Thecus entered the network storage scene quite some time ago with the N4100, since then Thecus has been releasing product after product. Today in our hands we have the newest addition to the N4100 series, the N4100 Pro. Storage space can be described in many ways. We can rationalize the thousands upon thousands of bytes in more manageable and understandable forms such as the number of songs, pictures, or videos a disk drive can hold. However, no matter how we numerically struggle to fathom the sheer amount of digital data that we can fit on a single hard disk, what we can logically pile away trumps sensibility. From megabytes, to gigabytes, and now, on the fringes of the terabytes, storage technology continually conquers new milestones with no end in sight.
Technological advancements and innovation has done wonders for the modern computer. I do not intend to merely state this in platitude or to assure readers of my grasp of the obvious, but instead shift our focus beyond raw numbers. More astonishing than computing power, storage space or the number of pixels that can fit on a screen is perhaps the application of such advancements. A few short years ago, network attached storage drives for the home would have been unheard of, the terabyte would have required a massive array of drives, portable mass storage would have still been in its infancy, and lets not forget the convenience of carrying one's entire music collection in ones pocket; not too long ago, this too would have been laughable.
With so many so many options available to the average consumer, why network storage drives? The answer is simple: access and availability. Network attached storage units, or NAS units function as individual computer systems attached to a home network. They have their own processor, own memory, own operating system, they are designed for handling storage and storage oriented functions- nothing else. This not only cuts down on the amount of processing a system accessing the NAS would need to do, but also serve as a reliable center of a small network or cheap expansion to an existing network.
Thecus, founded in 2004, aims to bridge the gap between the digital home and networking with high quality, high performance products and innovation. Focused on hardware and software integration, Thecus aims to provide easy to use media storage solutions to allow even greater network connectivity in the home and office environment. Last summer, when we reviewed Thecus' N5200 Pro NAS we were incredibly pleased with what it had to offer, only at such a price point the N5200 Pro was not exactly the most viable unit for most home settings. Today's N4100 Pro however is priced much more moderately and maybe right for you, let's have a look.