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UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT: 30-second review

The DXP4800 GT is Ugreen's latest NAS and the first in the DXP line-up to use an AMD processor and dual 10GbE networking ports; these run alongside the usual personal cloud and AI features. To mark it out as something a little more special than the other DXP4800 units, it also adds gold accents to the otherwise familiar look and excellent build quality.

In this test, I installed four 4TB Seagate IronWolf drives and two 1TB SSDs and, during setup, configured them in RAID 5, initially over a 2.5GbE network. This network connection, while fast, limited the DXP4800 GT's full potential; still, it delivered 272.96MB/s read and 268.35MB/s write, so even if you stick with an older network system, it’s still going to offer impressive performance with potential for the future.

To see the drive in full flow, a $200-300 additional investment may be needed if you don’t already run on a 10GbE switch, as I found mine severely lacking and in need of an upgrade to the TP-LINK TL-SX105 10G Multi-Gigabit Desktop Switch.

You’ll also need to check your desktop or laptop specifications, as most will only offer 2.5 GbE networking. If you want that 10GbE speed, you'll need not only the Switch but also a USB4-to-10GbE adapter. In this test, I’ve gone for the Sabrent USB4-to-10 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter at around $80.

While network editing on the 2.5GbE setup had been possible, the 10GbE upgrade made a huge difference to the speed and smoothness of the edit; it was, in effect, like running the files from a direct-attached storage device. With all footage on the DXP4800 GT and an M.2 SSD handling cache files, 500GB of two hours of rushes was edited down in Final Cut Pro X to a 7-minute production and ran over the 10GbE SMB connection without dropped frames or slowdown.

Aside from the connection speed, the other features that really stood out were the personal cloud capabilities. Enabling the setup and control of other users' access to files you have given permission to, either on the same network or remotely, is a major feature, especially if you’re dealing with large video files.

The integrated AI also shows potential, but at present it’s limited to the Photos app and doesn’t offer the same flexibility as the flagship iDX6011 Pro. Still, it’s impressive once all components have been installed.

The UGOS interface continues to improve, and the selection of available apps is growing. For anything that’s not yet there, such as Plex, you’ll need to look at Docker and run through the installation and setup process. This isn’t so straightforward, but the documentation is developing.

That aside, this is a significant NAS with plenty of features and, importantly, upgrade potential. It's easily the best NAS device on a budget right now, especially if you work in the creative sector and need large-capacity network-attached storage, as this is the cheapest option I’ve seen. Just take into account that you may need a Switch upgrade and possibly a USB4-10GbE adapter.

UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT: Price & availability

The UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT is available in the US at an MSRP of $659.99, with a $70 launch discount bringing the price to $589.99. The drive is available from the Ugreen official store here and Amazon.com.

In the UK, it's priced at £529.99 with the launch discount from Ugreen, and £531.99 at Amazon.co.uk when you tick the voucher code box.

It’s also worth factoring in drive costs; the four Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives I’ve used in this review add approximately $150 per drive, and a 10GbE switch at around $250. Even with both additions, the total remains competitive against Synology and QNAP alternatives that don’t include dual 10GbE at this price point.

• Score: 4.5/5

UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT: Design & build

The DXP4800 GT shares the Ugreen NASync design language with the previous DXP4800 NAS boxes, just here in a more premium black-and-gold finish. The build quality is once again excellent, and the aesthetic is more professional than many NAS devices at this price.

Drive installation with four Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives is tool-free; pop out the caddy, insert the drive, and slide it back. All four drives install in minutes. Once connected to the network, the Ugreen app on a Mac or PC searches for the device and guides users through RAID configuration and user account creation. The process of unboxing and setting up a working RAID 5 array is easy enough, even for a first-time NAS user.

The built-in SD 3.0 card slot is useful for photographers and videographers shooting with the latest mirrorless cameras, and direct card-to-NAS offload is faster than network transfer. Taking my Canon EOS R5 C with CFexpress Type B cards that can hold up to 2TB as an example, after a full day of shooting, transferring that data over any network is usually slow. When using a USB CFexpress reader in the front USB port, or directly via SD, file offload is considerably faster.

