As I said from the outset, Synology have always impressed us with their products and so this new range for 2013 fills us with much anticipation.

Between DS211 and DS212 there were no hardware upgraded between the models but with DS213 we have an upgrade. CPU frequency is higher; memory capacity is bigger, as is the HDD storage capacity. This is music to our ears; it may not be a huge improvement but it is an upgrade nonetheless and it is to be welcomed. DSM favours these improvements and responsiveness is undoubtedly better. Due to these upgrades the power consumption has improved but a mere 1W is nothing to complain about. Externally, the unit remains the same as DS212. Both in its physical dimensions and styling. This is an area which doesn’t actually need any redesign, the unit looks sleek and professional; build quality is very good.

As we have found in the past, Synology’s DSM Operating System is just fantastic. Its feature-set puts the user in total control and offers numerous useful features such as Media Server, Audio Station, Photo Station, Download facilities, Mail Server, Surveillance Station via IP cameras and much more.


In this review I demonstrated how easy the Audio Station is to use both via pictures and video. Some may not want to use this feature but even so, it is testament to Synology’s wealth of expertise and the passion they have in providing a feature-rich experience.

The only aspect that could be improved with this unit is the SATA 3 functionality; as I mentioned with the previous generation. This storage interface still isn’t supported and yet the price of such drives are dropping significantly. Synology should implement compatibility for SATA 3.

Priced at £250inc VAT (GBP) the DS213 sits reasonably priced. As NAS units go, DS213 is affordable and gives home users countless useful tools.

Synology’s new DS213 gives small businesses and even home users total control at their finger-tips. Performance was already strong with DS212 and now with a hardware upgrade, even more so. Combine a DS213 with DSM 4.0 and the recipe for an excellent network solution is guaranteed. Another impressive device from Synology, another Gold award from Vortez.