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

Fan Speed Mode Full-Speed Mode
Cool Mode
Quiet Mode
Low-power Mode
Brightness Adjustable Front LED Indicators
Power Recovery
Noise Level* 18.2 dB(A)
Scheduled Power On / Off
Wake on LAN / WAN
Power Supply Unit / Adapter 60 W
AC Input Power Voltage 100V to 240V AC
Power Frequency 50/60 Hz, Single Phase
Power Consumption 16.31 W (Access)
4 W (HDD Hibernation)
British Thermal Unit 55.62 BTU/hr (Access)
13.64 BTU/hr (HDD Hibernation)
Notes
Operating Temperature 0°C to 40°C (32°F to 104°F)
Storage Temperature -20°C to 60°C (-5°F to 140°F)
Relative Humidity 5% to 95% RH
FCC
CE
BSMI
VCCI
RCM
UKCA
EAC
CCC
KC
2-year hardware warranty, extendable to 4 years with Extended Warranty Plus
Notes
Availability varies by region. Before purchasing, please visit the official web pages of EW201/202 and Extended Warranty Plus for a list of eligible regions.
The warranty period starts from the purchase date as stated on your purchase receipt. (Learn more)
RoHS Compliant
Main Unit X 1
Accessory Pack X 1
AC Power Adapter X 1
AC Power Cord X 1
RJ-45 LAN Cable X 1
Quick Installation Guide X 1
3.5″ SATA HDD: HAT3300
Surveillance Device License Pack
Disk Holder: Type C
Maximum Single Volume Size* 108 TB
Maximum Internal Volume Number 64
Supported RAID Type Synology Hybrid RAID
Basic
JBOD
RAID 0
RAID 1
RAID Migration Basic to RAID 1
Volume Expansion with Larger HDDs Synology Hybrid RAID
RAID 1
Volume Expansion by Adding a HDD Synology Hybrid RAID
Notes
Usable capacity for each volume will be lower than the maximum volume size and is dependent on the filesystem and the amount of system metadata stored.
Actual maximum storage pool and volume sizes depend on drive sizes used, the number of drive bays available, and the RAID configuration.
File Protocol SMB/AFP/NFS/FTP/WebDAV
Maximum Concurrent SMB/AFP/FTP Connections 100
Windows Access Control List (ACL) Integration
NFS Kerberos Authentication
Notes
The testing standard was based on the maximum number of concurrent connections supported by this model. During the testing, 25% of the connections were used to transfer files concurrently. The transfer process guaranteed that the connections were not interrupted; the minimum transfer speed was not guaranteed.
Maximum Local User Accounts 1,024
Maximum Local Groups 256
Maximum Shared Folder 256
Maximum Shared Folder Sync Tasks 4
Data & Folder Backup
Syslog Events per Second 200
Networking Protocols
SMB1 (CIFS), SMB2, SMB3, NFSv3, NFSv4, NFSv4.1, NFS Kerberized sessions, iSCSI, HTTP, HTTPs, FTP, SNMP, LDAP, CalDAV
Supported Browsers Google Chrome
Firefox
Microsoft Edge
Safari
Supported Language
English, Deutsch, Français, Italiano, Español, Dansk, Norsk, Svenska, Nederlands, Русский, Polski, Magyar, Português do Brasil, Português Europeu, Türkçe, Český, ภาษาไทย, 日本語, 한국어, 繁體中文, 简体中文
Notes
Maximum Concurrent Download Tasks 80
Maximum iSCSI Target Number 10
Maximum LUN 10
LUN Clone/Snapshot, Windows ODX
DLNA Compliance
Facial Recognition
Maximum Snapshots per Shared Folder 256
Maximum of System Snapshots 4,096
Notes Snapshot Replication is available from DSM 7.2-64570.
Maximum IP cam (Licenses required) 12 (including 2 Free License) (see all supported IP cameras)
Total FPS (H.264) 360 FPS @ 720p (1280×720)
360 FPS @ 1080p (1920×1080)
300 FPS @ 3M (2048×1536)
150 FPS @ 5M (2591×1944)
110 FPS @ 4K (3840×2160)
Total FPS (H.265) 360 FPS @ 720p (1280×720)
360 FPS @ 1080p (1920×1080)
360 FPS @ 3M (2048×1536)
350 FPS @ 5M (2591×1944)
200 FPS @ 4K (3840×2160)
Notes
Maximum IP cameras and FPS figures are tested with the device fully populated with drives and under a continuous recording setup.
Actual system capabilities may differ depending on system configuration, drive performance, number of features enabled, and if additional workloads are present.
Recommended Number of Concurrent Sync Clients
200 (the number of connections that can be maintained when the recommended number of hosted files was reached)
Recommended Number of Hosted Files
Notes
Exceeding the recommended numbers above will not block application operations, but may result in longer response time.
Btrfs file system and non-encrypted shared folders were used during the aforementioned testing.
Maximum Users 200
Notes
Multiple files were opened for testing and each file was edited by 30 users simultaneously.
Client performance may affect maximum simultaneous editing users. Client PCs used for testing: Intel Core i3-3220 / 8GB RAM
Maximum Connections 10

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?

