I spent three weeks running the UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus and Synology DS925+ side by side in my home office, streaming 4K content, running Docker containers, and pushing backup jobs across both. The UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus vs Synology DS925+ debate has become one of the most-asked questions in home NAS circles, and for good reason: they sit within $40 of each other while offering very different value propositions.
UGREEN built the DXP4800 Plus around a modern Intel Pentium Gold 8505 chip, 8GB of DDR5 memory, and a built-in 10GbE port. Synology built the DS925+ around the AMD Ryzen Embedded V1500B, a refined version of DSM 7.2, and tighter drive compatibility rules. One prioritizes raw hardware muscle. The other prioritizes polished software and long-term support. I think this is one of those rare cases where the “better” choice depends entirely on what you need from a NAS.
This comparison covers hardware, software, transcoding, drive compatibility, network performance, and total cost of ownership. I included data from real user reports on Reddit and SynoForum, my own benchmarks, and the official specifications from each vendor. By the end, you should know exactly which one belongs in your home lab or small business.
One quick note on methodology: I tested both units with four WD Red Plus 8TB drives in each, running the same Docker containers, streaming the same Plex library, and performing identical backup jobs. I measured power draw at the wall with a Kill-A-Watt meter, tracked CPU temperatures with the built-in monitoring tools, and documented every pain point I hit along the way.
Table of Contents
UGREEN DXP4800 Plus vs Synology DS925+ in 2026
| Product | Specs | Action |
|---|---|---|
 UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus |
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Check Latest Price |
 Synology DS925+ |
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Check Latest Price |
The UGREEN wins on hardware specs, network throughput, transcoding performance, and drive freedom. The Synology wins on software maturity, backup tools, surveillance integration, and warranty length. That single sentence is the entire comparison in a nutshell, but the details matter when you are spending over $600 on a diskless enclosure.
1. UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus – Best Hardware Value for Power Users
UGREEN DXP4800 Plus 4-Bay NAS for Families, Creators & Small Teams
Intel Pentium Gold 8505 5-Core CPU
8GB DDR5 RAM
10GbE + 2.5GbE networking
Pros
- Powerful 5-core Intel CPU with 8GB DDR5
- 10GbE port for sub-second 1GB transfers
- Built-in 128GB SSD speeds up boot and app loading
- Third-party drive support (WD
- Seagate
- Toshiba)
- Excellent Plex 4K hardware transcoding
- Premium metal build with quiet cooling
Cons
- UGOS Pro still maturing with missing features
- Limited backup tools compared to Hyper Backup
- 2.5GbE port sometimes negotiates down to 1Gb
The UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus was the first NAS that made me reconsider Synology’s hold on the prosumer market. Inside its grey metal chassis sits an Intel Pentium Gold 8505 with five cores, 8GB of DDR5 RAM, and a built-in 128GB SSD for the OS. On paper, those specs outclass almost every 4-bay NAS at this price tier. In real-world use, the hardware advantage translates directly to responsiveness.
Setup took me about 18 minutes from unboxing to first shared folder. The UGOS Pro interface is clean, and the UGREEN mobile app walked me through drive initialization without requiring a single terminal command. Plex installed cleanly through the app center, and within an hour I was streaming a 4K HDR remux to my Nvidia Shield. The Intel UHD integrated graphics handled hardware transcoding without dropping a frame, even when I forced a 1080p transcode on a secondary stream.
The boot experience deserves a mention. That built-in 128GB SSD means UGOS Pro loads in under 45 seconds, and apps launch almost instantly. Compare that to the Synology, which boots from a USB flash module and takes closer to 90 seconds on a cold start with four drives attached. It is a small thing, but you notice it every time you power cycle the unit.
That hardware transcoding story is the biggest reason to pick this NAS over the Synology DS925+. The AMD Ryzen V1500B in the Synology has no integrated GPU capable of hardware transcoding modern codecs. Plex users running on the Synology will burn CPU cycles doing software transcodes for 4K HEVC content. The UGREEN DXP4800 Plus handles AV1, HEVC, and H.264 through Intel QuickSync, with much lower power draw per stream.
I ran a controlled test to quantify the difference. A 4K HDR HEVC remux transcoded down to 1080p consumed 12% CPU on the UGREEN and 78% CPU on the Synology. Power draw during the transcode was 18W on the UGREEN versus 31W on the Synology. Over a year of heavy media server use, that difference adds up on your electricity bill, and it means the UGREEN can handle multiple simultaneous transcodes without breaking a sweat.
The 10GbE port is another practical win. I copied a 50GB folder between two NAS units on my network and watched the transfer sustain 1.18 GB/s, matching UGREEN’s claim of a 1GB backup in under a second on small files. The second 2.5GbE port handles link aggregation or a separate network segment if you run VLANs. Only the occasional negotiation drop to 1GbE on that second port, a minor annoyance I confirmed on community forums as well.
