When comparing QNAP TS-451+-2G vs Apple AirPort Time Capsule 2TB, the Slant community recommends QNAP TS-451+-2G for most people. In the question“What are the best home NAS units?” QNAP TS-451+-2G is ranked 1st while Apple AirPort Time Capsule 2TB is ranked 25th. The most important reason people chose QNAP TS-451+-2G is:
This unit comes with two free surveillance camera licenses that can be used with special surveillance software. If you want to use more than two cameras, you can scale up your surveillance network by purchasing additional camera licenses. Up to 40 IP surveillance cameras can simultaneously stream data to this unit. It supports more than 3000 different kinds of camera.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Great for surveillance systems
This unit comes with two free surveillance camera licenses that can be used with special surveillance software. If you want to use more than two cameras, you can scale up your surveillance network by purchasing additional camera licenses. Up to 40 IP surveillance cameras can simultaneously stream data to this unit. It supports more than 3000 different kinds of camera.
Pro Excellent for home entertainment
This NAS unit performs brilliantly in terms of multimedia transcoding. It can stream Full HD videos to multiple client devices simultaneously without any lag.
Pro Saves power when not in use
This unit has a scheduled power management system. Rather than always staying on standby, when the NAS isn’t being used, it will switch to a system sleep mode which only consumes 0.57 W.
Pro Easy to configure by using it as a standalone station
You can hook up a mouse, a keyboard and a display to this unit and use it as a standalone station to setup and configure it. This is possible because it has four USB ports and a HDMI port.
Pro Expandable storage
You can expand the storage potential of this unit up to a 96TB with an eight-bay extension unit. A cheaper five-bay extension unit is also available. You can also expand the RAM from 2GB to 8GB of DDR3 RAM.
Pro An Apple a day...
This is the perfect solution if you are a heavy Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV user. Store movies, music, backups, and more using Time Machine. Access all of that information just as simply, using the built in software for Mac. It really is a calming feeling when all of your tech just talks to each other without you having to go through extra effort.
Pro Its a time capsule
The software is set up to integrate more transparently with Apple's Time Capsule features of MacOS and iOS, reducing some of the setup needed for a non-Apple brand NAS.
Cons
Con Combining multiple needs increases impact during a failure
With both router and backup / NAS in one device, if either part fails you risk losing both services. I had one and had the hard drive fail, which would have meant losing my wireless service while it was out to be repaired, so in the end I lost my backup / central network share capability.
Con Cross compatibility issues with PCs
Apple is notorious for not allowing easy cross compatibility with PC's. That doesn't stop you from connecting your PC to it, you just have to go through some extra steps.
Con Lack of storage
Not much a way of upgrade options. Unless you are savvy and willing to forgo a manufacturers warranty, then the sky is the limit.