The ideal Plex NAS just got a big discount for Black Friday

The QNAP TS-453D-4G isn't going to win any awards for its name, but the NAS enclosure is one of the best if you're looking to switch to a home server with 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) ports. And with an Intel Celeron J4125 under the hood, it is one of the best NAS for Plex you can get your hands on right now.

There haven't been too many NAS enclosures on sale this year, and that's what makes the discount on the TS-453D-4G that much more enticing. The NAS retails for $549, but it is on sale for $440 — 20% off its regular price and a savings of $110.

You get a lot of value here; the Celeron J4125 is the same chip that's powering the DiskStation DS920+ — my pick for the best 4-bay NAS for Plex under $600 — so you're getting the same robust hardware. What gives the TS-453D-4G an edge is the dual 2.5GbE ports; if you're looking to pick up a NAS and want multi-gigabit connectivity, this is the obvious choice.

Elsewhere, you get 4GB of RAM out of the box with a free slot available to add a further 4GB, four drive bays that can take 16TB drives each, a HDMI port for connecting the NAS directly to your TV, three USB 3.0 ports, two USB 2.0 ports, and even a PCIe Gen 2 slot for adding a custom network interface card.

QNAP TS-453D-4G

$440 at Amazon

The TS-453D-4G has the requisite hardware for Plex 4K transcoding, and with 2.5GbE connectivity, four drive bays that can hold up to 64TB, three USB 3.0 ports, and HDMI out, you're not missing out on any features here. Combine that with easy-to-use software and you get a great package.

As far as hardware goes, this is one of the best packages you can find in the sub-$600 category. I used NAS models with the J4125 extensively, and they hold up just fine for Plex 4K transcodes and direct streams, so if you have a media collection that's full of 4K movies and TV shows, the TS-453D-4G will be able to play it back on all of your connected devices without breaking a sweat.

QNAP's software isn't as refined as Synology, but the fact that you're getting better hardware negates that advantage. And of course, at $440 you won't find many NAS enclosures that have as many features as the TS-453D-4G. If you need NAS-focused hard drives to pair with your new enclosure, be sure to take a look at the best Black Friday NAS deals.