ds409 vs ds409+

[buck298]

What are the differences between the Synology DS409 and DS409+?

The steet prices I'm seeing are:
DS409 ==> $575
DS409+ ==> $699

That's quite a difference in price. There must be some significant differences between these two models. Is there anyone out there with knowledge of Synology products and naming convention who could speculate as to what the differences are?

It stikes me as somewhat odd that both models appear to be in stock at retailers, but that there is very very little information about these 2 different models. I see that Synology has info on their website about the 409+, but they appear to have no info about the 409.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm pretty hip on these right now and am seriously considering buying one.

[thiggins]

The difference is performance. Synology supports pretty much the same feature set (depending on # of drives) across its product line.

See this thread (http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showthread.php?t=1422).

[buck298]

Found a retail site that listed both models with specs. Here are the differences I could find:

DS409 DS409+
------------------ ------------------
1.2GHz CPU 1.06 GHz CPU
256MB RAM 512MB RAM
5 IP Cameras 10 IP Cameras
128 Max Connections 256 Max Connections
50 Watt (Load) 56 Watt (Load)
14 Watt (Hibernate) 20 Watt (Hibernate)

Obviously, the CPU GHz number doesn't tell you anything, but it does indicate that they are NOT the same. We could infer from the increased wattage, increased memory, increased IP camera support and increased price, that the 409+ is intended to out perform the DS409.

Question is, how much difference will this really make in real world tests? Guess we'll have to wait and find out.

[buck298]

I submitted a few questions to Synology regarding the ds409. Here are some snippets from the responses:

"the DS409 will not be available for distribution within North America (or even the world) until sometime during May or June."

I think that's a bit odd because several retails here are showing this as "in stock".

The web site will be updated when the DS409 will be available for distribution and purchase.

They acknowledge that info on the DS409 is not posted on their website, and likely won't be for another couple of months.

the average performance about the DS409 is around 35~40MB/Sec

This is in comparison to Synology's projected performance ratings of the DS409+ of 41~57MB/Sec. Even if these numbers are skewed by the vendor (and I'm not saying they are), it does go to show something about the relative performance of the DS409+ vs the DS409.

the DS409+ has a faster memory bus, as such, it’s more suited for multi-tasking or multi-user environments, and the DS409 is more suited towards a small workgroup

Confirming what Tim said above, the DS409+ is designed to deliver more high performance.

[buck298]

I've done a detailed comparison of many NAS devices and I think I've settled on Synology. I'm having a hard time deciding between the ds409 and ds409+.

I plan on using the UPnP features to deliver content to my home theater. I plan on using the SqueezeCenter. I plan on hosting a dokuwiki site. I plan to use the photoalbum feature. I plan to use the IP camera features with 2 or 3 cameras. Oh, and I plan to use it as a NAS, too!!!

I'm just worried that I'll over-tax the system with the use of all those features and that I'll be unhappy with the DS409.

This is an irrational fear based on absolutely no hard data. It's really hard to know the true performance impact of all these features. I have never seen benchmarks of any multi-function NAS with all the features turned on.

For reference, I considered the following:

Netgear ReadyNas NV+
Thecus N3200Pro
Thecus N5200Pro
Synology DS409
Synology DS409+
QNAP TS-409 Pro
QNAP TS-439 Pro


My requirements are:

RAID5, (non-negotiable)
one-touch backup from NAS to USB (for off-site backup)
UPnP with FLAC & VOB support
Photo Album capability out of the box
Web site hosting capability out of the box (multiple site support a plus)
IP camera functionality out of the box
Respectable performance
mixed client support (currently have Ubuntu, WinXP, and Vista)
works with SqueezeBoxDuet
web access to files


Any opinions out there?

[buck298]

The steet prices I'm seeing are:
DS409 ==> $575
DS409+ ==> $699

Found a source (which I've never heard of before) which lists shockingly low prices as follows:

DS409 ==> $444.57 (free shipping)
DS409+ ==> $ 589.44 (free shipping)

Don't know if I believe it. Still am undecided which to buy. I think I'm leaning towards the DS409 for a $150 savings over the DS409+.

[buck298]

Found a site that listed the CPU specs for the DS409 and DS409+. This is the first time I've seen the actual CPUs listed:

DS409 ==> Marvell 6281 1.2GHz, 256MB
DS409+ ==> Freescale MPC8533/1.06GHz, 512MB

Here are some others for reference:
DS509 ==> Marvell 6281 1.2GHz, 256MB (Same as DS409)
DS509+ ==> Freescale MPC8533/1.06GHz, 1GB (Same as DS409+ but with more RAM)
RS409+ ==> Freescale MPC8533/1.06GHz, 1GB (Same as DS409+ but with more RAM)
RS409RP+ ==> Freescale MPC8533/1.06GHz, 1GB (Same as DS409+ but with more RAM)
DS409 slim ==> Marvell 6281 1.2GHz, 128MB (Same as DS409 but with less RAM)

(Source: http://www.midispecialist.com/Pricelist_6.html)

[eclectic2k]

My requirements are:

RAID5, (non-negotiable)
one-touch backup from NAS to USB (for off-site backup)
UPnP with FLAC & VOB support
Photo Album capability out of the box
Web site hosting capability out of the box (multiple site support a plus)
IP camera functionality out of the box
Respectable performance
mixed client support (currently have Ubuntu, WinXP, and Vista)
works with SqueezeBoxDuet
web access to files


Any opinions out there?

Hi,

Curious how this turned out? I have nearly the same requirements, and I'm planning on the 409+.

Any comments would be great!
Thanks!

[thiggins]

Curious how this turned out? I have nearly the same requirements, and I'm planning on the 409+.
Synology DS409 and DS409+ Reviewed (http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/nas/nas-reviews/30838-synology-ds409-and-ds409-reviewed)