Newegg has a quick and easy way to choose a new NAS device and the drives that go into it. Launched today, NAS Builder provides a unique, clean interface to peruse the NAS enclosures available at retailers and select compatible HDDs or SSDs within the capabilities of your chosen NAS device. You are limited to Newegg’s selection and not all NAS, HDD or SSD specs and features are disclosed through our shopping tools. It looks like a useful starting point for NAS newbies as well as advanced users looking for a basic comparison tool.
Anyone who has ever purchased a technical component, such as a NAS, a PC build, or a maker project, knows how boring, unorganized, and unreliable the associated commerce sites can be. That’s why he was initially intrigued by Newegg’s NAS Builder.
When you open the website, you’ll be asked to select a total capacity requirement up to ‘144TB or more’, and from there you’ll see the associated NAS devices that Newegg has. It’s there so you can, for example, sort by price or by products with the most reviews (on Newegg). Like Newegg’s regular site, you can add filters such as number of bays and RJ-45 specs, but the NAS Builder’s look and feel is similar to that of Newegg’s other sites and what NAS shoppers might frequent. Much cleaner than some other sites due to a simplified set of filters. Unlike the NAS vendor’s NAS configurator, Newegg is more brand agnostic.
Also, the selected product is displayed at the top, so it’s convenient to browse the tool’s product page for a quick comparison.
At the time of this writing, NAS Builder has 73 enclosures from 5 vendors and no rackmounts (although Newegg sells them outside NAS Builder). The store may not have the exact NAS you want, but it can help you get a general idea of current pricing and selection if you decide to buy elsewhere.
To make an informed decision, you need more than Newegg’s NAS Builder. Beyond limited selection, it doesn’t share a specific CPU model or her NAS capabilities. Want your NAS to include USB ports for printers, HDMI for connecting TVs to media servers, or PCIe for connecting GPUs? Or for error recovery, advanced encryption, or internal file system support? Got a requirement? Need to dig deeper than this tool.