The front panel LED indicators are simple and show drive access, health and usage for each bay at a glance. There’s no screen, but UGOS Pro provides full drive health and status information through the software. The USB connectivity, two USB 3.2 Gen2, two USB 2.0, USB-C 3.2 Gen2, and HDMI 4K 60Hz, gives the DXP4800 GT media server and direct storage capabilities which again adds to the usage, from home to the office.

• Design & build: 4.5/5

Ugreen has been careful to keep the UGOS Pro consistent across the DXP lineup, which certainly makes it easier to review as much of the interface and options remain familiar to previous models, with a few notable additions added as the OS develops.

The DXP4800 GT sits below the iDX6011 Pro, Ugreen's flagship NAS, and while AI is present on this new machine, unlike the iDX6011 Pro, which supports downloading and running local language models and has a deeper AI integration, the DXP4800 GT is limited to Photos. The functionality reflects what we see from other AI-enhanced photo management apps, and those features, such as subject recognition, are helpful but nowhere near the advanced capabilities of the iDX6011 Pro, but then this is a machine aimed at a more traditional approach to NAS with some AI enhancement.

As with other Ugreen NAS, getting started is easy with the Initial RAID 5 setup for the review sample using four Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives. Once connected, the UGREEN desktop app is able to connect to the device automatically, and then guides you through RAID configuration and account creation; it’s all about as easy as it gets. Compared with NAS setups from even a few years ago, and compared with Synology DSM or QNAP QTS today, the UGOS Pro process is notably easier to use for first-timers to NAS.

One of the features that really appeals to me is the dual 10GbE networking. This is also the defining feature of the GT line-up and what separates the DXP4800 GT from other NAS in this price range. In this review, the network infrastructure was initially limited to 2.5GbE, still with impressive speeds, but speeds that only hinted at what was actually possible.

It was only when the network was upgraded with a 10GbE switch, the TP-Link TL-SX105, that the full potential could be seen. This upgrade is worth considering if you are looking at this 10GbE NAS, as most home and small office speeds are usually limited to 1 - 2.5GbE.

In this review, I’ve gone for the 10GbE TP-Link TL-SX105, a compatible switch that costs £249 in the UK. If your network is limited in speed, I would definitely consider the cost of the switch upgrade an integral part of the total investment in this system.

Once the switch was in place and a few checks run, it was time to set up the NAS ready for editing. Ugreen recommends the SMB protocol for video editing over the network,and once again, accessing the settings through UGOS proved easy enough.

In addition to the four 3.5-inch HDD bays, there are two M.2 Gen3 x2 NVMe slots under the machine, in the same bay as the RAM modules, designed to support SSD caching. These additional SSD modules came into use when I redirected Final Cut Pro X cache files to the M.2 SSD during the Final Cut Pro Library setup, freeing up network bandwidth for footage transfer and improving overall responsiveness.

At the heart of the machine is the AMD Ryzen Embedded R2514, and throughout the test, it proved capable of handling multiple applications running simultaneously without issue. Docker support is standard, so third-party apps, including Plex, that are not pre-installed can be installed via Docker as long as you have basic NAS knowledge. Inside, there’s also a 64GB eMMC system drive where UGOS Pro resides and operates independently of the installed drives; this essentially prevents OS updates from interrupting storage access.

The UGREEN AI App is at present limited compared with the iDX range and at launch covers six Photo features: People recognition, Text recognition, Similar and Duplicate recognition, Pet recognition, Sensitive content recognition, and Model training. I tested this feature with over 1,000 images, and all six options worked well, picking out subjects with ease and making it much easier to locate images. I also tested the Model training, which, as I found in the past, is especially useful if you have items or subjects in images that are out of the norm.

For this test, I uploaded a range of product review images, then labelled each one so they could be easily located in the future. Not just the name of the product, but also what it was and any other relevant details.

Another feature of interest is the Surveillance Centre for IP camera management, which is included in UGOS Pro and supports ONVIF-compatible cameras from manufacturers such as TP-Link. Unfortunately, I was unable to test this review due to camera compatibility limitations.

