As part of my usual CES vendor visits, I caught up with QNAP and took a look at the new products and QTS features slated to enter the market over the next couple of quarters. The products that caught my eye included a new series of Thunderbolt-enabled NAS units, a couple of products targeting the IoT / residential wireless gateway space, a NAS unit with an optical drive slot, and a 16-bay Xeon D NAS in the tower form factor. On the software side, QNAP also demonstrated a new QVR Pro Surveillance Station integrating the Surveillance Station package into the QTS OS along with a host of improvements. The DJ2 Live live-stream broadcast platform was also in action at the booth. I won’t go much into the software announcements – Interested readers can refer to the press release , and there really is not much to add beyond that on those aspects.
We last looked at QNAP’s offerings in our coverage of their TVS-x82T launch back in May 2016. One of the questions I had asked at the launch event was about the non-availability of Thunderbolt 3 (the TVS-x82T series came with Thunderbolt 2 ports). At CES 2017, QNAP introduced the first set of NAS units with Thunderbolt 3 support – with the TVS-1282T3 being the flagship in that segment. Sporting 8x 3.5″ bays and 4x 2.5″ bays along with 2x M.2 SATA SSD slots, the unit can be configured with either a Core i5-7500 or Core i7-7700 CPU. Available I/Os include 2x Thunderbolt 2 as well as 2x Thunderbolt 3 ports, 2x 10GBASE-T and 4x GbE network links, five USB 3.0 ports (one in front, four in the back), two microphone inputs, and two speaker outputs as well as a 3.5mm audio line-out. There are four SODIMM slots, allowing end-users to configure the system with up to 64GB of RAM.
QNAP also introduced the 2.5″-only TVS-882ST models – The TVS-882ST2 has Thunderbolt 2 ports, while the TVS-882ST3 has Thunderbolt 3 ports. Unlike the flagship TVS-1282T3, these units use the high-end Skylake mobile CPUs (Core i7-6700HQ or Core i5-6442EQ). The brochure for the TVS-882ST series also brings out the two Thunderbolt usage scenarios – as a direct-attached storage unit (with the expansion units allowing as much as 400TB to be accessed directly), or a 10Gb switch (with the virtual switch feature that can act as a Thunderbolt to Ethernet converter) to create a 10Gbps interface for the system connecting to it. The second feature makes a separate Thunderbolt to 10Gbps converter unnecessary.
Detailed specifications of the units in both series, as well as some of interesting information from QNAP’s product brochures are reproduced in the gallery at the end of this piece.
The TVS-882BR is a 8-bay NAS with a SATA expansion bay that can either support two slim optical drives or one 5.25″ optical drive. It is based on a Kaby Lake platform, supports PCIe NVMe SSDs and also two M.2 SATA SSD slots. There are three PCIe 3.0 expansion slots and three display outputs.
The device is intended for use-cases where data on the NAS needs frequent backing up to optical media. The specifications of the various members in this lineup are summarized in the gallery at the end of this piece.
The TS-1685 lineup is one of the most comprehensive set of Xeon D-based COTS NAS units in the market today. There are nine different tower models carrying either the Xeon D-1521 or the Xeon D-1531, with choice of either ECC or non-ECC DDR4 RAM. Based on demand, QNAP indicated that versions using Xeon D-1548 could also make it to the market. Some units carry a 550W internal PSU (instead of 250W), and can support a discrete GPU such as the AMD Radeon RX480. This is particularly useful for GPU compute, as well as a 3D accelerator for virtual machines.
There are a total of twelve 3.5″ bays and four 2.5″ bays. On the board, there are six M.2 SATA SSD slots (supporting 2242 to 22110 form factors) with heat sinks on top as well as thermal pads at the bottom. There are four GbE ports and two 10GBASE-T ports. The three spare PCIe expansion slots (two 3.0 x8, one 2.0 x4) can be used for 10/40 GbE adapters, discrete GPUs, PCIe NVMe SSDs or USB 3.1 Gen 2 cards.
QNAP is marketing the TS-1685 as a Super NAS, and the above specifications completely justify the tag. More details are available in the pages from the brochure included in the gallery at the end of this piece.
