Best SSD for the QNAP TS-233
By Devin Chua · Data checked by Owen Nakamura · Updated The 2 bays of the QNAP TS-233 take 2.5-inch SATA SSDs as well as hard drives, but over 1 × 1GbE it rarely pays: the network caps throughput long before the drive does, and SSDs cost a multiple per TB. An all-SSD TS-233 makes sense for silence in a living space, or for the many small parallel reads of virtual-machine storage — not for a file-and-backup NAS.
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SATA SSDs for the TS-233, live from Amazon.ca
What sets the TS-233 apart
The cheapest QNAP and deliberately modest: an ARM processor, 2 GB of soldered RAM, one gigabit port. The network caps you at about 110 MB/s here, so a faster drive buys no more speed. Buy on noise and price per TB, not on data rate.
When SSDs make sense in the TS-233
A SATA SSD reads about 550 MB/s, a good NAS drive 200 to 280 — but the TS-233's 1 × 1GbE only carries part of that anyway, and per terabyte the SSD costs several times more. For file storage, backups and media on the TS-233, hard drives are the sensible choice by every measure.
Two cases flip it. Silence: if the TS-233 lives in a living room or bedroom, an all-SSD build is the only thing that truly quiets it. And many small parallel reads — virtual- machine storage, a busy photo database — where the SSD's access times, not its data rate, are what you are buying. On a lighter box like the TS-233, that second case is rarer than it sounds.
The QNAP drive policy on the TS-233
unrestrictedOpen. QNAP locks no drives.
The TS-233 at a glance
| Bays | 2 × 3.5-inch SATA and 2.5-inch SATA SSD |
|---|---|
| Processor | ARM Cortex-A55 (4 cores, 2.0 GHz) |
| Memory | 2 GB, 2 GB, soldered Soldered, not upgradeable |
| M.2 NVMe | none No M.2 slots |
| Network | 1 × 1GbE |
| Operating system | QTS 5.2 |
| RAID types | Single, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1 |
Keep calculating
To see how much capacity is left after parity, the TS-233 capacity calculator is preset to its 2 bays and RAID types. For the TS-233, the wider basics of choosing a drive are in the buying guides, where we also explain why CMR rather than SMR is mandatory in any RAID array.
Frequently asked questions
Can I put third-party drives in the TS-233?
Yes. QNAP locks no drive brand on the TS-233 — its compatibility list is guidance, not a gate — so any CMR NAS drive works.
Which drives fit the TS-233?
The TS-233 takes any 3.5-inch SATA and 2.5-inch SATA SSD drive; use a CMR NAS family rated for 24/7 duty such as IronWolf, WD Red Plus or Toshiba N300. On its 1 × 1GbE, even a basic 5400 rpm drive saturates the TS-233's link.
How much capacity is usable in the TS-233?
In the TS-233, 2 × 8 TB in RAID 1 gives about 7.28 TiB usable and survives 1 drive failing; the balance is parity.
Can the TS-233 run Plex with hardware transcoding?
Only in software. The TS-233's ARM Cortex-A55 (4 cores, 2.0 GHz) has no Quick Sync, so Plex transcodes on the CPU — enough for direct play, not for heavy 4K transcoding.
Is a Pro drive worth it in the TS-233?
Not for speed. The TS-233's 1 × 1GbE caps throughput near 110 MB/s, which the cheapest NAS drive already reaches, so a Pro drive only buys the longer warranty and higher workload rating.
Devin Chua works out which drives, RAM and NVMe cache fit which NAS model at nasdrives.ca, and what the RAID choice means for usable capacity, checked against what is in stock on Amazon.ca.
Data checked by Owen Nakamura, Technical editor (data checking)