ASUSTOR AS5304T review: A top-notch NAS for game streamers, creators and 4K movie fans

ASUSTOR AS5304T Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central

The ASUSTOR AS5304T is a new domicile network-fastened storage (NAS) server that takes some cues from gaming hardware, resulting in a NAS that looks anything but ho-hum. Information technology packs capable components and supports not merely streamers with file storage but likewise 4K media consumers who use Plex and other 3rd-political party services.

How does this NAS compare to similarly priced models from QNAP, Synology and TerraMaster? You may not accept heard ASUS makes NAS servers, but this is worth because.

Draconic performance

ASUSTOR AS5304T

$479

Bottom line: This four-bay NAS from ASUSTOR packs a mighty punch, rocking dual 2.5Gb LAN ports, a beefy Intel processor, and a killer OS.

Pros

Gaming-inspired design
Beefy Intel CPU
Upgradable RAM
Loads of apps
2.5Gb LAN

Cons

Pricey
No 10Gb LAN
Bay locks feel flimsy
No NVMe cache

ASUSTOR AS5304T tech specs

Category	ASUSTOR AS5304T
CPU	Intel Celeron J4105
RAM	4GB DDR4 (upgradable to 8GB)
Drive trophy	iv (SSD/HDD)
Capacity	64TB
Cooling	120mm fan
Ports	1x HDMI ii.0a 2x 2.5Gb LAN 3x USB 3.2 Gen i (1 front, 2 back)
Power describe	27W
Dimensions	170 10 174 ten 230 mm (6.69 10 6.85 x 9.05 inches)
Weight	2.ii kg (4.85 lbs)

ASUSTOR AS5304T is a stunning NAS for gamers

Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central

There's normally non a whole lot to a NAS. Information technology's a black shell, sporting an integrated PCB with pre-installed CPU and RAM and a few drive bays for storage. That'south about information technology, aside from the differing OS, which depends on the vendor y'all choose. Models differ in hardware, though that will simply really impact how many people can simultaneously utilize installed services.

2 two.5Gb ports and a powerful Intel CPU make for a truly compelling NAS for streamers and creators.

The AS5304T is a little different in this regard. ASUSTOR decided to buck the trend by gamifying its NAS to not only physically look unique merely too stone some capable specs. From the exterior, it'southward even so a black slab, only you've got blood-red accents and some subtle design accents that get in a little more appealing to the heart. Unlike gaming peripherals, there are no LEDs, aside from condition indicators.

On the front end, you've got a clever magnetic plastic console that hides the bulldoze bays, the aforementioned LED lights, a power button, and a single USB 3.two Gen 1 port. The pinnacle and sides are completely bare, leaving the rear to business firm the single 120mm fan, two more USB three.2 Gen 1 ports, two two.5Gb Ethernet LAN ports, and finally HDMI 2.0a.

These are specs that other NAS models in this price range just exercise not offer. Dual ii.5Gb LAN is handy for improving the throughput of data, should your router or switch be able to handle the increment in speeds. Yous tin fifty-fifty link the two ports up to essentially double the bandwidth. Compared to a unmarried or dual 1Gb connection other NAS models have, this is a substantial upgrade.

It's not quite 10Gb, but at this cost signal, it's a notable benefit of this server and is part of what helps ASUSTOR marketplace this NAS for streamers, creators, and homeowners.

The Intel Celeron J4105 isn't a one thousand thousand miles away from the J3455 installed on the popular Synology DS918+, but it'south a quad-core processor with enough guts to handle some 4K transcoding. In such a small, relatively inexpensive unit, that's rather impressive.

So too are the tool-less installation of hard drives (SSDs require some screws) and the upgradable RAM, only in case you experience like actually seeing what the AS5304T tin practice by bumping information technology up to 8GB — and the RAM is DDR4, not DDR3 as found in many home NAS out there.

Picking the best drives for your NAS

Seagate IronWolf NAS SSD Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central

Sure, information technology's possible to take an old hard drive out of your desktop and apply information technology inside a NAS, just you won't get many of the benefits that come up with a drive specifically designed for NAS use. We rounded upwardly the best NAS drives available to kit out the ASUSTOR AS5304T.

How to choose the right bulldoze for your NAS

The four trophy let for the installation of up to 64TB of storage chapters, which drops downwardly to simply 32TB if y'all opt to utilise a grade of RAID protection — and you really should when it comes to storing any form of information. To proceed all this tech cool is a single 120mm fan on the rear, which is barely noticeable, even when the unit of measurement runs a little warmer.