QNAP had two products at CES that were a bit of a departure from the traditional NAS units. Even though they have been focusing on IoT from a NAS perspective for some time, the IoT-focused QBoat Sunny caught us by surprise. Running QTS Lite (a stripped down version of the QTS NAS OS), it is meant as a platform for IoT developers to create a local IoT / home automation controller.
Synology is currently shipping their second generation wireless router, the RT 2600ac. Even though they are not trying to bring cutting-edge products to the market, they seem to have got a toehold in the market. In the set of NAS vendors who are trying to move to the larger consumer Wi-Fi router space, QNAP is throwing its hat in the ring with the TGX-150. It looks like a traditional Wi-Fi router (1x WAN, 4x LAN) and has Intel radios for a 802.11ac MU-MIMO Wi-Fi access point. This device also runs QTS Lite.
The interesting aspect of both of these products is the usage of the Intel AnyWAN GRX750 network processor / SoC. To the best of our knowledge, this is Intel’s first design win in the consumer Wi-Fi router space (one traditionally dominated by SoCs from Qualcomm, Broadcom, and Mediatek).
The detailed specifications of the QBoat Sunny and the TGX-150 are included in the gallery below (along with the specifications of all the new product lines discussed above).
QNAP’s CES 2017 announcements make it clear that it is going to be difficult for any other vendor to match the wide range of hardware platforms they have on offer. It is surprising that no other NAS vendor has tried to attack the NAS / DAS / iSCSI SAN combo market that QNAP is targeting with their Thunderbolt NAS units. Multimedia-editing production houses can definitely use those types of units effectively. On the IoT / residential gateway side, QNAP’s use of an Intel platform is surprising, given the prevalence of ARM-based SoCs in that market. However, without concrete pricing information or performance numbers, it is difficult to draw conclusions. The Intel AnyWAN platform seems great on paper for the applications. It might well turn out to be a credible competitor to the established platforms in the market.

© Source: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11076/qnap-at-ces-2017-thunderbolt-3-and-xeon-d-nas-units-residential-gateways-and-more
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Over CES, MSI announced a new console-like PC called the Trident 3. The new unit packs the latest Intel’s Kaby Lake CPU, a NVIDIA GeForce GTX GPU, memory, an SSD and a hard drive. The system weighs just about three kilograms and its dimensions are smaller than dimensions of Microsoft’s Xbox One.
Current-generation game consoles, while closed systems ripe for optimization, can have difficulty providing performance sufficient for Full-HD gaming. Many console gamers prefer to play their games on HDTVs rather than on monitors, and so makers of boutique PCs were set on introducing console-like computers featuring gaming-grade hardware. Manufacturers of computer components were, for various reasons, reluctant to launch their own SFF gaming PCs for the living room until last year. However in the recent months we have seen a number of computers from motherboards/GPU vendors cards that are both small and powerful. MSI began to sell its Trident system in November-December timeframe without making any loud announcements, and this month the company upgraded its mini PC with Intel’s Kaby Lake processors but retained the chassis and the platform.
The MSI Trident 3 is based on a custom Intel H110 powered motherboard, along with a choice of Intel’s Core i7-7700 / i5-7400 processors and NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1060 / 1050 Ti graphics cards. By default the PC comes with 8 GB of single-channel DDR4-2400 memory (upgradeable to 32 GB), a 256 GB M.2 SATA SSD, one 1 TB hard drive and a 230 W external PSU. Despite the miniature size, the MSI Trident 3 is upgradeable: the CPU, the graphics adapter, the DRAM and storage devices may be changed. Due to lack of space inside, it is impossible to install a video card longer than 17 cm or additional drives, but such limitations are understandable. Moreover, keeping in mind that many SFF PCs use mobile components soldered to their motherboards, so using desktop-class components is a tradeoff between replaceability and size.
When it comes to connectivity, the MSI Trident 3 has a lot to offer: three USB 3.0 Type-A ports (two front, one rear), one USB 3.0 Type-C header (front), four USB 2.0 connectors (rear), Gigabit Ethernet, an IEEE 802.11ac Wi-Fi with BT 4.2 module, six display outputs (four HDMI, one DisplayPort, one DVI) to easily connect VR headsets and up to three monitors, 5.1-channel audio with Audio Boost 3 and Nahimic software enhancements and so on.
