INTRODUCTION
If you are currently using a NAS server then you are definitely aware of the countless options available in the market as we speak from the low end single bay models designed for home use and up to the massive ultra-high end 24 bay models aimed at large businesses. What you may not be aware however is that no matter how good a NAS server is most if not all of these options come without any preinstalled drives in their bays and although some distributors take it upon themselves to equip them with their favorite drive models in the end the result is not what I’d call a plug and play AIO solution. Seagate is amongst the very few manufacturers that actually took steps to correct this by designing their very own NAS models and pairing them with their own drives in order to simplify the entire procedure and offer consumers the easy way out. Today we will be taking a look at the base model by Seagate the Business Storage 1-Bay 3TB NAS.
Founded in 1979, Seagate is the leading provider of hard drives and storage solutions. From the videos, music and documents we share with friends and family on social networks, to servers that form the backbone of enterprise data centers and cloud-based computing, to desktop and notebook computers that fuel our personal productivity, Seagate products help more people store, share and protect their valuable digital content. Seagate offers the industry’s broadest portfolio of hard disk drives, solid-state drives and solid-state hybrid drives. In addition, the company offers an extensive line of retail storage products for consumers and small businesses, along with data-recovery services for any brand of hard drive and digital media type. Seagate employs more than 50,000 people around the world.
After taking a quick look at the specifications sheet of the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS it's very easily see that it pales to comparison with most modern NAS servers in the market (even single bay models) and that's what obviously made us question its performance prior to start testing. However what we failed to take into account was that thanks to the fact that Seagate has the ability to marry all components together (HDD included) that alone is enough to make a big difference. Of course in the end no matter how better a NAS is built if the hardware components are severely inferior to that of the competition there's simply no room for miracles. Still the 700MHz ECONA CNS3420 Dual Core ARM based SoC processor with its 256MB of DRAM clearly surpassed our expectations (as you will all see later on) and confirmed once again that our friends over at Seagate can achieve whatever they set their minds on.
SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS
This is mostly a business oriented product so the box in which it arrived is quite plain with the model name at the front and a large product picture.
The system requirements, package contents, technical specifications and features of the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS are placed on both sides of the box.
Moving at the rear Seagate has placed all the possible usages of the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS in 8 languages.
The device is packed between two plastic spacers much like a hard drive (the rest of the bundle is placed inside the cardboard box next to the NAS).
Aside the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS inside the box Seagate has also placed a power adapter with two tips (EU/UK), LAN cable, software CD, warranty paper and a quickstart manual.
THE BUSINESS STORAGE 1-BAY
The Business Storage 1-Bay NAS has a nice glossy fascia and is quite small measuring 147mm in height, 60mm in width and 172mm in depth with a weight of 1.44kg (it's basically just like an desktop HDD).
Naturally since the chassis is quite small (not much larger than the HDD inside) ventilation holes are placed both at the sides and the top.
At the front we see the Seagate logo, one-touch copy button, two activity LEDs (system health, HDD activity) and a USB 3.0 port.
The rear of the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS model is also perforated and has large sticker with the units serial number, part number, barcode, capacity and MAC address.
At first i was worried that Seagate hadn't placed an on/off power button since i didn't see one at the front but fortunately it's placed at the rear right next to the DC power in, a USB 3.0 port and a Gigabit Ethernet port.
Turning the NAS over we see that the base is also perforated and that there's also a reset button present.
INSTALLATION
The latest firmware, software and GNL source code updates can be downloaded from the official Seagate support page.
As you can all see the setup wizard guides you through all the necessary steps to configure the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS with ease.
Once you fill out the administrator password, time zone, date/time and set the network mode you will end up at this welcome screen.
WEB INTERFACE PART 1
The Dashboard is the main page that shows pretty much everything at a glance but you can't really do much through here.
The Business Storage 1-Bay 3TB NAS doesn't offer the same functionality/features as most of the full-fledged NAS Servers we've tested in the past but it does offer what the majority of users will ever need. So starting with the System tab here you can check various information such as the current firmware version installed, the units serial number, uptime, date and time, you can set the preferred IP address, add your very own SSL certificate key, check the current state of the HDD, manage the various power settings (you can even schedule them according to day), perform firmware updates and finally change the administrator password.
The Network tab is self-explanatory really so in here you can find everything related with the network so you can set the preferred network mode, adjust the MTU size, set specific IP filters, enable/disable the available web services (HTTP/HTTPS/FTP/SSL-TLS/NFS/AFP/WEBDAV), set the current workgroup, adjust the dynamic DNS settings and finally setup the network printer (if you have one attached).
Under the Storage tab you can check the health of the HDD, add more volumes, create shared folders and assign permissions, share your USB attached storage media, set the quota for each user, access the build-in download manager and make use of the recycle bin.