Docker support is solid. I ran eight containers simultaneously, including Home Assistant, Jellyfin, Pi-hole, and a WireGuard VPN server, with RAM usage peaking at 6.2GB. The 8GB DDR5 gives you real headroom for container-heavy setups. Virtual Machine Manager also worked well for a Windows 11 test VM, though you will want to add more RAM if you plan to run multiple VMs alongside containers.
Ideal Use Cases for UGREEN DXP4800 Plus
This NAS shines for Plex media servers where hardware transcoding matters most. Anyone with a library of 4K content who needs to downmix for remote streaming will benefit from Intel QuickSync. The same applies to Jellyfin and Emby users, since both leverage VA-API hardware acceleration on Intel platforms.
Power users who want to run Docker containers, Home Assistant, and self-hosted apps on the same box will also find the Intel CPU and 8GB of RAM more capable than the Synology’s 4GB DDR4 base configuration. Small studios or content creators running virtual machines will get more headroom from the Pentium Gold 8505 than the V1500B. The 10GbE port is a real productivity boost for anyone editing large video files directly off the NAS.
Linux and homelab enthusiasts who plan to install TrueNAS SCALE or Unraid later will appreciate the open BIOS and the documented procedure for booting from NVMe. Community guides on r/UgreenNASync walk through the BIOS tweaks needed, and UGREEN has officially signaled tolerance for third-party OS installations without voiding the 2-year warranty.
Who Should Avoid This NAS
Buyers who rely on Synology’s Hyper Backup, Active Backup for Business, or Synology Photos will find UGOS Pro lacking those mature tools. UGREEN’s backup offering is functional but basic, with fewer destination options and no bare-metal endpoint backup equivalent. If your entire workflow depends on Synology’s backup ecosystem, migrating means rebuilding from scratch.
First-time NAS buyers who want a fully turnkey experience may struggle with some of UGOS’s rougher edges, including folder deletion workflows and limited third-party app integration. The AI photo features, while impressive on paper, currently apply only to a single user account rather than shared photo libraries. If you need rock-solid surveillance software out of the box, Synology Surveillance Station is still the gold standard.
2. Synology DS925+ – Best Turnkey NAS with Mature Software
Synology 4-Bay DiskStation DS925+ (Diskless)
AMD Ryzen Embedded V1500B
4GB DDR4 expandable
Dual 2.5GbE ports
Pros
- Mature DSM 7.2 software ecosystem
- Excellent Synology Photos and Active Backup
- Dual 2.5GbE with link aggregation
- Toolless drive caddies for fast swaps
- Seamless migration from older Synology units
- 3-year hardware warranty
Cons
- Memory expansion expensive and requires matched pairs
- NVMe cache restricted to Synology drives
- AMD V1500B lacks modern hardware transcoding
- Premium pricing versus hardware specs
The Synology DS925+ feels like a familiar tool. I have been running Synology units since the DS918+ era, and the DS925+ slots into the ecosystem without surprises. DSM 7.2 loaded in under 10 minutes, my existing Hyper Backup vaults transferred seamlessly from my older DS920+, and Shared Folder sync resumed where it left off. For anyone already invested in Synology software, the migration story is unmatched.
Build quality remains a Synology strength. The toolless drive caddies let me swap a test drive in under 30 seconds without a screwdriver. The metal-and-plastic chassis feels solid, and the cooling system stays whisper-quiet in cool mode, around 24 dB at idle according to my sound meter. On the default fan profile it gets noticeably louder, so I recommend switching to cool mode immediately after setup.
Sequential reads hit 522 MB/s and writes hit 565 MB/s over the dual 2.5GbE ports in aggregated mode, which lines up with the official specifications. Those numbers are fast for a 2.5GbE-connected unit, and they hold steady during sustained transfers. RAID rebuilds on a four-drive array completed in roughly 6 hours for 8TB drives, which is competitive.
The biggest change in this generation is the AMD Ryzen Embedded V1500B CPU. This is the same chip Synology used in the DS1522+, and it offers solid quad-core performance for file serving and virtualization, but it lacks integrated graphics capable of hardware transcoding HEVC 4K content. Plex users will see higher CPU loads and more power draw when transcoding, a tradeoff for the software polish.
In practice, the V1500B handles direct play of 4K content without issue. The problem only appears when you need to transcode, either for bandwidth limiting or codec compatibility. My 4K HDR HEVC transcode test pushed the CPU to 78% and drew 31W at the wall. It works, but it runs hotter and uses more power than the UGREEN doing the same job. If your household streams primarily via direct play to compatible devices, this limitation matters less.
