asustor AS3102T NAS Review

NAS are evolving faster than many segments of the computing world. Today, there are more NAS makers than you can shake a stick at, and all of them are on a mission to produce a product that will find its home in yours. asustor is no stranger to the market, and they have been quietly making some of the best NAS available today. While doing so, they have been keeping the costs down, the features rich, and the evolution moving forward. Recently, ASUSTOR launched their AS3102T 2-bay NAS with 4K capabilities and a Celeron processor, but will it be enough to capture our attention and deliver results that you, the consumer, are looking for?

Many of the NAS manufacturers have ditched the ARM platform and have migrated to more mainstream processing engines. asustor has followed suit and has been producing NAS with various Intel CPUs for as long as I can remember. This latest generation of NAS by asustor,the AS3102T has the Celeron Braswell processor at the core of its central processing. Many of us wouldn’t typically consider a Celeron as the CPU for our desktop or mobile CPU, NAS has much fewer requirements and has the benefit of a structured and limited operating system that can use these processors very efficiently.

To get basics out of the way, the AS3102T has a Celeron 1.6GHz Dual-Core CPU at its heart, 2GB of DDR3L memory, 3 x USB 3.0 ports, 1 x GbE port, 1 HDMI 1.4b port, a 70mm cooling fan, an Infrared Reciever, and 2 x HDD bays. Both bays are internal and can support 8TB drives, making the total capacity 16GB (unformatted) in RAID 0.

asustor bills the AS3102T as a “Powerful and Economical NAS Featuring 4K Multimedia Playback and Hardware Encryption.” Some of the finer points on the product’s page are:

• Powered by the latest Intel Celeron processors
• Local HDMI multimedia output (4K, 1080P and high-definition multi-channel audio)
• Hand screw design for toolless installation
• Stylish diamond-plate finished cover design
• Equipped with hardware transcoding engine

asustor claims that their system is capable of delivering speeds of up to 110MB/s read and 112MB/s write with a RAID 1 configuration. Their test configuration will be detailed with the product benchmarks and our test bed configuration.

Touting multimedia capabilities, the 4K compatibility of the AS3102T means that many consumers can have this NAS direct connected to their home theater. Given, many of us will run a system through a receiver, those that are new to home theater or are looking for a simple solution can find peace with its simplicity. The HDMI interface and abundance of multimedia applications availble on the NAS allow home users to take advantage of the things many of us HTPC enthusiasts have been doing for years. The NAS supports FULL HD output

The NAS supports FULL HD (2160p) output and can run KODI. The AS3102T also supports 5.1 and 7.1 multi-channel audio immersing the viewer in a field of sound that puts them right into the action. Team this NAS up with an IR remote and you have a home theater system in a box.