Qnap continue its work with NAS and media network solutions, and with its coming models it aims to improve the overall experience for HTPC users and streaming by using an Intel Core i3 processor, rather than previous Atom solutions.
The two new models shown are TS-670 Pro and TS-470 Pro, whereof the first has six storage units and the latter four units, and more specifically it is an Intel Core i3 3220 at 3.3 GHz together with 2 GB RAM that powers both units. There is USB 3.0 support and both units come with dual network ports ready for 10 Gb networking.
With the new hardware it is aiming for an overall better performance, but also remedy some problems with media playback that are present with the current 69 series. These use Atom processors that despite their capable performance cannot quite keep up with the heavier graphical interfaces like XBMC or playing some formats, partly due to lacking drivers.
The new units sport the new Qnaps QTS 4.0 software that supports XBMC v12 and can run all of the HTPC features without problems. TS-670 Pro and TS-470 Pro are some really interesting combination units, and we look forward to seeing more similar solutions from both Qnap and other companies in the future.
They don’t come cheap though, and the more expensive Core i3 processors add to the already higher price, and the recommended price for TS 470 Pro is 1000 dollar, and 1300 dollar for TS 670 Pro with room for six harddrives.
