The Synology DS223j: A New Budget-Friendly NAS Solution for Home Users

Synology has expanded its catalogue of Network-Attached Storage (NAS) solutions, announcing the launch of the DS223j, a budget-friendly model geared towards home users and small businesses.

The DS223j is fitted with a Realtek RTD1619B quad-core, 64-bit processor clocking in at 1.7 GHz. While it doesn’t outperform high-end models, it brings an effective blend of power and affordability, ideal for light-duty server tasks, media streaming, and file storage.

The device boasts 1GB of DDR4 non-ECC memory, with Synology pledging the utmost care in memory module replacement to ensure compatibility and stability.

The 2-bay NAS supports 3.5″ SATA HDDs and 2.5″ SATA SSDs (with an optional 2.5″ Disk Holder), allowing users a choice between ample storage capacity and high-speed performance. Notably, the DS223j does not support hot-swappable drives, but it is compatible with the Btrfs and EXT4 file systems for internal drives, introducing data integrity checks and snapshot technology capabilities.

As for connectivity, it features one RJ-45 1GbE LAN port and two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, catering for network connections and peripheral expansions.

Despite the robust internals, the DS223j maintains a compact design with dimensions of 165mm x 100mm x 225.5mm. It includes a 92mm system fan that offers several operation modes, and a front LED indicator that adjusts to different brightness levels.

Noise levels are impressively low at 18.2 dB(A), and power consumption sits at 16.31 W during access and 4 W during HDD hibernation.

The DS223j is compliant with several certification bodies, including FCC, CE, BSMI, VCCI, RCM, UKCA, EAC, CCC, and KC, and it also adheres to RoHS regulations, making it eco-friendlier.

For customer peace of mind, the DS223j comes with a 2-year hardware warranty, extendable to 4 years with the Extended Warranty Plus. The package includes the main unit, accessory pack, AC power adapter and cord, an RJ-45 LAN cable, and a Quick Installation Guide.

This new addition to Synology’s J series is expected to be a popular choice for those in need of a reliable, user-friendly, and budget-friendly NAS solution.

Synology DS223j specs

Tell me more about this DS223j CPU

The RTD1619B is a SoC (system on a chip) developed by Realtek, a Taiwan-based company that specializes in the design of semiconductor solutions for a wide range of applications, including IoT, multimedia, communications, and more.

The RTD1619B is built on a 64-bit architecture, meaning it can handle 64-bit instructions and data and can address a larger amount of memory than a 32-bit CPU. It has 4 cores, meaning it can process 4 concurrent threads, and it operates at a clock speed of 1.7 GHz.

The RTD1619B is also equipped with a Mali-G51 GPU. Mali-G51 is a part of the Mali family of GPUs developed by ARM. It is a Bifrost GPU, which is the middle tier of ARM’s Mali GPU offerings and has a performance of 1.5 Gpix/s. It also included with NPU (Neural Processing Unit) which is able to perform 1.6TOPS of AI operations.

It’s likely that this SoC is targeted at embedded and IoT applications that require some level of real-time processing and AI capabilities, such as smart home devices, cameras, and other similar products.

RTD1296 vs RTD1619B

The RTD1296 and RTD1619B are both SoCs developed by Realtek, both with 64-bit architecture, and both with 4 cores. However, there are a few key differences between the two:

1. Clock speed: The RTD1619B has a higher clock speed of 1.7 GHz compared to the RTD1296’s 1.4 GHz. This means that the RTD1619B will generally perform faster than the RTD1296 for tasks that rely heavily on the CPU’s processing power.
2. GPU: The RTD1619B comes with a Mali-G51 GPU, while the RTD1296 comes with a Mali-T820 MP3 GPU. Both are developed by ARM, Mali-G51 is Bifrost architecture and have a performance of 1.5 Gpix/s, meanwhile, Mali-T820 is Midgard architecture and have a performance of 1.2 Gpix/s. In general, the Mali-G51 GPU has higher performance than the Mali-T820 MP3, thus the RTD1619B is better equipped to handle tasks that require graphics processing, such as video decoding and gaming.
3. NPU: The RTD1619B comes with a NPU (Neural Processing Unit) that is able to perform 1.6TOPS of AI operations. This gives the RTD1619B an edge over the RTD1296 in tasks that require AI-related processing, such as image recognition and machine learning.
4. Power consumption: The RTD1619B may have higher power consumption than RTD1296 because of it’s faster clock speed and additional functionality.

