NAS & network storage
Jonsbo N3 (8-bay ITX NAS Case)
≈ 130-160 €
- ✓8 hot-swap 3.5" + 2x 2.5" bays
- ✓Mini-ITX format, SFX power supply
- ✓Integrated backplane, compact design
- ✓Includes 100 mm fan
Topton / CWWK N100 NAS Kit (Board + Case)
≈ 200-300 €
- ✓Integrated Intel N100 (low power)
- ✓4 to 6 bays depending on model, often 2.5 GbE
- ✓Multiple M.2 NVMe slots, external PSU
- ✓No separate CPU purchase needed
Synology DS224+
from ~$330
- ✓DSM: the most polished NAS OS
- ✓Apps + mobile ecosystem
- ✓Photos, backup, Plex
UGREEN NASync DXP
from ~$400
- ✓Intel + upgradable RAM
- ✓Great for Docker / VMs
- ✓Aggressive pricing
QNAP TS-x64
from ~$350
- ✓2.5 GbE on some models
- ✓Advanced virtualization
- ✓Wide lineup
QNAP QSW-M3108S-2C6T
Synology DS923+
from ~$600
- ✓DSM super simple
- ✓ECC + optional 10 GbE
- ✓Great demanding beginner
QNAP TS-464
from ~$550
- ✓2.5 GbE + NVMe slots
- ✓Containers / VMs
- ✓Beefy hardware
N100 4-bay NAS mini-PC
from ~$280
- ✓Perfect OMV / TrueNAS
- ✓Low power
- ✓SATA + NVMe
NAS drives (WD Red / IronWolf)
from ~$15/TB
- ✓Built for 24/7
- ✓CMR recommended
- ✓3-year warranty
Mini-PCs & homelab
Proxmox homelab mini-PC
from ~$180
- ✓Ideal for Proxmox VE
- ✓Silent, low power
- ✓Homelab starter
Intel N100 mini-PC 16 GB
from ~$170
- ✓Perfect Proxmox + 5-10 containers
- ✓6-10 W idle, totally silent
- ✓Dual 2.5 GbE on good models
Beelink / Minisforum N305
from ~$320
- ✓8 cores: several comfy VMs
- ✓Up to 32 GB DDR5
- ✓Great Proxmox + Nextcloud + Jellyfin
4x 2.5 GbE mini-PC
from ~$180
- ✓4 Intel 2.5 GbE ports
- ✓Perfect for pfSense / OPNsense
- ✓Fanless, low power
Fanless N100 mini-PC
from ~$140
- ✓More power than a Pi
- ✓Full Docker support
- ✓Silent
Intel N100 Mini-PC (16 GB / 512 GB NVMe)
≈ 150-180 €
- ✓Intel N100 4-core x86-64 up to 3.4 GHz
- ✓16 GB DDR4/DDR5, NVMe included
- ✓2x HDMI 4K, sometimes 2.5 GbE
- ✓6-15 W consumption, idle ~6 W
Intel N150 Mini-PC (16 GB / 1 TB, 2.5 GbE)
≈ 180-220 €
- ✓Intel N150 4 cores, boost up to 3.6 GHz
- ✓16 GB DDR5, 1 TB NVMe SSD
- ✓2.5 GbE, Wi-Fi 6, dual 4K output
- ✓7-16 W consumption
TrueNAS mini-PC (DIY)
from ~$250
- ✓ZFS on open x86
- ✓Upgradable RAM/disks
- ✓Most control
Raspberry Pi & SBCs
Raspberry Pi 5
from ~$60
- ✓Official HA OS support
- ✓Docker + add-ons
- ✓Massive community
NVMe SSD for Pi 5
from ~$25
- ✓Fast, reliable boot
- ✓No more SD corruption
- ✓256 GB is plenty
Raspberry Pi 5 Kit (8 GB) with PSU and Case
≈ 120-150 €
- ✓ARM Cortex-A76 quad-core SoC 2.4 GHz
- ✓8 GB LPDDR4X, 40-pin GPIO
- ✓2x USB 3.0, 2x micro-HDMI 4K, PCIe 2.0 x1
- ✓3-8 W consumption depending on load
NAS hard drives
WD Red Plus (CMR)
from ~$15/TB
- ✓Guaranteed CMR (no SMR)
- ✓Built for 24/7 RAID
- ✓Quiet, 3-year warranty
Seagate IronWolf
from ~$15/TB
- ✓CMR on the NAS range
- ✓IronWolf Health Management
- ✓Solid RAID performance
Toshiba N300
from ~$14/TB
- ✓CMR, large cache
- ✓Often cheapest per TB
- ✓Great for mass storage
WD Red SN700
from ~110 € (1TB)
- ✓PCIe 3.0 x4
- ✓~2000 TBW (1TB)
- ✓Designed for 24/7 NAS
SSDs & NVMe
SO-DIMM RAM + NVMe SSD
from ~$55
- ✓Bump to 32 GB to breathe
- ✓1 TB NVMe for VMs/datastores
- ✓Reliable Crucial / Kingston
Memory (RAM)
SO-DIMM DDR4/DDR5 RAM
from ~$55
- ✓More VMs/containers
- ✓Crucial / Kingston
- ✓Mini-PC compatible
UPS units
APC Back-UPS 700-900 VA
from ~$110
- ✓Auto-shutdown Synology/QNAP (USB)
- ✓Line-interactive, built-in AVR
- ✓Ultra-common reference
Eaton Ellipse / 5E
from ~$130
- ✓Very reliable, pro finish
- ✓Good software management
- ✓Easy battery replacement
CyberPower line-interactive
from ~$90
- ✓Often cheapest at equal VA
- ✓LCD screen on many models
- ✓USB for auto-shutdown (NUT)
Smart home (Zigbee/Matter)
Zigbee / Matter dongle
from ~$25
- ✓100% local Zigbee
- ✓No vendor cloud
- ✓SkyConnect / Sonoff
Networking (cards & HBA)
Intel i226 NIC
from ~$30
- ✓Intel NIC = reliable drivers
- ✓Turn an old PC into a router
- ✓2.5 / 10 GbE
Smart home hubs
Home Assistant Green
from ~$99
- ✓HA preinstalled, zero config
- ✓Very low power
- ✓Great for beginners
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