the expenditure as low as possible. This NAS is ideal for small offices, or larger ones with the addition of an expansion unit. It is also suitable for enthusiast users wanting high network transfer speeds and loads of storage space. The only problem is that it doesn't support an optional 10 GbE network card because it lacks a free PCIe port. That having been said, the slightly more expensive DS1621+ can take such a card, so if you have a 10 GbE switch or plan to upgrade soon, you had better keep this limitation in mind. The four Gigabit Ethernet ports of the DS1520+ can be combined for up to 400 Mbit speeds, which is still not as fast as 10 GbE, and you will have to use four Ethernet cables to connect the NAS to a switch that supports Link Aggregation. Another downside compared to the DS1621+, which costs $100 more, is that the DS1621+ uses an internal power supply while the DS1520+ is powered through an external adapter. Internal PSUs offer better performance, more power, and are more reliable since they have lower operating temperatures. Power adapters, on the other hand, are easier to replace if something goes wrong.

Specifications

This is not a budget-centric NAS. It mainly addresses small office environments and enthusiast users with an increased budget for their home server. A three-year warranty has been included, and around an additional $100 will get you their EW201 bundle, which extends it to five years.