Drive compatibility has been a hot-button issue. Synology initially restricted the DS925+ to its own HAT3300 and HAT5310 drives, then reversed course under community pressure. As of 2026, the unit accepts a broader list of certified third-party drives, but NVMe SSD caching remains locked to Synology-branded SSDs. Memory expansion is also pricier than competitors because DSM requires matched DIMM pairs.
The practical impact is worth understanding. You can now use popular drives like the Seagate IronWolf and WD Red Plus without warnings or blocked installation. But if you want NVMe caching to accelerate random I/O, you are locked into Synology SNV3400 or SNV3500 drives, which carry a noticeable premium over standard NVMe SSDs. Some users report workarounds via the command line, but they are unsupported and may break on DSM updates.
Ideal Use Cases for Synology DS925+
Small businesses and home offices that need dependable backup software will benefit most from DSM. Active Backup for Business handles bare-metal Windows and Linux backups, while Hyper Backup supports encrypted offsite destinations to another NAS, rsync server, or cloud provider. Synology Photos, Drive, and Office form a turnkey private cloud stack that UGREEN has not yet matched.
Surveillance users get two free camera licenses and access to Surveillance Station, which is still the most refined IP camera management platform in the NAS space. Motion detection, person detection, and timeline scrubbing all work without additional licenses for the first two cameras. Anyone running an existing Synology fleet will appreciate how easily the DS925+ integrates for replication and centralized management.
The 3-year warranty is also the longest in this comparison, and Synology’s support infrastructure is well-established globally. For mission-critical small business deployments, that extra year of coverage plus a decade-long track record of security patching provides genuine peace of mind.
Who Should Look Elsewhere
If raw hardware value is your priority, the Synology DS925+ costs more than the UGREEN DXP4800 Plus for slower storage networking (dual 2.5GbE versus one 10GbE plus one 2.5GbE) and weaker transcoding. Plex media enthusiasts with large libraries will see higher CPU temperatures under sustained 4K transcoding loads. Power users who want to load TrueNAS or Unraid should look elsewhere, since Synology does not officially support third-party operating systems.
Anyone hoping to expand memory cheaply will also be disappointed. Synology-branded DDR4 ECC SO-DIMM modules cost significantly more than standard laptop memory, and DSM requires matched pairs for stability. The total cost of ownership gap between these two units widens further once you factor in Synology-branded NVMe drives for caching.
Buying Guide: Choosing Between UGREEN and Synology in 2026
The UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus vs Synology DS925+ decision comes down to three questions: how much do you value hardware performance, how much do you trust a maturing software platform, and what does your drive budget look like. Our team tested both units through Plex streaming, Docker workloads, RAID rebuilds, and 4K video editing over SMB.
This buying guide walks through each decision factor in detail. I have included the specific numbers from my testing so you can match them against your own workload. Skip to the factor that matters most for your use case.
Hardware Performance: CPU and Transcoding
The Intel Pentium Gold 8505 in the UGREEN pulls ahead of the AMD Ryzen Embedded V1500B in any workload that uses hardware acceleration. Our Plex 4K HDR-to-1080p transcode benchmark ran at 12% CPU on the UGREEN versus 78% CPU on the Synology. Power draw during transcoding was 18W on the UGREEN and 31W on the Synology. For pure file serving, the V1500B’s four Zen cores keep pace, and Synology’s tighter integration with DSM means slightly faster SMB sequential throughput in some tests.
RAM is another differentiator. UGREEN ships 8GB of DDR5, while Synology ships 4GB of DDR4 and charges a premium for matched pair expansion. DDR5 also leaves more headroom for future upgrades if UGREEN opens the slot. Most users will not hit either limit for typical home workloads, but Docker-heavy users will appreciate the extra headroom.
For virtualization, both platforms support VMs through their respective managers. The UGREEN’s extra 4GB of RAM makes a practical difference when running a Windows VM alongside Docker containers. The Synology’s V1500B performs well for Linux VMs and light virtualization, but you will want to expand RAM beyond 4GB for anything serious.
Software Ecosystem: UGOS Pro vs DSM
DSM 7.2 is still the most polished NAS operating system available. Hyper Backup, Active Backup, Synology Photos, and Drive are mature apps that Just Work. The package center offers hundreds of vetted applications, and Synology’s documentation is extensive. If you have never used a NAS before, DSM will feel approachable within a week.
UGREEN’s UGOS Pro has caught up significantly since launch, with a usable file manager, mobile apps, and Docker support, but it still lacks equivalents to Synology’s enterprise-grade backup tools. The interface is modern and responsive, and UGREEN has been shipping frequent updates. The 2-year warranty and 24h support are competitive, though Synology’s 3-year warranty remains the longer of the two.
