Can This 2-Bay NAS Be Your Next Media Center Solution? – Qnap TS-251B Review

Qnap TS-251B

The Qnap TS-251B arrived ina  mostly brown box which is what I have come to expect with NAS appliances from the major brands such as Thecus, Synology and Qnap. it has a small applique decal to show which model is specifically in the box which I do commend as it allows less product specific boxes and less waste should a product go EOL. This is great for our environment. I am not a tree hugger by any means but having worked on the manufacturing side, I have seen what kind of waste boxes can be and its startling.

Here is everything that comes in the box. the accessory box opens up to reveal the following.

• 1x Power cable
• 1x power brick
• Quick Guides and warranty leaflet
• HDD installation screws (for more secure mounting)
• Cat 5e network cable

Here we get our first looks at the Qnap TS-251B out of the box. You will notice I smeared out the “cloud key” as much as I love our readers I don’t need any of them remotely connecting into this NAS on my network as I am doing long term testing. Unless of course, you plan to add to my meme library of course 🙂

the overall appearance is clean and the unit is white which means it has the potential to blend into a subdued apple-esque environment. However I do like black boxes like this as they tend to fade away when you don’t want to see them which I rarely do, but I know some folks may have these on their desk vs my IT cabinet.

The front panel has the LED status indicators along with a USB 3.0 port which can be used for quickly accessing and transferring data.

the Rear I/O is well stocked for most users.

• 3x 3.5mm audio ports (2x Microphone, 1x line out)
• 1x HDMI 1.4b port (up to 3840×2160 @30hz)
• 1x Gigabit LAN port
• 1x USB 3.0 port
• 3x USB 2.0 ports
• DC power jack
• Rear Exhaust Fan
• Rear Speaker holes/grille (this thing talks to you, no, im not kidding.. Yes, it startled me)
• Rear PCIe Slot Cutout for the addition of add-in cards (PCIe Gen 2 x2)
  • M.2 Adapter (caching)
  • 10Gbe network card
  • WiFi Card (make the device wireless)
• Kensington Lock (makes it harder to steal)

the outer shell oif plastic clad, and now its time to rip her apart and see what makes the Qnap TS-251B tick.