We Got Served

Walking the show floors here at CES today, it was interesting to see the sheer number of networked devices on show from a multitude of manufacturers. Be it audio devices such as Logitech’s Squeezebox Duet, digital media receivers from D-Link and HP or wireless digital photo albums from Ceiva and Samsung, the Connected Home is a big theme here at CES.

Many manufacturers were showing of new, small footprint NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices too, as a cheaper alternative to Windows Home Server systems. Whilst NAS devices have been around for a little while, the interesting development here is the focus on bundling software and services to provide more simplicity and enhanced functionality for what have traditionally been complex enterprise or enthusiast devices.

Seagate were showcasing their Maxtor Central Axis software for their Shared Storage II drives, which allows users to access the drive remotely over the internet (sound familiar?) through a secure gateway on Maxtor’s website. Netgear announced a suite of storage options under their ReadyNAS brand, a small footprint, hot swappable 4 drive RAID system.

Over at D-Link, the DNS-323 is a 2 bay system offering data storage and protection with an in-box FTP server and automated PC backup. Even HP are offering a broad range of WHS/non-WHS storage options with their refresh of the Media Vault series which pick up the aesthetic cues of the MediaSmart Server as well as added value services, including the iTunes Server, HP Photo Webshare and PVConnect media streaming software.

So, a choice of options available for the consumer this year and in conversation with some of the people above and others, they certainly believe they can deliver some of the storage and back up simplicity offered by WHS at a cheaper price than a Windows Home Server system. For me, WHS from a software point of view, blows pretty much all of the NAS device services away with what it delivers in power, simplicity and of course, added functionality through add-ins, but this comes at a price premium. The question this year will be are these NAS devices “good enough” to reassure families they have their digital media stored and protected without the cost of a home server?

Certainly, NAS manufacturers are going to be doing their best to persuade consumers that they are - Microsoft and WHS OEMs will have a job on their hands to persuade them otherwise. I’m hoping to take a look at some of these devices in more detail over the course of the year to help you make a more informed decision. Should be an interesting year.