Synology BeeStationchat_bubble_outlineFrom real comments

The device ships with only one hard drive and no RAID, so if that drive fails, all stored data is lost unless separately backed up. Multiple commenters argue this is a serious flaw for a device marketed to beginners who may not understand backup importance.

@mipmipmipmipmip-v5x

it should come as a raid 1 by default, exactly *because* this is a device for non-technical people. And then a big banner should appear when 1 drive is faulty. Synology making a big assumption people will set up a working backuplaunch

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September 28, 2025

@richardlang3460

There are some practical problems with 'who it's for.' People going cheap and choosing to forgo cloud options aren't going to pay 'rent' to back it up to the cloud longterm. Beginners may not understand how important backing it up is. Buying this, and a separate external 8-terabyte HDD to back it up to, means it's not quite as cheap as it looked, and not as minimalist as a 2-bay NAS with a pair of 8 TB HDDs in Raid 1 configuration. Since it has no inherent redundancy (cloud subscription doesn't count!), for comparing to other NAS products, keep in mind that external 8TB HDD for backup, unless you have another NAS you can back this one up to.launch

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August 23, 2025

@Gomicoo

Great review. I’ve been eyeing the BeeStation to replace my Google Drive plans for awhile now, but after days of researching which NAS to buy as a first-time user… I ended up using other Synology NAS. \n\nOne main thing that kept me from making the purchase with the BeeStation:\n- No RAID support: if the drive fails, all my media files are gone\n- No option to upgrade: my kids are getting older and they will likely have access, meaning I’ll need to eventually upgrade the drives\n- BeePhotos: I hear the UI super outdated, no face recognition, etc.launch

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July 18, 2025

@shanecook9653

At the point you said 'single hard drive' it became a useless device IMHO. Especially for beginners, it should come with two drives setup to mirror each other. People will archive stuff onto this device and when the hard drive dies, which will happen, they will have lost all thier data.launch

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March 7, 2024

Several technically-minded commenters criticize the single 1 Gbit LAN port as outdated and a bottleneck for the installed drive, especially compared to newer NAS competitors.

@TPTTEESSIDEPatTestingServi-c9s

Only 1 gbit ethernet port?, only one drive !, at the factory they are over 2 gbit so this must be the very last of the + series, the unit gets quite hot, over 50 degrees, I think Synology has indeed lost its way, but for price, ease of use and a basic NAS it's fine, remember, the drive can fail, your files will be no more, you can use a backup H/D in the rear ports, then they ask you to PAY for cloud storage just in case this unit fails?, the whole point is to move away from cloud storage costs, unit ok for beginners, but please Synology it is time to use a FREE recovery service for your product, if its so good and so reliable then back it up with action, NOTE 8 terabytes of raw storage, which translates to approximately 6.98TB of usable space after accounting for system overhead and file system formatting: Nice video , thanks.launch

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January 28, 2026

@DaystromDataConcepts

Even if you stick with Synology, their DS223 2-bay offering at around £249 + HDD(s) of your choice, is a far better proposition. If you're even considering a B Station, you must have some clue about what you're trying to achieve, and so I see this option making little sense to pretty much anyone.\nand YES, their dogged use of 1 Gb Ethernet is baffling when it will bottleneck the installed HDD.\n\nIn short, I am finding it difficult to see where the market is for this at its price-point and lack of storage expansion.launch

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August 22, 2025

@AABB-oi7hv

Synology has stooped to the level of Western Digital instead of solving the problem of existing NAS e.g. the inability to use other brands' drives in M2 slots as storage and just use Synology's overpriced and slow solution, outdated and already slow for today integrated 1Gbit LAN connectors, slow first generation USB 3 and old processors over 5 years old in new devices. Yet the competition is miles away (QNAP, upcoming NAS Ugreen, sometimes even ASUStor). Yes, you can get around it with various github hacks or a network card to USB, but why do that when the competition is cheaper and more up with the times. The bonus of an HDMI connector, SD card reader, Synology can only dream of. BeeStation lame stations are a step backwards, the company hasn't kept up with the times and missed the train.launch

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April 5, 2024

Users describe auto photo backup stopping unexpectedly, needing manual restarts, desktop apps failing to launch on recent macOS, and general syncing problems that undermine the promise of hands-off backup.

@VickiStokes

I purchased one that was delivered today and returned it today. The desktop app would not launch on my M1 MacBook Pro Max running the latest MacOS. I wanted something simple to replace my NAS device which is no longer supported because the vendor went out of business. A complete waste of my time. I also had to pay to ship it back.launch

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June 25, 2026

@340dave

This thing is a piece of junk. Very hard to set up with little to NO support. Managed to get running one time, then it quit syncing to the drive even though it says it's working. Opened a support\nticket, took weeks to get a email response, and then a week in between each 'do this and get back to us.' I just gave up and went back to general backup program. Don't waste you money.launch

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May 13, 2025

@DuncanCunningham

How about the auto backup of the photo app that backs up but then stops running and you have to close and restart the app to keep that going? I have a synology nas that has this problem and they fail to mention that apple will not allow it to continuously run the backup of photos in the background due “reasons”. If it can do that with this bee app then it’s worth it but if it’s like the current synology photos app then it’s no better. Have you tested to see if it keeps syncing the new photos as you take them? Or days on end? Or do you have to manually start it each time?launch

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March 8, 2024

Multiple commenters report weeks-long delays for support ticket responses, unhelpful or absent replies, and in one case a support recommendation that reportedly led to data loss.