Finally, there are the shared folder and cloud features, which have again been enhanced and developed, making it far easier to create a share and invite others to access it from a remote location, either on the same network or elsewhere. This is the one feature, above all, that is of greatest interest to me, especially as the cost of inline storage options rapidly increases.

• Features: 4/5

UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT: Performance

The initial setup for the DXP4800 GT is similar to that of the other NASes in the Ugreen range. The four Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives are installed in the toolless bays at the front of the machine, and then two M.2 SSDs are installed in the base. It’s then connected to the network, which, for the first part of the review, was directly to a 2.5GbE switch, and later to a 10GbE switch. It’s also worth highlighting that none of the machines I have in the studio, desktop or laptop, feature 10GbE as standard, so on top of the Switch, a USB4 to 10GbE adapter was used.

Once everything is powered on, the Ugreen desktop app (Ugreen NAS) is installed and started, and it runs through the setup process, including initialising the drives in the machine. As an example, RAID 0 can be used for maximum speed, which is ideal if you’re using it for video editing, while RAID 5 or 6 can be used for backup and archiving.

While I like the idea of RAID 0 and its absolute speed, for most of the review, I’ve settled on RAID 5, as it provides some safety in case a drive fails and allows it to be swapped out. Whereas if using RAID 0 and a drive fails, then that’s essentially it; all data is lost.

Once the RAID 5 configuration is complete, you can access all the apps and settings through the Ugreen Desktop or mobile app, with the usual array of Photo, Media, and storage options. There's also Docker, so if you want access to Plex and other apps that haven’t been installed, then this is possible, just not as direct as the Apps available in the App library.

A few of the Apps of note include the Photos app, a photo management application that integrates machine learning. Essentially, think of it as working along much the same lines as Google or Apple Photos. At present, this is the only App on board that integrates AI capabilities, but I’m sure this will develop over time.

The area that really interests me is the personal cloud, essentially a way to share files on internal or external networks and set restrictions. This works as simply as copying files to the drive's shared area, then right-clicking and selecting Share. You then get a selection of options: external or internal user; whether access is Custom or permanent; whether downloads are permitted; and whether a password is needed.

You then click confirm, copy the URL and send it to whoever needs access. It isn’t, however, a free-for-all, and to actually see the files as the recipient, you have to register as a user and wait to be authorised before gaining full access. During the test, this was instantly put into practice and worked extremely well. The only issue was the HTTPS certificate for the link, but I’ll investigate and update the review soon.

Internally, this NAS is an ideal option for a wired SMB connection ready for video editing, especially with four Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives in RAID 0 or RAID 5 in my case. In the initial tests on my older 2.5GbE network, the DXP4800 GT delivered 272.96 MB/s read and 268.35 MB/s write. I also decided to test this on a 1GbE network, speeds dropped to 115MB/s read and 97MB/s write, consistent with 1GbE bandwidth and showing the system scales well with available network speed. Finally, once the 10GbE switch arrived, I ran the test again and this time achieved speeds of 1034 MB/s and 585 MB/s, using AJA System Test Lite, more than enough for video editing.

I will point out that my wired network is part of a wireless network and is designed for data storage and transfer rather than for browsing the internet. This means that a wireless router connects to the switch along with the NAS and Printer, but doesn’t connect directly to the main connection. This is solely a logistical point, with my studio being too far from the main connection point and the wireless network providing ample speed for browsing the internet and watching back media.

As I got started on the video editing test, it really highlighted the difference in potential speed between 2.5GbE and 10GbE. I started the test with a 500GB 4K editing project with all files stored entirely on the DXP4800 GT and an M.2 SSD handling Final Cut Pro X cache files. I tried editing over the 2.5GbE SMB connection first, and while there were stalls and some wait time, I was actually impressed with the performance, especially as the switch cost around £50 some time ago. However, the speed, as you’ll see in the benchmark tests, was limited.