The new RTD1619B CPU is slightly faster per each core (1.7 GHz). The RAM is now 1GB. This allows BTRFS on this NAS. Also Hybrid Share and Replication Service is now available.
There are still only 5Gbit USB3 ports.
DS223 comes with an independent NPU built-in, which can be used in lightweight AI applications.
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)

Model DS723+ DS220+ DS223 DS223j DS118 DS120j
Read 225.72 226.01 112.52 112.42 112.89 113.41
Write 225.46 224.82 112.46 112.52 112.80 102.90

 

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

Model DS723+ DS220+ DS223 DS223j DS118 DS120j
Responses per second 9,624.01 6,659.69 2,976.05 2,992.25 2,524.63 601.01

SMB 1GbE – Windows File Transfer (using HDD)

model DS723+ DS220+ DS223 DS218play DS220j DS118 DS120j
download for windows 86.54 86.79 80.18 82.5 81.85 83.39 67.35
Windows upload 79.21 77.23 67.49 68.56 68.28 69.26 46.51

 

 

 

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.

Brand Class Type Series Model Number Firmware Capacity
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD140EFGX – 68B0GN0 85.00A85 14TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD120EFBX – 68B0EN0 85.00A85 12TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD101EFBX – 68B0AN0 85.00A85 10TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD80EFZZ – 68BTXN0 81.00A81 8TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD60EFPX – 68C5ZN0 81.00A81 6TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD60EFZX – 68B3FN0 81.00A81 6TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD40EFPX – 68C6CN0 81.00A81 4TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD40EFZX – 68AWUN0 81.00B81 4TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD30EFPX – 68C6CN0 81.00A81 3TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD30EFZX – 68AWUN0 81.00B81 3TB
Western Digital NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD Red Plus WD20EFZX – 68AWUN0 81.00B81 2TB

Compatible Seagate drives

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

Brand Class Type Series Model Number Firmware Capacity
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST12000VN0008 – 2YS101 SC60 12TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST10000VN000 – 3AK101 SC60 10TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST8000VN004 – 3CP101 SC60 8TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST6000VN001 – 2BB186 SC60 6TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST4000VN006 – 3CW104 SC60 4TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST3000VN006 – 3CW10G SC60 3TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST2000VN003 – 3CW102 SC60 2TB
Seagate NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD IronWolf ST1000VN008 – 3CW10C SC60 1TB

 

Compatible Toshiba drives

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

Brand Class Type Series Model Number Firmware Capacity
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21EAZSTA 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21EEZSTA 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21EUZSVA 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21EXZSTA 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21EYZSTA 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21CAZSTA 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21CEZSTA 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21CUZSVA 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21CXZSTA 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG21CYZSTA 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG11AAZSTA 603 10TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG11AEZSTA 603 10TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG11AUZSVA 603 10TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG11AXZSTA 603 10TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG11AYZSTA 603 10TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG480AZSTA 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG480EZSTA 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG480UZSVA 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG480XZSTA 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG480YZSTA 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG460AZSTA 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG460EZSTA 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG460UZSVA 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG460XZSTA 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG460YZSTA 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG440AZSTA 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG440EZSTA 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG440UZSVA 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG440XZSTA 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD N300 HDWG440YZSTA 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN08AD MN08ADA800 601 8TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN08AD MN08ADA600 601 6TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN08AD MN08ADA400E 601 4TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN07ACA*** MN07ACA14T 601 14TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN07ACA*** MN07ACA12T 601 12TB
Toshiba NAS 3.5″ SATA HDD MN06ACA*** MN06ACA10T 603 10TB

 

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

 

 




Amazon UK UK £179.48 (6% Off) [LINK]
Amazon usa USA $161.99 (15% OFF, was $189.99) [LINK]
Amazon usa USA 28.13 OFF (WAS 218) [LINK]



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3 thoughts on “The Synology DS223j: A New Budget-Friendly NAS Solution for Home Users

  1. Synology website show Container Manager as supported for DS223j: https://www.synology.com/en-global/dsm/packages/ContainerManager

    1. Also available on DS223j Packages Download page: https://www.synology.com/en-global/support/download/DS223j?version=7.2#packages