Reviews | Dong Knows Tech

Synology Releases DSM 7.3 to Walk Back 2025 Storage Lock-In HCL Policy, Allowing All Servers to Use Third-Party Drives

Oct 7, 2025

6 Min Read

With DSM 7.3 remove Synology 2025 storage lock in HCL policy and Synology branded drives are no longer the requirement on any NAS server

Today, October 7, 2025, Synology announces the availability of the latest incremental release of its DiskStation Manager (DSM) operating system, DSM 7.3, for its network-attached storage (NAS) servers. This update adds security fixes and some notable improvements, but you’ll likely be more interested in what it removes. Indeed. DSM 7.3 … Continue Reading

Ubiquiti UniFi Drive Review: A Pure Network-Attached Storage Approach

Dong Ngo

Oct 1, 2025

11 Min Read

2 Comments

UniFi Drive is the latest development within Ubiquiti’s UniFi ecosystem, designed to transform the host hardware device, often referred to as the UniFi console, into a network-attached storage (NAS) server, known as UniFi NAS or UNAS. Among over half a dozen UniFi applications, UniFi Drive is the youngest—less than a … Continue Reading

Ubiquiti UNAS 2 Review: A Straightforward, PoE-Powered Server of Core Network-Attached Storage

Dong Ngo

Sep 26, 2025

11 Min Read

2 Comments

The UNAS 2, specifically the white version, UNAS-2-W, is the first server available in Ubiquiti’s recently announced Next-Gen UniFi Storage lineup, which includes three additional servers set to arrive later in the year. It’s also the first from the company designed for general consumers—the debut model, the UNAS Pro, which … Continue Reading

UGREEN NASync DH4300 Plus Review (vs. Synology DS925+): An Affordable and Effective Mainstream 4-Bay NAS Server

Dong Ngo

Sep 4, 2025

9 Min Read

2 Comments

The DH4300 Plus is somewhat unexpected in UGREEN’s 2024-debut NASync family. The accessories maker quietly released it in late July, initially in the EU, as, for now, the sole server in the DH series, designed for mainstream users. Rumor has that there’s a 2-bay version, model DH2300, on the way. … Continue Reading

Synology DS225+ Review (vs. DS224+): A Solid Upgrade to 2.5GbE Connectivity

Dong Ngo

Aug 4, 2025

6 Min Read

8 Comments

The DiskStation DS225+, available in the US market on July 23, 2025, is Synology’s 2025 continuation of its 2-bay Plus series. I found this release somewhat unexpected, given that the DS224+ came out in 2024. Generally, Synology refreshes its Plus servers only when a model is at least two years … Continue Reading

Synology NAS: An Extended Guide into the Most Advanced and Increasingly Expensive Network-Attached Storage Ecosystem

Dong Ngo

Jul 30, 2025

20 Min Read

85 Comments

Years ago, somebody asked me about my most important piece of tech and was surprised when I said it was my NAS server—the Synology DS410, to be specific—and not the iPhone I was holding. That was true then. And it’s even more so now. In fact, with the benefit of … Continue Reading

Synology DiskStation DS1525+ NAS Server Review (vs. DS1522+): A Solid Multi-Gigabit Upgrade

Dong Ngo

Jul 15, 2025

7 Min Read

16 Comments

The Synology DiskStation DS1525+ network-attached storage (NAS) server, first available in the US on June 25, 2025, is arguably the best among Synology’s new and controversial 2025 releases. Here’s the bottom line: The contentious storage requirement aside, the DS1525+ is an excellent NAS server to buy today, worth its $799.99 … Continue Reading

Synology’s New DS725+ and DS1825+ Servers: Underwhelmingly Familiar NAS Releases

Dong Ngo

Jul 8, 2025

5 Min Read

2 Comments

Synology today officially releases its two additional DiskStation NAS servers in its Plus family, the DS1825+ and DS725+. Judging from their hardware specs, while the former can pass for a minor four-year upgrade to the previous DS1821+, the latter, like the recently available DS925+, is an outright downgrade compared to the … Continue Reading