And run warmer information technology shall if you choose to use this unit of measurement for storing all your stream broadcasts, which can be configured without whatsoever delay or decrease in quality to the stream itself. Sure, you could use an external streaming PC or a desktop you may accept at your disposal, simply offloading the sheer amount of data you need to store to an external dedicated platform is a smart motility.

Intel's Celeron J4105 offers considerable performance

ASUSTOR AS5304T Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Primal

If you've used NAS from other vendors before, you'll feel accustomed to the ASUSTOR Data Manager (ADM), which is the Bone running on the NAS. It's similar to competitor software, but instead of a desktop-like appearance for apps and services it more resembles a tablet.

Using the ADM is simple enough. When first powering up the NAS, you're greeted by the install wizard, which runs you through diverse configuration screens to get the NAS set up and ready to use. The installation process takes just a few moments, and an optional ASUSTOR business relationship can be created for easier remote admission.

The ADM supports diverse tertiary-political party services, including popular ones like Plex Media Server. Installing and updating these packages is equally elementary equally other NAS models, requiring you to visit the app store and hitting a button, much like you do on your smartphone. The settings panel can exist accessed to change a whole host of options on the NAS, from fan speed settings to RAID.

This NAS almost tripled the speed of what other NAS with 1Gb ports are capable of.

In terms of speed, the AS5304T is pretty much king in the area, outperforming similarly priced TerraMaster and Synology models. Moving a folder with some music, 4K movies and a flavor of The Vikings in Total Hard disk was speedy across the local network at 250MB/south. This NAS almost tripled the speed of what other NAS with 1Gb ports are capable of.

In order to truly appreciate just how rapid this NAS is, you'll need a 10Gb switch and a PC with a motherboard or LAN PCIe bill of fare that houses a 10Gb port. Doing so will ensure your domicile setup will be futurity proof, and you could even become away with using this NAS with 1Gb connections with the aim of upgrading your infrastructure at a later engagement.

For streaming content, you lot'll easily be able to transport recordings to this NAS while you lot broadcast to viewers. Watching 4K movies on other devices shouldn't be too much trouble, either. Watching a 4K TV evidence on a Samsung TV, I did encounter minor stuttering, but it was vastly better than other home NAS servers, and to be fair if you desire quality 4K streaming, you demand to spend the big bucks.

What yous might dislike about the ASUSTOR AS5304T

ASUSTOR AS5304T Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central

The dual two.5Gb LAN setup on this NAS is a welcomed upgrade compared to similarly priced competitor models, merely I can just epitome what would have been possible with two 10Gb links. Especially if you lot plan on calculation the AS5304T to your arsenal of media hardware, the added bandwidth may accept been a better fit on your network. But if ASUSTOR was to add such a characteristic, yous'd probable see a considerable toll hike.

This NAS is a little on the pricey side already. It's actually considerably more affordable than the DS918+ from Synology I referenced earlier, with slightly beefier specs, but it may still be out of reach for those who but exercise non take the available budget to spare.

Some other pocket-size thing I noticed with the AS5304T is how flimsy the locking mechanism for the bulldoze bays feels when attempting to install drives. At that place's also a lack of cache. With some other NAS servers, it'southward possible to install a super-fast NVMe SSD for use as a cache of sorts, boosting performance. Information technology's a shame the AS5304T doesn't have such functionality. This would take been the icing on a rather tasty cake.

Should you lot buy the ASUSTOR AS5304T?

ASUSTOR AS5304T Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central

Whether yous need a NAS for storing all your stream recordings or to stream your favorite TV shows from Plex, the ASUSTOR AS5304T is a great server to own. It'due south a little on the pricey side, but you lot become a capable hub that can fifty-fifty transcode some 4K content, something other similarly-priced models cannot attain without the considerable visual stutter.

The unique gamer-oriented design also makes this NAS stand up out, instead of being a mere slab of black plastic and metal. It's a solid-looking piece of kit that rocks a friendly OS, assuasive y'all to get fix up and running in mere minutes. With four bays and support for RAM upgrades, it's possible to really become all out and create quite the powerful dwelling media server.

Streaming NAS

ASUSTOR AS5304T

A pricey but powerful NAS

With Intel'due south Celeron J4105 quad-core CPU, this ASUSTOR NAS is set up to handle your alive stream content for storage, as well as home media and some 4K movies.

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