WEB INTERFACE PART 2
You can setup everything related to local backup from the Protect tab. Here you have the option to schedule NAS to NAS backups, PC to NAS backups and also restore the backups you make to their original locations. You can also backup the client license just to be on the safe side.
The User & Groups tab allows the end user to add/remove new user accounts, place these user accounts into specific groups and also to allow specific shared folders for use by these accounts/groups.
Inside the Sharing tab Seagate has added a very useful feature (not something new still very useful) so as long as you create an Global Access account you can access the NAS from anywhere around the world (just as long as you have an internet connection). The Wiki Server is much like an information sharing center so you can use it to share information with all the user accounts.
You can stream media files placed in the NAS or on the USB attached storage media to DLNA compatible devices and computers running iTunes by enabling the media server service under the Media tab.
TESTING METHODOLOGY – TEST RESULTS
Since some of the NAS servers/devices we have tested in the past are no longer in our possession (naturally) we will keep performing the exact same testing methodology we did in the past for as long as possible in order to provide accurate comparison results. So as always we will be using a single Seagate Constellation ES.2 3TB SATA III hard disk drive with the unit at hand (just like with all of the NAS servers - If the NAS server comes without a drive) and perform several upload/download tests with a single 10.9GB file. Tests are repeated a total of 4 times after which we record the average numbers (from the 4 peak ones) into our charts. Finally the network device used is the same Netgear DGN3500 Gigabit ADSL2+ Modem/Router we always use when performing tests on NAS servers.
FILE TRANSFER TEST
A single 10.9GB file was uploaded and downloaded to and from all the NAS units in this test. The Business Storage may not perform as the majority of the NAS servers in our charts but that has certainly nothing to do with the drive inside since 70-80MB/s is not something any HDD can't achieve right now. This is definitely a result of the CPU/Memory combination used but as you can see it gets real close to many other solutions (beats a few in write) and it even manages to surpass the Thecus N4100EVO.
POWER CONSUMPTION
Consumption-wise the Business Storage is king since even at full load it didn't go over 14W. Idle was fluctuating between 9-10W without enabling sleep mode for the HDD (we never do).
NOISE LEVELS
Seagate has given the Business Storage 1-Bay NAS model an passive cooling system so the only thing that actually makes noise is the drive inside (thus the very low noise levels).
CONCLUSION
When Seagate announced the availability of their Business Storage NAS devices i have to admit that i was somewhat surprised since naturally manufacturers like Dell, HP, QNAP, Synology and Thecus have made a name for themselves through the years and easily hold the largest percentage of the market in their grasp so i didn't expect Seagate to succeed. Well as it turns out the Seagate Business Storage 1 Bay 3TB model is what i like to call a double edged sword since on one hand it offers good performance in a compact and ready to use package but on the other hand the included hard disk drive(s) just might not be enough for long term use. Running out of free space is not really my thing so this is perhaps the only reason as to why I’d pick an empty dual or quad bay NAS server instead of the Business Storage model any day of the week. Of course if you know exactly what space requirements you have and Seagate has you covered with their Business Storage models then i see no problem with that. Another plus of the Business Storage models is that unlike many NAS models in the market the fact that Seagate also manufactures their own drives guarantees that you will not come across any compatibility issues. The passive cooling system is almost noiseless but i can't say for certain that it's the right choice for any NAS device (although i do hate noise). Basically in the end it all comes down to how much you want to spend, how good you are in setting up a NAS server from scratch, where you will use it and just how much space you need so I’m pretty certain that there are many consumers out there who'd choose one of the hassle-free Seagate Business Models.
Being simple to use goes a long way but price is the final factor and here is where Seagate delivers even more since currently you can find the Business Storage 1-Bay 3TB NAS for just USD227.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 195Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). I'm sure many of you realize that even if you were to get an 3TB HDD and pair it with the cheapest single bay NAS chassis out there you'd still have to pay more and chances are you'd be getting something a lot worse in the end. I really can't find something wrong with the Business Storage 1-Bay 3TB NAS. True it's not the performance king not does it offer the same functionality as do more expensive NAS servers but Seagate never intended to give it that role since at the end of the day we are talking about the base model of the Business Storage line (above picture). Instead you are getting good performance with extremely low power consumption at a compact and silent AIO package that also comes at the right price so what more can you ask for? Because of all the above the Business Storage 1-Bay 3TB NAS by Seagate walks away with our Golden Award.
PROS
- Build Quality
- Good Performance
- Compact Size
- Easy To Use Interface
- HDD Preinstalled (Zero Compatibility Issues)
- Passive Cooling (Silent)
- Very Low Power Consumption
- Price
CONS
- Storage Capacity (For Some)
- Functionality/Features (For Some)