Synology DiskStation DS119j: Low-Cost Home NAS Server

If you’re thinking of dabbling into home network storage, Synology has something for you. Today, the NAS server maker announced the DS119j NAS  server that costs just $99.99 (diskless), one of the most inexpensive NAS servers on the market.

The low cost does come with a big catch since this is a single-bay server with no redundancy option, meaning if the drive dies, you’ll lose all your data. The server has two USB ports to host additional storage devices if you need a backup plan. Unfortunately, these are both USB 2.0 ports and not USB 3.0 or faster.

The server supports standard SATA drives, and you can use any drive with it. (I recommend either the WD Red or the Seagate IronWolf). As of now, you can have up to 14TB of storage space with a single drive.

Powered by a Marvell Armada 3700 88F3720 CPU running at 800MHz and 256GB of RAM, Synology says the DS119j has low power consumption, just 5.01 watts when idle and 10.04 watts when in operation. It's also quiet.

The new server runs Synology’s DiskStation Manager (DSM) operating system. As a result, it shares most of the features and applications with other higher-end servers, like the DS218+ or the DS1618+.

Thus among other things, you can use it as a robust media, file, and backup/sync server. It can also work as a host for a comprehensive surveillance system. In this case, it supports up to 5 IP cameras though it includes only two licenses.

In all, the DS119j is an excellent option for an entry-level NAS server. Like Synology servers, you can always move its hard drive to a new and more powerful server later, then even add more drives and still retains all the data and most system settings.

The new DiskStation DS119j is available now. It comes with a two-year warranty. If you have an old hard drive lying around, this server will make great use of it while ringing in a lot of fun.