@mobrienct

So I bought one of these to back-up up photos. All was going well for a few months until suddenly I couldn't connect to it. I tried many different way with no luck. I reached out to they're tech support for help and heard nothing. So now I am stuck with a drive that has all my photos and video on locked behind whatever it is that I can't get past. Before anyone tells me your not doing it right, I work in IT and believe me I have tried everything I know to get into it. If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them. Thank you.launch

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August 10, 2025

@340dave

This thing is a piece of junk. Very hard to set up with little to NO support. Managed to get running one time, then it quit syncing to the drive even though it says it's working. Opened a support\nticket, took weeks to get a email response, and then a week in between each 'do this and get back to us.' I just gave up and went back to general backup program. Don't waste you money.launch

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May 13, 2025

@PlusMinusAda

I had problem about my synology nas \nAnd Steve Baker\nTechnical Support Engineer write me about my problem that \n\nWe are sorry to hear that your DS218 has to be reset. This is likely caused by an issue in the DSM operating-system.\n\nWe understand that you are worried about losing your data. Please rest assured, your data should not be affected by the reset as the OS and data are stored in separate partitions on the drives. When re-installing the OS, the system should normally not touch the data-partitions of your drives.\nI beleived and i did what he said now all my data erased omg i shocked after sir Steve Baker dissepeared i am alone there is nothing in my hands\nSynology is regret bad nas choose qnap there isnt good support for problemss !!!launch

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May 6, 2024

Some users report slow photo copying speeds, long waits to preview photos after idle periods, and general sluggishness that they found frustrating enough to not recommend the device.

@Vee_Hobbys

I wish it worked faster. Because iam stil waiting that all my maps (even zips) put on my drive. :( I cant install the station on my phone, with the QRcode. So i think that this will be 300€ for nothing. Even Google Drive works faster. Iam so dissapointed.launch

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January 27, 2025

@mawymt07

This device is hopeless, it works very slowly, it copies photos at a very low speed, after two days of not using it, I need a few minutes to preview the photos. I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT, WASTE OF TIME, NERVES AND MONEY.launch

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June 19, 2024

Users criticize Synology's policy restricting compatible drives to Synology-branded ones, comparing it unfavorably to Western Digital's practices and calling it a step backward from open NAS design.

@JohnGWalker

Synology fan here...well, once a fan.\n\nThey lost me when they locked their customers to Synology branded drives.\n\nI'll keep using my old Synology NAS for now, but will move on to another brand when the time comes.launch

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July 29, 2025

@AABB-oi7hv

Synology has stooped to the level of Western Digital instead of solving the problem of existing NAS e.g. the inability to use other brands' drives in M2 slots as storage and just use Synology's overpriced and slow solution, outdated and already slow for today integrated 1Gbit LAN connectors, slow first generation USB 3 and old processors over 5 years old in new devices. Yet the competition is miles away (QNAP, upcoming NAS Ugreen, sometimes even ASUStor). Yes, you can get around it with various github hacks or a network card to USB, but why do that when the competition is cheaper and more up with the times. The bonus of an HDMI connector, SD card reader, Synology can only dream of. BeeStation lame stations are a step backwards, the company hasn't kept up with the times and missed the train.launch

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April 5, 2024

Some commenters feel the price is too high given the limited feature set, noting a plain external drive or a proper 2-bay NAS could offer better value and performance for similar or lower cost.

@DaystromDataConcepts

Even if you stick with Synology, their DS223 2-bay offering at around £249 + HDD(s) of your choice, is a far better proposition. If you're even considering a B Station, you must have some clue about what you're trying to achieve, and so I see this option making little sense to pretty much anyone.\nand YES, their dogged use of 1 Gb Ethernet is baffling when it will bottleneck the installed HDD.\n\nIn short, I am finding it difficult to see where the market is for this at its price-point and lack of storage expansion.launch

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August 22, 2025

@coolcat23

I feel the device is a difficult sell for Synology NAS users. These do not shy away from some moderate setup and have some performance expectations. It is too expensive for what it is (for most users, a simple external drive is a better option, both in terms of price and performance) and does not even offer WiFi connectivity. It's a hard pass for me.launch

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March 7, 2024

Power users note it's a stripped-down DSM with only BeePhotos and BeeFiles apps, no app store, and no way to run home-lab style applications, making it unsuitable for anyone wanting to tinker or expand.

@WinDeckTech

In my opinion these “easy” NAS solutions are a stop-gap solution until you get fed up with locked down OS or you begin to exceed the features of them.\n\nI did have a synology NAS setup and a few other consumer grade ones.\n\nThey worked okay for what they were but if you want to also run a home lab or any other apps, it can be next to impossible on some of the units.\n\nUltimately I ended up putting together a TrueNAS scale system with old parts.\nRyzen 3200g\n64 gb ram\n2x 4tb raid hdd\n2x 2tb nvme \n\nWhat I found with the “out of the box” systems is you will very quickly run into ram or storage controller limitations.\n\nIf you are only ever backing up photos and media it should be okay but, if you want to run a home plex server, pihole and Immich (ML supported photo backup app) among others. You will need a custom setup.\n\nNot to say these are bad devices, they are just very limiting for “power users” and I would seriously urge someone even slightly interested in a home NAS to go with a DIY route if not for ease of upgrade ability and repairability.launch

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April 4, 2025

@TzzSmk

so, it's a simplified DS124 without DSM (BSM instead), with only two apps - BeePhotos and BeeFiles (and no store to install anything else)?launch

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January 31, 2024