MSI’s Trident 3 can be installed both horizontally and vertically, depending on its owner’s tastes. Moreover, the system is equipped with RGB LEDs so to customize its look.
The MSI Trident 3 featuring Intel’s Kaby Lake CPUs will be available shortly with the basic configuration (Core i5-7400, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4 GB, etc.) starting at $899, while the more advanced builds will naturally cost more.
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© Source: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11071/msi-trident-3-console
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Last week BenQ introduced its new display with QHD resolution that has an integrated USB 3.0 Type-C dock. Aside from the dock, the 27” monitor’s big selling point is support for 100% sRGB. This goes in tandem with additional modes specifically aimed at CAD/CAM, Animation and Darkroom environments. The new display is among the first monitors with a USB-C connector as well as docking capabilities.
The manufacturer does not disclose too many details about the unit, but given that the monitor belongs to the PD-series from BenQ for designers and engineers, it is logical to expect it to use an IPS or a VA panel with 178° viewing angles and a 60 Hz refresh rate. Meanwhile, covering 100% sRGB should suggest that the display supports 1.07 billion colors (8-bit + FRC), which is enough for typical office and web design workloads. To further appeal to the target audience, the monitor features CAD/CAM, Animation, and Darkroom modes calibrated for particular types of applications, but BenQ does not disclose how this affects color accuracy.
The integrated USB-C docking station uses the same cable as the display, and BenQ’s press release states that the dock is designed to charge a laptop or a mobile device up to 61W (that is compatible with DisplayPort alternate mode for USB-C ) as well as expand its I/O capabilities over USB 3.0. This includes, ‚multiple audio, video, network, USB ports and integrated speakers‘. At present, the list of devices supporting DP alt mode for USB-C includes the Apple MacBook, the Dell XPS 12/13/15, the HP Elite X2 1012, the HP EliteBook Folio G1, the Microsoft Lumia 950/950 XL, the LG G5, the HTC 10 M10h and so on. In addition to the USB-C input, the display is also equipped with DisplayPort and HDMI input connectors.
BenQ did not announce exact pricing or availability timeframe for its PD2710QC. Currently BenQ sells the PD2700Q display for $359 , which is not too much for a 27” QHD IPS monitor. While a USB-C hub is clearly a premium feature, it remains to be seen how much more BenQ will charge for it.
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© Source: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11057/benq-pd2710qc-announced-27-2560-1440
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The gaming scene tends to be slow this time of the year, and some may still feel burned out from Christmas spending, others still feel like giving. Leading up to two more big budget releases that are fast approaching, NVIDIA has prepared another bundle for those considering an upgrade to their gaming hardware.
The “ Prepare for Battle ” game bundle is launching today. Anyone who purchases a GeForce GTX 1080, GTX 1070, or a PC or laptop equipped with these cards will have the option to download either Ubisoft’s For Honor or Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands for free.
For Honor is a fast paced single and multiplayer action game that pits together Knights, Samurai and Vikings in hand-to-hand combat, requiring tactical thinking and fast reflexes. At the other end of the technology spectrum we have Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, the next step in a franchise that has been running for almost long enough to drive. ‘ Wildlands ’ is pitched as the very first military shooter in a massive open world that you can play entirely solo or in four-player co-op. For Honor will see release on February 14th, while Ghost Recon Wildlands will arrive on March 7th.
NVIDIA is also debuting a new, and hopefully easier, way to redeem codes through GeForce Experience. Now customers will no longer have to wade through sign up webpages but can simply enter their code within GeForce Experience itself and have their choice of game automatically added to their Uplay account. Though I imagine one would still need to be signed into GeForce Experience, which for some may make the difference moot.
We haven’t yet received news to how long this offer will run, though we will update here when we catch news of the end date. Meanwhile it is worth remembering to verify the participation of any vendors purchased from as NVIDIA likely will not give codes for purchases made from sellers that are not participating.

© Source: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11086/nvidia-launches-new-bundle-prepare-for-battle
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