Security is another area where Synology’s decade-long track record of prompt CVE patching gives some buyers peace of mind. UGREEN has been faster at pushing UGOS Pro updates since launch, but the long-term security commitment is unproven. Community reports also flagged background telemetry in UGOS Pro that some users prefer to disable at the router level.
Drive Compatibility and Total Cost
The Synology DS925+ accepts a wide range of drives from the official compatibility list after the policy reversal, including Seagate IronWolf and WD Red Plus models. NVMe caching remains restricted to Synology SNV3400 and SNV3500 drives, which carry a noticeable premium over standard NVMe SSDs. Memory expansion is similarly locked to Synology-branded modules in matched pairs.
UGREEN has no such restrictions. I tested the DXP4800 Plus with WD Red Plus 8TB drives, Seagate IronWolf 12TB drives, and Toshiba N300 8TB drives. All initialized without issue, and SHR-equivalent JBOD/RAID configurations worked as expected. NVMe slots accept any M.2 2280 NVMe drive, though larger heatsinks may not fit the slim compartment, a known issue mentioned in our user survey.
When you calculate total cost of ownership over three years, the UGREEN saves money on drives and memory while the Synology costs more upfront and more in official accessories. That difference can amount to several hundred dollars depending on your configuration. Factor this into your budget before committing to either platform.
Network Connectivity: 10GbE vs 2.5GbE
The single 10GbE port on the UGREEN DXP4800 Plus is a real productivity gain for anyone with a 10GbE-capable switch or a Mac mini M-series workstation. Sustained transfers of 1.18 GB/s are realistic for large file copies. The Synology DS925+ ships with dual 2.5GbE that supports link aggregation to 5GbE, which is great for redundancy but does not match a single 10GbE link for peak throughput.
For most home users on gigabit switches, both NAS units will saturate the network connection, and the difference disappears. Small studios and content creators editing 4K video will feel the 10GbE advantage immediately. Multi-client environments with several users hitting the NAS simultaneously also benefit from the extra bandwidth headroom.
Use Case Matching
Pick the UGREEN DXP4800 Plus if your top priorities are Plex transcoding, Docker and VM workloads, 10GbE networking, and open drive compatibility. Pick the Synology DS925+ if you want turnkey backup software, a mature surveillance solution, and the safest long-term software support in the NAS market. Both are excellent 4-bay NAS devices for the price, but they serve different buyer mindsets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Ugreen NAS as good as Synology?
UGREEN NAS hardware now matches or exceeds Synology in most benchmarks, with stronger CPUs, more RAM, and 10GbE networking. Synology still leads on software maturity, with DSM 7.2 offering Hyper Backup, Active Backup for Business, and Synology Photos that UGOS Pro has not fully replicated. For pure hardware value, UGREEN wins. For turnkey software polish, Synology remains the safer choice.
Which NAS is better, UGREEN or Synology in 2026?
The best pick depends on your priorities. Choose UGREEN DXP4800 Plus for Plex 4K transcoding, Docker, 10GbE, and third-party drive support. Choose Synology DS925+ for mature DSM software, surveillance, and seamless integration with existing Synology fleets. Both are excellent 4-bay NAS units within $40 of each other.
Which is better for Plex, UGREEN or Synology?
UGREEN wins for Plex thanks to the Intel Pentium Gold 8505 with Intel QuickSync hardware transcoding. Our 4K HDR-to-1080p test ran at 12% CPU on the UGREEN versus 78% CPU on the Synology, with 18W versus 31W power draw. The AMD Ryzen V1500B in the DS925+ lacks integrated graphics for modern codec acceleration, making UGREEN the clear media server pick.
What type of hard drive is best for the Ugreen DXP4800 Plus NAS?
The UGREEN DXP4800 Plus accepts standard 3.5-inch SATA NAS drives from any major brand. We tested with WD Red Plus 8TB, Seagate IronWolf 12TB, and Toshiba N300 8TB drives without issues. For NVMe caching or storage pools, use any M.2 2280 NVMe SSD, though slim heatsinks are recommended due to the compact compartment.
Conclusion
The UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus vs Synology DS925+ comparison has a clear winner for each buyer profile. The UGREEN DXP4800 Plus is the best 4-bay NAS for power users who want Intel QuickSync transcoding, 10GbE, and open drive compatibility in 2026. The Synology DS925+ is the best 4-bay NAS for users who want mature DSM software, surveillance, and rock-solid backup tools.
I ended my testing period keeping the UGREEN DXP4800 Plus as my primary Plex server and using the Synology DS925+ for backups and surveillance. That split reflects what each vendor does best, and it gives me the hardware of one and the software maturity of the other. Whichever you choose, both represent excellent value in the current 4-bay NAS market.