It’s worth noting that these are general comparisons, and the performance of each SoC can also depend on other factors such as the memory, storage, and specific implementation of the software.

Can I upgrade RAM on DS223j?

No, memory is soldered on the board. Here how it looks inside the box

DS218 vs DS223j vs DS223. What has changed?

Model	DS220j	DS223j	DS223
Processor model	Realtek RTD1296	Realtek RTD1619B	Realtek RTD1619B
Number of CPUs	1	1	1
processor architecture	64-bit	64-bit	64-bit
processor clock	4-core 1.4 GHz	4-core 1.7 GHz	4-core 1.7 GHz
hardware encryption engine
Memory
system memory	512 MB DDR4 non-ECC	1 GB DDR4 non-ECC	2 GB DDR4 non-ECC
storage device
Number of slots	2	2	2
Compatible Disk Type* (see all supported disks)	3.5″ SATA HDD 2.5″ SATA HDD 2.5″ SATA SSD	3.5″ SATA HDD 2.5″ SATA HDD (with optional 2.5″ HDD bay) 2.5″ SATA SSD (with optional 2.5″ HDD bay)	3.5″ SATA HDD 2.5″ SATA SSD
Disk hot-plug support*
external port
RJ-45 1GbE LAN port	1	1	1
USB 2.0 port	1
USB 3.2 Gen 1 port*	2	2	3
USB / SD Copy
file system
internal disk	EXT4	Btrfs EXT4	Btrfs EXT4
Power
Noise value*	18.2 dB(A)	18.2 dB(A)	14.6 dB(A)
Power Supply / Transformer	60W	60W	60W
power consumption	12.46 W (Access) 5.06 W (HDD Hibernation)	16.31 W (Access) 4 W (HDD Hibernation)	17.343 W (access) 4.08 W (disk hibernation)
BTU	45.52 BTU/hr (Access) 17.27 BTU/hr (HDD Hibernation)	55.62 BTU/hr (Access) 13.64 BTU/hr (HDD Hibernation)	59.19 BTU/hr (access) 13.92 BTU/hr (disk hibernation)
APPs and limits
Maximum number of local user accounts	1,024	1,024	1,024

DS223j app limitations

No Active backup for business

No Hyper Backup Vault

No Presto File Server

No Synology High Availability

No Synology Mail Server

No Virtual Machine Manager

No PLEX

Video Station/ DS Video H265 playback issues?

Whats added?

– Snapshot Replication

-BTRFS

DS223j PLEX compatibility and performance

As of today, there is no Plex installation created for this CPU. When we can we will test a package made for RTD1296 ARMv8 which is a package for 64-bit CPUs. 

We can expect this NAS to be able to handle 1080p video transcoding in Plex. Maybe even a tiny bit of 4k (very simple files).

Synology DS218 NAS PLEX Installation Guide – Step by Step

DS223j spec sheet

https://global.synologydownload.com/download/Document/Hardware/DataSheet/DiskStation/23-year/DS223j/enu/Synology_DS223j_Data_Sheet_enu.pdf

DS223j performance

SMB 1GbE – Sequential Throughput with HDD (64KB)

1GbE Web Server – Nginx PHP Response Performance (using HDD)

SMB 1GbE – Windows File Transfer (using HDD)

DS223j HDD compatibility

Synology drives (Toshiba) have been tested up to 12TB capacity.

Compatible WD drives

WD drives have been tested only up to 14TB capacity.

Compatible Seagate drives

Seagate drives have been tested up to a capacity of 12TB. This included Skyhawk and Ironwolf drives.

Compatible Toshiba drives

WD drives have been tested only up to 14TB capacity.

Can I use drives (HDD/ SSD) that are not on their list.

Yes, Synology have promised that Plus and Value series NAS such as this will have no software lock on drives that they have not tested and added to the list. There might be a warning message that drives are not from the list though. Their support level might change based on this.

Synology DS223j Expected Price, Specs And Release Date

DS223J is released today on 28th June 2023.

The expected price is GBP160 or  USD 189.00

UK – https://amzn.to/3pqSd44

USA – https://amzn.to/3NSkrOo 

Conclusion

Faster CPU and more RAM that is the only hardware improvement. Added BTRFS support and a wide range of 3rd party HDDs is the software improvement list.

Overall satisfactory.

Check Amazon and other retailers to see if the Synology DS223j NAS is available now using the links to them below (it supports us, costs you nothing extra and me and Eddie who run NASCompares will get a commission that goes directly back into the YouTube channel and blog)

Update Aug 4th 2023- It now supports  Docker / Container manager

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