Week 33 Tech Roundup – TerraMaster F2-425, Synology AI Office, PCIe 6.0 SSDs, AOL Dial-Up Ends, and N5 Pro AI NAS Debuts

Here is your Weekly Tech Digest – Week 33 (2025). This edition highlights significant developments across the NAS, SSD, motherboard, and AI infrastructure sectors. From new AI-enhanced NAS devices to Synology’s growing enterprise support, PCIe 6.0 breakthroughs, and the end of AOL dial-up, this week was packed with noteworthy announcements.

TerraMaster F2-425 NAS Launches with Intel x86, 2.5GbE, and Full Home Media Features

TerraMaster has officially launched the F2-425, a powerful 2-bay NAS system aimed at home users seeking pro-level performance. It replaces the older ARM-based F2-210/F2-212 models with an Intel quad-core x86 processor, 4GB DDR4 RAM, and 2.5GbE connectivity, offering a 40% performance uplift. Capable of 4K streaming, AI photo sorting, and seamless PC integration, the F2-425 supports up to 60TB of storage and features TerraMaster’s TNAS OS with multimedia apps, RAID flexibility, TFSS snapshots, and two-factor authentication. With broad support for Plex, DLNA, and secure multi-user access, this NAS is designed to centralize home data and enhance family media sharing experiences.

Source: TerraMaster

Synology Brings Generative AI to MailPlus, Office, and AI Console in Latest Suite Update

Synology has rolled out a major AI update across its Office Suite, integrating features like AI-powered email summaries, smart replies in MailPlus, and text translation/correction in Synology Office. With the new AI Console, admins can manage AI model integrations, permissions, and cost controls—complete with anonymization for GDPR compliance. The AI features are designed to accelerate productivity while keeping data on-premises or routed through audited AI APIs. Synology emphasizes the modularity of this rollout, allowing businesses to selectively enable features suited to their workflows.

Source: Synology

Silicon Motion Unveils PCIe 6.0 ‘Neptune’ SSD Controller and 25GB/s Roadmap

Silicon Motion has revealed its next-generation SSD controller roadmap, headlined by the PCIe 6.0-based “Neptune” controller targeting >25 GB/s and 3.5M IOPS by 2028. Meanwhile, the SM2524XT controller is scheduled for 2026, offering PCIe 5.0, 14 GB/s throughput, and support for 4,800 MT/s NAND with no DRAM. The new roadmap includes updates to popular client and enterprise lines, with Neptune positioned as the flagship successor to the SM2508. These chips will enable higher throughput, improved efficiency, and AI-ready SSD designs for hyperscale deployments.

Source: Silicon Motion

Samsung Z-NAND to Return for AI, Promising 15x Speed Gains and GPU Access

Samsung is reviving its high-speed Z-NAND flash memory for AI workloads, claiming 15x speed increases over conventional NAND and up to 80% lower power consumption. While details remain scarce, early reports suggest GPU-initiated access to Z-NAND via a mechanism similar to DirectStorage or GIDS, making it attractive for AI acceleration tasks. This move positions Z-NAND as a high-performance tier between DRAM and NAND, competing with solutions like Kioxia’s XL-Flash. Samsung’s reentry into the ultra-low latency flash market signals renewed interest in bridging memory-storage gaps in AI and big data platforms.

Source: Samsung

Western Digital Validates OpenFlex AI Storage with MLPerf V2 Benchmarks

Western Digital has validated the performance of its OpenFlex™ Data24 NVMe-oF storage platform using the MLPerf Storage V2 benchmark, confirming its suitability for high-throughput, disaggregated AI workloads. The system, powered by Kioxia CM7-V SSDs and PEAK:AIO’s software-defined storage layer, demonstrated up to 106.5 GB/s read throughput in 3D-UNet tests and saturated over 180 simulated H100 GPUs in ResNet-50 AI workflows. These results underscore OpenFlex’s ability to scale compute and storage independently—ideal for cost-efficient AI deployment.

Source: Western Digital

AOL to Shut Down Dial-Up Internet Service After 34 Years

AOL has officially announced the end of its dial-up internet service, set to be discontinued on September 30, 2025, marking the close of a significant chapter in internet history. Once a household name and synonymous with early internet access, AOL had millions of subscribers in the 1990s but has seen a dramatic decline in usage over the past two decades. Alongside the service termination, AOL Dialer and AOL Shield will also be discontinued. While largely symbolic today, this move officially retires one of the last remnants of the pre-broadband era and underscores the industry’s full transition toward fiber, 5G, and high-speed connectivity standards.

Source: AOL (via Golem.de)

Synology Launches Premium Support Program for U.S. Business Customers

Synology America has rolled out Premium Support, offering 24/7 access to senior technical staff, next-business-day hardware replacements, and enhanced SLA coverage for business clients. This move reflects Synology’s deepening focus on enterprise markets and follows a strategic restructuring of its North American sales organization. With over half of the Fortune 500 already relying on Synology infrastructure, this initiative adds a new layer of customer service reliability, particularly for mission-critical deployments. It’s also seen as part of a broader effort to differentiate Synology’s offerings from SMB competitors and hyperscale alternatives.

Source: Synology

QNAP Unlocks Qsirch Premium and Previews AI-Powered Qsirch 6.0

QNAP has announced that all Qsirch Premium features will become permanently free for all users starting October 1, 2025, removing licensing barriers to its powerful NAS search engine. Additionally, Qsirch 6.0 will introduce AI enhancements including local RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) capabilities and multi-round conversations using local LLMs like DeepSeek and Gemma. These upgrades will allow high-end QNAP NAS units to perform private, GPU-accelerated semantic searches, enabling advanced data classification and secure knowledge management without sending data to the cloud.

