QNAP TS-233 review

QNAP TS-233 is an entry-level 2-bay NAS for backup on an ordinary Gigabit home network. QNAP lists an ARM Cortex-A55 quad-core 2 GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, one Gigabit LAN port and two SATA 6Gb/s bays that install without a screwdriver. Its NPU speeds up face recognition in the QuMagie photo app, which QNAP puts at 6x faster. QNAP Labs measured 114 MB/s download and 103 MB/s upload over 1GbE, which is about the ceiling for that port. Backup tools are broad for the class: NetBak Replicator for Windows, Time Machine for macOS, phone photo auto-upload, a One-Touch Copy button for USB drives and Hybrid Backup Sync for Google Drive. AES-NI 256 encryption protects volumes and shared folders. The Gigabit port and 2 GB of RAM limit it next to the 2.5GbE models. QNAP's US page does not show a price, so the USD check is pending. We compared documented features and published prices; we did not test the NAS ourselves.

Who it is for

entry-level home backup on a Gigabit network

Price

See vendor pricing (USD check pending).

US price check pending. See the vendor pricing page.

Key features

• ARM Cortex-A55 quad-core 2 GHz processor and 2 GB RAM
• One Gigabit LAN port and two SATA 6Gb/s bays
• NPU with 6x faster face recognition in QuMagie per QNAP
• AES-NI 256 hardware-accelerated encryption for volumes and shared folders
• QTS 5 with Hybrid Backup Sync, NetBak Replicator and Time Machine support

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: QNAP Labs measured 114 MB/s download and 103 MB/s upload over 1GbE
• Strength: Tool-free drive installation
• Strength: One-Touch Copy button backs up USB drives
• Weakness: Gigabit port only, slower than the 2.5GbE models
• Weakness: QNAP's US page shows no direct price, so the USD check is pending
• Weakness: 2 GB of RAM

Key facts

• Price checked: USD check pending
• Bays: 2
• CPU and RAM: ARM Cortex-A55 2 GHz, 2 GB
• Network: 1x 1GbE
• OS: QTS 5

Where it ranks

QNAP TS-233 is No. 8 in our Best NAS Drives verdict.