When it comes to modern life the unfortunate fact is that the data you own isn’t really data you own. Uploads to cloud platforms come with endless user agreements that usually allow the platformer owner to do whatever it likes with your content, loadshedding and internet access make it even more difficult to contend with in South Africa, and then there’s the problem with the software itself which you don’t own either, usually requiring endless monthly payments.
Storage giant Synology is taking a different approach to things as it makes a big push into South Africa. Known for its Network Attached Storage (NAS) and private cloud solutions, the company’s secret weapon may just be what it gives you for free.
We recently sat down with Chih Hsi Hu, Sales Account Manager for Synology, to find out what the company has to offer.
What Synology has to offer, in a word, is value.
“For the majority of Synology NAS products that you buy, you get access to Synology DiskStation Manager (DSM). Inside of DSM is something akin to an app store where you have access to a lot of software that you can download for free and start using them right away. There’s no need to worry about licences or extra fees, just grab what you need and go!” Hsi Hu tells us.
This seamless, and fee-free, experience gives customers access to powerful tools that other companies charge heaps for, such as the Active Backup Suite and Hyper Backup, which can be used for both personal and business use without the headaches that come with licencing out similar software.
This approach to software speaks to the fact that Synology storage solutions sit on top of three pillars: cost-effectiveness, flexibility and scalability. The free access to all the software you could ever need is one massive part of this cost-effectiveness strategy to ease the burden on your budget. The sheer amount of software gives you unlimited agility to operate as you want, and Synology scales like no other.
Synology DiskStation, FlashStation and RackStation NAS / server solutions are meant to be scaled up as you go. For young companies who don’t want to spend too much on their storage, they can start small and add onto their storage as time goes on without needing to replace what they already have. Larger companies can grow their storage larger still and for everyone in between there exists something for you.
We started this article with the problems of modern storage, but some of the same problems apply to streaming. While streaming content has become one of the biggest industries in the world, it is also fraught with problems that negatively impact the consumer.
Consumers can no longer simply buy and own the content they want, instead needing to again pay monthly fees to countless services. Even with the big money issue aside, said streaming services can – without notice – simply remove that movie, series or music that you love, leaving you with no access to something you have already paid for.
With these issues in mind it’s no wonder that many are switching back to buying the content they love and keeping it at home, loaded onto their own private storage, which usually takes the form of a NAS.
Once again Synology has a solution for that which you get for free when your NAS comes from them. The Video Station Package handles movies, TVs and more with a laundry list of features that make it so much better than simply playing files out of a directory. With support for TVs and mobile devices, posters, subtitles, parental control, individual user accounts and much more, the Video Station Package is more akin to setting up your own private streaming service just for your content.
Synology offers a similar solution for the music lovers in the form of the Audio Station Package. Audiophiles will also appreciate lossless playback with support for DSD and FLAC files so you don’t need to choose between quality and accessibility
Synology, Rectron and you
Synology products are available to South Africa thanks to the work of distributor Rectron which will partner with you to create a personal cloud Synology solution for you business or personal use.
“The partnership between Synology and Rectron is very crucial for bringing Synology into South Africa. Rectron’s strong presence in the country, as well as its established relationships, make Synology more accessible to everyone. Rectron is also really strong when it comes to technical expertise and after sales support which really helps build peace of mind. When you buy Synology you are also buying the hard work of Rectron,” Hsi Hu tells adds.
The pair are focused on tackling the unique needs of the South African market. The aforementioned pillars of cost-effectiveness, flexibility and scalability all tie into the South African approach to business, where spending is done cautiously. Synology options also offer a viable way for smaller companies to move away from less than ideal storage such as simply using hard drives or even USB thumb drives to store critical data.
For South Africans who need to make their budget stretch as far as possible while also tackling the possibility of future expansion and current loadshedding and internet woes, Synology is in your corner.