Source: QNAP

ZimaOS 1.4.3 Released with Smarter Backups, RAID6 Support, and UI Upgrades

Zima has launched ZimaOS 1.4.3 in conjunction with its Member Day event, bringing substantial UI and functionality enhancements to its NAS operating system. Key features include 3-2-1 backup automation, JBOD/RAID6 volume creation, smarter photo categorization using local AI, and expanded management tools via the updated ZimaOS UI. The update reflects community feedback and focuses on improving ease of use while maintaining robust privacy and offline control. ZimaOS continues to differentiate itself in the growing field of alternative NAS OS platforms.

Source: ZimaOS

TrueNAS 25.10 “Goldeye” Introduced with Terabit Networking and Streamlined Install

iXsystems has unveiled TrueNAS 25.10 “Goldeye”, a major update that builds on the 25.04 “Fangtooth” release, bringing simplified web-based installation, terabit-speed networking, and improved virtualization features. Goldeye includes 400GbE NIC support, NVMe-over-Fabrics (TCP & RDMA), OpenZFS acceleration, and enhanced VM migration tools. The update also introduces the Data Hypervisor, enabling data-centric workloads to run on containers or VMs with high availability. Available as a nightly build now, 25.10 is expected to reach beta in August and full release by October 2025.

Source: TrueNAS

D-Link Launches Wi-Fi 7 Router Lineup Featuring Mesh, AI Optimization, and 5G

D-Link has introduced its next-generation Wi-Fi 7 routers, including the M95 BE9500 Smart Mesh Router, R95 Smart Router, and G572 5G NR Router. Designed for modern homes and small offices, the lineup supports tri-band 320 MHz operation, Multi-Link Operation (MLO), and 2.5 Gbps ports. With AI-enhanced network management via the AQUILA PRO AI app, users gain real-time optimization, security via WPA3, and seamless device connectivity. The G572 also integrates 5G connectivity with SIM card support, enabling high-speed access even in areas lacking fiber. These routers cater to demands such as 8K streaming, cloud collaboration, and IoT device ecosystems.

Source: D-Link

Minisforum Debuts N5 Pro AI NAS with Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and 10GbE

Minisforum has launched the N5 Pro AI NAS, a high-performance barebone system built around the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor. Designed for creators and AI developers, it features 5x 3.5” SATA bays, 3x M.2 NVMe slots, dual 10GbE + 5GbE networking, PCIe 4.0 x16 expansion, and optional ECC DDR5 up to 96GB. Bundled with the MinisCloud OS, it supports Docker, AI workloads, and GPU/DPU add-ons for edge inference tasks. A non-Pro variant with Ryzen 7 255 is also available. The N5 Pro positions itself as a powerful, GPU-capable NAS platform for hybrid AI and storage deployments.

Source: Minisforum

Lexar Launches Ares PRO Gen 5 SSDs with up to 14 GB/s Speeds

Lexar has unveiled the Ares PRO line of PCIe Gen 5 M.2 NVMe SSDs aimed at gamers and content creators, offering up to 14 GB/s sequential reads and 11 GB/s writes (4TB model). The SSDs come in 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB capacities, support DRAM caching, and deliver up to 2 million IOPS for 4K random reads. A graphene heatspreader is included for thermal management, although no built-in heatsink is provided. Endurance ranges from 750 to 3,000 TBW depending on capacity, with a 5-year warranty. The Ares PRO strengthens Lexar’s presence in the high-performance enthusiast SSD market.

Source: Lexar

SanDisk Reports Strong Q4 2025 Earnings, Driven by BiCS8 and HBF Flash

SanDisk has reported Q4 2025 revenue of $1.9 billion, marking a 12% sequential increase, with the ramp-up of BiCS8 NAND and High Bandwidth Flash (HBF) driving performance. Despite a GAAP net loss of $23 million, non-GAAP EPS hit $0.29, with Q1 2026 revenue projected up to $2.2 billion. SanDisk emphasized its growing momentum in AI-centric storage solutions, highlighting energy efficiency, density gains, and robust customer interest in HBF for inference workloads. The flash storage giant expects continued margin expansion as demand normalizes and industry conditions improve.

Source: SanDisk

U.S. Government May Take Stake in Intel to Support Foundry Stability

According to reports from Bloomberg, the U.S. government under the Trump administration is considering taking a state-owned stake in Intel, particularly to stabilize and scale its foundry operations. The deal, still under negotiation, may involve equity investments, guaranteed purchases, and loans to fund two new fabs in Ohio. The initiative reflects concerns over domestic chip production and strategic tech independence amid rising geopolitical tensions. With Intel shares rising 7% on the news, market confidence signals likely backing for the plan to preserve America’s semiconductor leadership and reduce reliance on overseas fabrication.

Source: Intel

ASRock Announces H810TM-ITX: Thin Mini-ITX Board with AI and 5 Display Support

ASRock has released the H810TM-ITX, a Thin Mini-ITX motherboard built for compact commercial systems, supporting Intel Core Ultra Series 2 CPUs with built-in AI acceleration. It supports dual DDR5 memory, four storage options, TPM 2.0, USB4/Thunderbolt 4, and up to five independent display outputs, making it ideal for kiosks, digital signage, and edge AI platforms. Alongside it, ASRock also previewed the B860TM-ITX and Q870TM-ITX with richer I/O and security features. The H810TM-ITX showcases ASRock’s continued investment in versatile, small-form-factor motherboards with future-proof AI and visual output capabilities.

Source: ASRock

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