One of the points of this NAS is that it offers dual 10GbE, so upgrading the Switch to the 10GbE version and using a USB4-to-10GbE Adapter was required, and the difference was immediate. Once set up, the speed was pretty much identical to having a desktop hard drive attached to the machine, just with a whole lot more storage capacity. After testing the speed and capacity, there’s no doubt this will now be my preferred method of editing, especially since I can give clients direct access to the output files without paying for a cloud storage solution.

This system and the Seagate IronWolf 4TB drives I have installed are all new, so the likelihood of failure is low; however, I always err on the side of caution, so I have been testing in RAID 5 rather than RAID 0. To test the drive, I decided to swap it out to simulate a failed drive. I powered down the NAS, removed a drive, formatted it, popped it back in, and restarted the NAS to rebuild the drive.

The rebuild took approximately 10-15 hours, and during that time, manual intervention was minimal: it was essentially as easy as inserting the replacement drive, rebooting, and letting UGOS Pro handle the rebuild automatically. For a four-drive 8TB configuration, this rebuild time is expected, though it means you’re down to three drives, which can leave you vulnerable to a second drive failure that could cause data loss. I could have gone for RAID 6, which provides two-drive redundancy, but this does hammer the potential storage space.

Through all operations and uses, the AMD R2514 handled network transfers, Docker application management, and background UGOS Pro tasks without issue. Although with just 8GB of RAM in a single channel, I would be tempted to upgrade this to the full 64GB.

Media playback through the media player worked for most file formats, although those created on the Sony A7 IV with certain codecs did falter. Start time between selecting the video, clicking play, and the video actually playing, is around 5 seconds.

In normal situations, I tuck NAS boxes out of the way as they can be noisy as the discs spin up and are accessed. Here, the DXP4800 GT once again has all those usual noises, but they seem to be dampened compared with many systems of this type I’ve used in the past. Once again, the cooling is exceptional, and it’s great to see a magnetic dust cover at the back that can be quickly removed and cleaned when needed.

• Performance: 4.5/5

Should you buy the UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT?

After two weeks of testing, the Ugreen NASync DXP4800 GT is, without doubt, a superb NAS option for those in the creative sector. It’s fast and easy to set up, and many of the intricacies of NAS are handled by the UGOS software's setup and management, which just makes everything that much easier.

The two major features here are the personal cloud, which, unlike some other NAS I have looked at recently, is easy to use and straightforward. There’s a little complexity: users need to register once the link is sent, and then you need to authorise them, but otherwise it’s exactly what many creators have been asking for, and here it’s just simple.

The other major feature is the 10GbE network connection, which is just about as fast as you can get. In this test, I had to upgrade my network to see the full potential with a 10GbE switch replacing the old 2.5GbE, and then adding a Sabrent USB4 to 10GbE dongle to enable the connection, as the RJ45 on my desktop is also 2.5GbE, and none of the laptops used had a network port as standard.

However, if you are looking for maximum speed on your network for creative use such as network renders, video editing, or just fast file archiving, these network upgrade steps are essential to maximise the potential.

The DXP4800 GT is an excellent choice for smaller studios, offices and homes, really anyone who wants dual 10GbE without the huge cost that has until now been associated with this network speed.

There are a few issues, but most of these can be overcome with upgrades. For me, the single-channel RAM as the default would be the first upgrade after the initial setup. Then there are the AI features currently limited to Photos, and the cost of the HDDs, SSDs, 10GbE switch and dongle for USB/Thunderbolt, all of which add to the cost.

However, when I sat down and worked through the costs of my Google Drive storage, WeTransfer, Wipster, and Backblaze subscriptions, it didn’t take long for those subscriptions' yearly costs to far surpass the cost of the DXP4800 GT. I’ve been sold on this new wave of NAS for a while, and the advancements with each new release just make them more impressive and usable, especially when you need to store large quantities of files and access them quickly.

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Alastair is a photographer, filmmaker and tech writer who has been working in the publishing industry since the late 1990s. For more than 25 years he has covered photography, video and technology across Future's photography, technology and gaming brands. He runs a photography and video production company and lectures in TV and film. He can usually be found testing mini PCs or prototyping and prop building with the aid of 3D printing.

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