Synology HAT3300-4T review

The HAT3300-4T is a 4TB hard drive from Synology's Plus Series. It spins at 5,400rpm, carries a 256MB cache and uses CMR recording. Synology rates it for 180TB per year and backs it with a 3-year warranty.

Those figures describe a drive meant for a NAS array. Owners describe it as both audible and fast in RAID 5, and both points are covered below.

The manufacturer states that the Plus Series uses 100% CMR recording, and the 4TB model is listed as CMR.

Owner feedback fits with that. Buyers call the drives fast in RAID 5.

The workload rating is 180TB per year. MTBF is given as up to 1.2 million hours on the manufacturer page, while the datasheet lists both 1.0M and 1.2M. A 180TB/year rating suits a NAS that stores, shares and backs up files. It leaves less headroom for a heavy write load.

One owner reports more than 8,200 power-on hours in an RS2423+ with no issues. The capacity of that drive isn't stated, so treat it as a single encouraging report rather than a reliability figure for this exact model.

This is the weakest area. Third-party measurements list 23dB at idle and 27dB while seeking for the 4TB model. Owners and a reviewer report that the drive is audible and louder than previous WD Red Plus drives.

Given those owner reports and the measured figures, noise is worth weighing before you buy. If the NAS lives in a bedroom, a study or an open-plan living space, the seek noise is worth thinking about. In a cupboard, garage or comms room, it matters far less.

Synology quotes a typical maximum sustained transfer rate of 202MB/s for the 4TB model. A reviewer's CrystalDiskMark results matched the advertised figures, and buyers describe the drives as fast in RAID 5.

The rating is a maximum sustained figure, so real transfers will vary with the array, the workload and the file sizes involved. The owner reports suggest the numbers are realistic rather than optimistic.

The warranty runs for 3 years, counted from the purchase date on the receipt. Keep the receipt somewhere safe. There's no data recovery service with the warranty, so the cover is for the drive and not the data on it listed. Backups remain your job.

The HAT3300-4T gets the important things right for a NAS drive. It uses CMR, has a 180TB/year workload rating, reaches a 202MB/s sustained rate and has a 3-year warranty. Owners report good RAID 5 speed and one reports a long run without problems.

Noise is the main reason to hesitate. Owners and a reviewer say it is audible, and third-party figures of 23dB idle and 27dB seek back that up. If the drive will sit away from where people work or sleep, that is a small issue. If not, check how much noise you can live with before buying.