Is Synology KILLING their BEST Applications?

DSM 7.2.2 removed Video Station and changed a bunch of other apps - in this video, we focus on the update and the future of Synology devices.

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0:00 Intro
0:33 Synology DSM 7.2.2 Changes
0:59 Synology Video Station
1:40 History of Synology Removing Apps
2:18 Codec Changes (H.265, H.264, VC-1)
3:50 Surveillance Station Changes
6:00 Why Did Synology Make These Changes?
7:55 Will Synology Remove Other First-Party Apps?
8:52 What is the REAL Reason Synology Made These Changes?
9:50 Is a Subscription Service for Synology Apps Coming?
11:43 Summarizing this Update: Good or Bad?

Thanks for watching!

#synology #nas

[WunderTechTutorials]

What are your thoughts on this update? Do you care that the app/codecs were removed? I realize this video probably sounds fairly pessimistic towards Synology, but it's still my favorite pre-built NAS and for the bulk of people, buying a Synology is the right move. I don't think other apps will necessarily be removed, but abandoned from a development perspective would have probably been the better word.

Keep in mind, I don't think anyone knows for certain that codec fees were the reason for these changes, but it seems likely from rumors. On the bright side, the reason anyone is complaining in the first place is because of how good DSM has been for most users, so I guess there's always two ways to look at everything!

[williamhicks]

You’re killing me, Smalls! It was a crime to remove PhotoStation. I had 10’s of thousands of family photos well organized and many comments were made on those photos by relatives that I expected to always be there for my kids to read even after the relatives passed on. Synology just said screw your memories and provided no way to transfer those comments over to the new photos app and added features I didn’t need. I also have thousands of video clips taken as my kids grew up well organized under VideoStation. I can’t count on Synology any longer as an option for preserving our memories for future generations. I feel like the people that make these decisions don’t really use their own products. The work this all this is causing me and the disruption to non-tech savvy relatives is enormous.

[Kurt]

Removing Video Station/DS Video was a really bad move! And it was disrespectful to us, clients, that spend so much on DSM (since hw certainly is not their strongest point) + HDD's + (supposedly...) their (rebranded) RAM modules, for Synology not even having the consideration to warn us.

Who know if the same won't happen to Audio Station/DS Audio someday...

Ok, Video Station/DS Video (Audio Station/DS Audio; mainly the apps) needed improvements but at least we could use it.

What Synology wanted with the removal of the codecs, was just to increase their profit by not paying licenses fees!


"The higher you are, the bigger the fall is".
Let's see if Ugreen will not start to bet heavily on their NAS.

Thanks (read: f. You), Synology!

[aleksandrasnelkinas]

I’ve invested a lot in my DS920+, including expensive, high-capacity disks, a RAM upgrade, and SSD cache, all to create a multimedia server and cloud storage for my family’s Apple devices. But with just one update, Synology has broken everything, and now I can’t use it as planned. I’m beyond frustrated.

The DS920+ was specifically designed for these kinds of tasks. It’s not a commercial unit—it’s meant for users like me. This update feels like a slap in the face to all of us. I’m sure there are many other users who are just as upset.

[raycollington]

As someone about to buy a new Synology NAS, I’ll postpone this decision and take a look at other brands. Thank you Frank.

[Aether-Entropy]

The entire reason I got a synology was to stop paying for subscription services. Hopefully that won't be a thing in the future.

[nixxblikka]

So Synology always had outdated hardware and high prices. But people always said: But the software. If they will take this way, they need to give the NAS at a reasonable price. Look at all the N100 boxes. Will this be happening? Doubt it, in particular as for an 720+ you have to pay way more, likely things you will never be using. So I think they will charge similar amounts and also charge recurring- and that’s where I say: Check OMV, TrueNAS etc…. I mean the software, look at Synology Photos, it doesn’t even support offline sync… Synology Drive led to loss of data… and I mean isn’t it ironic, they take away Video Station and Plex breaks? I see parallels to Nokia here

[Ultrajamz]

I was waiting for synology 1825+ but now I’m thinking better off building my own nas.

[kloakovalimonada]

"We've removed all this functionality so your device can do nothing, faster"

[BFR]

Unhappy client here. Synology is getting greedy e will not buy anymore NAS from them. I payed more for the hardware because of the software capabilities. Not anymore.

[fabiankeppler]

The only reason why I ever chose for Synology was the software. hardware is always some years behind and compatibility is getting really annoying.
Cost going up, service decreasing. Well this was my last Synology

[ufomism]

I completely agree with your take on Surveillance Station. Before purchasing my licenses, I made sure all my cameras were compatible and I made my storage calculations based on using h265/h265+ understanding those would be supported. Now after a few months I will no longer be able to use motion detection through Surveillance Station (which in my testing works better) and I will have to manage each camera individually rather than through one app (or record in h264 which is an overall downgrade, especially since I record on SSDs and lose storage capacity). It really feels like they are trying to force you to buy their own cameras (which I'm not even opposed to buying apart from the fact that they are never in stock) or their DVAs. I don't buy their claim about system resources, on my 1821+ Surveillance Station uses 1.5% CPU and 200mb ram. I'm going to try and get a refund for my licenses from Amazon and will look at moving to another surveillance system. Really disappointed in Synology, no longer interested in their products.

[IIWII]

I’ve been using DSM since 2012, around the same time I switched from Mac to Windows. In the past 2 years I’ve been using Linux. What I’ve discovered with DSM is that most of their apps are adaptations of open-source Linux apps. To name a couple, Synology Drive is Sharefile, Synology Proxy is NGINX Proxy Manager, File Station is File Browser. As I’ve been transitioning away from Windows I’ve done the same for Synology, at a faster pace. Now I mostly use my Synology NAS for storage. Docker is key in being able to transition from one OS to another. I’ve enjoyed DSM in the past, but don’t see it in my future.

[Steve_Just_Steve]

Wouldn't want to "bog down" my Synology with the main tasks I bought and use it for or anything....

[sdfglkjhdfkjdhldskfj]

Removing significant functionality sucks. If you bought a product because it supported a feature, and that feature is removed, I'd argue that you should get your money back.

I have been running diskstations for 15+ years. This is making me reconsider using them, along with stupids like trying to get us to buy overpriced drives that are just re-labels of other brands.

[Ultrajamz]

I suspect these features will be returned with a subscription priced software or requirement of newer hardware, which is pretty scummy if I am right.

[johnnycaps]

Thanks for your honest assessment. This "update" is going to give Synology's reputation a BIG BLACK EYE. A reputation that relied on great software, simple to use out of the box. Starting to think I should have looked into a DIY "Box" solution BEFORE I spent over $2500 on the SINOLOGY DS NAS. One the reasons for the purchase was it's Video Station and of course EASE OF USE. It's not so easy if SINOLOGY starts removing the apps that people use and are comfortable with the User Interface. Would gladly pay for a subscription for what Synology pays for it licenses.
Well, being now forced to learn how to add 3rd party software will help me with the learning curve when my next NAS WILL be my own build since I've heard it can be way less expensive (than Synology) and WAY more powerful and WAY more capable even if there's a bit of learning curve.

[RogierYou]

I am in the process of of moving everything from cloud services to my own cloud on the Synology NAS. These changes are very concerning

[bloodyfool-ck]

Synology has disappointed us all. I hope with all this noise, they rectify the issue.

[NullSyncs]

I'm definitely not going to pay for a subscription. If I wanted to pay, I would have just stuck with my cloud service.
This is really disappointing. On top of the outdated hardware, they're now taking away the only thing that was keeping people— the software. Honestly, once my hardware gets too old, I'll start looking elsewhere.