TerraMaster F2-212 review: Affordable NAS for home and small businesses [video]

For home users looking to get started with network-attached storage (NAS) on a budget, Terramaster’s F2-212 is an appealing option. This compact 2-bay NAS has an affordable price point around $169, undercutting similar offerings from more mainstream brands.

Does it sacrifice too much in terms of features and performance? Let’s take a closer look.

Design and build quality

The F2-212’s plastic chassis has a plain, no-frills design reminiscent of a power supply unit. It’s a bit drab from an aesthetic perspective, but the ventilated side panels and rear fan should provide adequate cooling. Build quality feels decent for an entry-level NAS.

The front drive bays support hot-swapping 3.5″ or 2.5″ SATA drives up to 22TB each, for a total capacity of 44TB in RAID level 0. This gives the F2-212 more storage expandability than typical budget NAS options.

Hardware

Under the hood, the F2-212 runs on a decent quad-core Realtek Cortex-A55 processor coupled with 1GB RAM. This ARM-based CPU may not be a powerhouse, but it should handle basic NAS duties like file sharing and media streaming just fine.

A standout feature is 4K hardware video transcoding support, something you rarely see in this price bracket. This allows the NAS to efficiently transcode video streams on the fly for services like Plex, taking the load off the main CPU.

Ports include one USB 3.0, one USB 2.0, and gigabit Ethernet. No HDMI or dedicated backup options.

Software and performance

The F2-212 runs Terramaster’s Linux-based OS (TOS), which is still relatively new but getting regular updates. The web interface is user-friendly for basic file management, backup jobs, and media apps like Plex.

Since it’s Linux under the hood, advanced users can also install apps and run Docker containers/VMs on the NAS for additional services like VPNs or web servers.

For typical NAS usage like file transfers and HD video streaming, the F2-212 performs reasonably well for its price point. The quad-core CPU can handle real-time video transcoding for 4K and HDR videos.

Bear in mind that these are very modest specs, but it should cater to the common personal and SOHO (small office / home office) use cases.

Verdict

If you’re looking for affordable network storage and basic media server capabilities, Terramaster’s F2-212 hits the mark. The ability to hot-swap larger drives, hardware video transcoding, and Linux flexibility give it an edge over some entry NAS boxes in this range.

However, you’ll have to accept a basic plastic design, limited RAM/CPU power, and Terramaster’s still-maturing OS. For casual home use focused on file sharing and media streaming, those trade-offs may be worthwhile considering the low asking price. But power users will likely want to move up to a more robust, yet pricier NAS solution.

Overall, the compact and affordable F2-212 makes a solid first NAS for home users who want to dip their toes into network storage without breaking the bank.

WATCH: TerraMaster F2-212 review