Our favorite Asustor NAS for 2023

Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 AS6702T

Best Asustor NAS

The best overall Asustor NAS for everyone

The Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 (AS6702T) is a very powerful two-bay NAS with considerable firepower under the hood. It not only has an Intel Celeron processor, but also 2.5GbE networking, M.2 slots, upgradable RAM, and expansion support. This is an absolute monster of a NAS.

Pros

• Intel CPU, M.2 slots, and 2.5GbE networking
• Good for Plex transcoding

Our favorite NAS from Asustor is the Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 AS6702T, a two-bay NAS with an Intel Celeron N5105 processor, 4GB of DDR4 RAM, and 2.5GbE networking. The best part about this enclosure is the MSRP, coming in at $459. That’s a good price for the included specifications and everything is powered by Asustor’s excellent ADM NAS operating system. This enclosure is designed with file storage in mind, as well as running more intensive apps such as Plex Media Server.

Other specifications inside the Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 AS6702T include not one, not two, not three, but four M.2 slots for SSDs, and a dedicated HDMI port. Those four M.2 slots can be used for caching, expanding the storage pool, or both, which makes this one impressive piece of kit. Add the expansion support through two external four-bay units and you’ve got a solid NAS foundation that can punch considerably above its weight class.

Asustor Nimbustor 2 Gen2 (AS5402T)

Best value Asustor NAS

The best balance between price and performance

The Asustor Nimbustor 2 Gen2 (AS5402T) is a very capable two-bay enclosure with powerful hardware, four M.2 SSD slots, and upgradable RAM. It’s pricier than most other two-bay enclosures, but this is one powerful server.

Pros

• Capable Intel processor
• Great connectivity
• M.2 slots and upgradable RAM

Coming in at a close second for the best Asustor NAS pick would be the Asustor Nimbustor 2 Gen2 (AS5402T). Not only does Asustor have some excellent names for its enclosures, but the second-gen Nimbustor 2 is also a compelling purchase for those looking for a capable home (or office) server. Powering ADM and everything else inside this NAS is the Intel N5105, which is a pretty solid chip with some decent burst speeds and overall performance. While not the fastest CPU in this buyer guide, it’s more than capable of handling Plex transcoding and running other intensive tasks.

It doesn’t end there because Asustor packs four M.2 SSD slots, upgradable RAM, and the ability to connect up to two six-bay AS6004U expansion units. At $369, this is well-positioned for the home and we can see the two 2.5GbE and HDMI ports being put to good use, whether you need somewhere to store files or run various apps.

Asustor Drivestor 2 AS1102T

Best budget Asustor NAS

The best Asustor NAS for beginners

The Asustor Drivestor 2 AS1102T is an affordable two-bay NAS from the brand with a focus on storing data and backups. If you’re looking to buy your very first Asustor NAS, this is a great place to start.

Pros

• Affordable with ADM
• 2.5GbE networking

This is one of Asustor’s more affordable enclosures and as such is designed for those picking up their first NAS or needing somewhere to dump some files and/or backups. The Asustor Drivestor 2 AS1102T has two drive bays, which is the minimum we’d typically recommend for a live environment and a Realtek ARM CPU that can handle simultaneous data connections. While you likely won’t be streaming 4K movies with this enclosure, it has enough power for creating network-attached storage.

The best part about this budget-friendly NAS is the inclusion of a single 2.5GbE port. Some affordable NAS may come with two 1GbE ports at most so it’s good to see Asustor offering faster connectivity. You’re also able to run the same excellent ADM OS as you would on just about every other Asustor NAS.

ASUSTOR Lockerstor 4 Gen2 (AS6704T)

Best Asustor NAS for Plex

Run your very own media server with this expansive NAS

The ASUSTOR Lockerstor 4 Gen2 (AS6704T) is a very capable NAS for running Plex Media Server and then some, thanks to the Intel CPU, upgradable RAM, 2.5GbE networking, expansion support, and a great OS.

Pros

• 4K Plex transcoding
• Intel CPU and impressive specs

The most important specification of the best NAS for Plex is the processor, especially if you plan on transcoding media. Should you have video files to host on Plex, it’s important to consider transcoding in case the client device doesn’t support the format or resolution. Oftentimes, the server will be the one to handle this resource-intensive task, which is why it’s recommended a Plex Media Server be managed on an Intel-powered NAS. An ARM processor will be able to stream media, but it’ll fall short of being able to effectively transcode on the fly, which is where the ASUSTOR Lockerstor 4 Gen2 (AS6704T) comes into play.

This mighty four-bay enclosure has an Intel Celeron N5105 processor, which has four physical cores and the ability to burst up to speeds of 2.9GHz. It has all the necessary features to handle transcoding of 4K content without breaking a sweat. The four drive bays can be expanded through the addition of up to two AS6004U units, each rocking four bays. Twelve drives would allow for up to 240TB of data to be stored, not taking into account reservations for RAID. 4GB of DDR4 RAM is more than enough, and it can be expanded at a later date. A PCIe slot, 2.5GbE networking, and four M.2 slots ensure you have ample space for upgrades.

Asustor Flashstor 6 FS6706T

Best SSD Asustor NAS

For those who want to use only rapid M.2 NAS SSDs

If you’re looking for a NAS with excellent transfer rates, look no further than the Asustor Flashstor 6 FS6706T. This thing is rapid, with six M.2 slots available for speedy SSD drives. There’s 2.5GbE networking, HDMI output, expansion support, and expandable RAM, making the FS6706T an impressive NAS.

Pros

• Support M.2 SSDs
• Capable Intel processor
• Very quiet operation

Cons

• M.2 NAS SSDs are expensive
• Not completely silent

The Asustor Flashstor 6 FS6706T is a unique enclosure to be released by the brand, as it’s entirely flash-only. We’re not even talking 2.5-inch SSDs here either. This NAS will only take M.2 drives and there are six bays, offering decent capacity for the price. The same Intel Celeron N5105 processor found in our recommended Asustor Plex NAS pick is present, which will have ample performance for handling the available bandwidth. So too will the dual 2.5GbE connections, but if that wasn’t enough already, Asustor threw in an HDMI port for good measure. This would be a great Plex NAS if you want to opt solely for speedier storage.

As well as supporting flash storage, the FS6706T also looks different from just about every other Asustor NAS, thanks to the ability of the company and its design team to reduce the dimensions by throwing out all 3.5-inch drive bays. Should you desire a NAS to sit alongside your TV and other media consumption hardware in a cabinet, the FS6706T is designed to fit right in with other set-top boxes.

Choosing the best Asustor NAS

Picking the best Asustor NAS, we place an emphasis on value. It’s important (especially when choosing your first NAS) to buy an enclosure that provides good specifications for the asking price. We feel as though the Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 AS6702T ticks all the boxes. The Intel processor, upgradable RAM, M.2 slots, expansion support, and 2.5GbE networking make it incredibly powerful, but also affordable enough to fit within stricter budgets. Should you want to save the most money, we’d steer you toward the Asustor Drivestor 2 AS1102T instead.

Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 AS6702T

Best Asustor NAS

The Asustor Lockerstor Gen2 (AS6702T) is a very powerful two-bay NAS with considerable firepower under the hood. It not only has an Intel Celeron processor, but also 2.5GbE networking, M.2 slots, upgradable RAM, and expansion support. This is an absolute monster of a NAS.