Today, UGREEN, a well-known Chinese accessories maker, announced the availability of its NASync iDX series in the US market, following its earlier availability in other regions this year.
Unveiled over a year ago, NASync iDX is intended to be the first among NAS servers to include a local, full-featured AI chatbot.
For this review, I spent a significant amount of time with the NASync iDX6011 Pro, the top-tier model in the new series, and found it to be much more than a simple upgrade over the previous NASync DXP6800 Pro, which is formidable in its own right.
Here’s the bottom line: If you want a NAS server with enough power to run anything you can throw at it, including a full-scale, advanced Windows server via its virtual machine feature, the UGREEN NASync iDX6011 Pro is a safe choice based on the hardware specs alone. After that, its unique support for local AI will be a pleasant surprise!
On the downside, the server is not cheap, though not exactly expensive given its hardware specs, with a suggested retail price of $2,599. Alternatively, you can opt for the less expensive non-Pro variants, which have the same feature set but less processing power.
(Supposedly, you can save up to $1,000 less by joining the Kickstarter campaign. Unfortunately, due to strong demand, those options have all been claimed.)
Pros
Full-featured local Qwen AI with optional online and ChatGPT integration
Top-notch stock hardware (dual 10Gbps ports, Thunderbolt 4, built-in NVMe M.2 slots for storage or cache) with largely matching performance; easily upgradeable
Robust UGOS Pro operating system with standard management, functions, and add-on apps, including built-in support for shadow copies, virtual machines, and Domain/LDAP
Convenient, tool-free design; runs cool and relatively quiet
Cons
Popular apps, such as Plex or IP camera support, are still missing or lack depth; no flexible RAID
No server-to-server migration path, no RAM slots, bulky
Qwen AI often returns incorrect information in various subjects
UGREEN NASync iDX6011 Pro: A non-compromising AI-integrated NAS server
It’s been only slightly more than a year since UGREEN first entered the realm of network-attached storage (NAS) servers via the NASync DXP6800 Pro and its variants. Since then, the company has grown its new storage business by leaps and bounds, with multiple NAS offerings to fit a wide range of user demographics.
And this new NASync iDX6011 Pro shows off the company’s ambition. It’s the top tier of the all-new AI-enabled NASync iDX series, designed for those who want to leverage artificial intelligence without risking their privacy.
And chances are it won’t disappoint.
A massive powerhouse
Out of the box, at first glance, the iDX6011 Pro seems simply a larger version of the six-bay NASync DXP6800 Pro. And that’s true in both physical size and prowess.
The new server is significantly heavier and about 2.5 inches wider than its older cousin, mostly because it has a 3.71-inch vertical touchscreen on the right side.
On the inside, however, the NASync iDX6011 Pro is much more potent. The most telling fact is that it comes with 64GB of DDR5 RAM and an AI-ready Intel Core Ultra 7 255H CPU. On top of that, it features Thunderbolt 4 (40 40Gbps), USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 10Gbps), and dual 10 GbE ports.
In short, everything about the iDX6011 Pro’s hardware screams power, much more so than the DXP6800 Pro, which itself has remained top-of-the-line among NAS servers designed for the home and SMB environments.
Hardware specifications: UGREEN NASync iDX6011 Pro vs. NASync DXP6800 Pro
The familiar practical design, no RAM slots
Like the DXP6800 Pro, the iDX6011 Pro, as well as the rest of the NASync iDX family, comes with six front-facing drive bays. Each bay houses a conveniently designed drive tray that allows users to install a standard 3.5-inch hard drive without using any tools.
This design is actually a relief considering UGREEN’s entry-level servers, the four-bay DH4300 Plus and its two-bay variant (the DH2300), require plenty of screw-driving work.
Still, the new server comes with a bag of small screws, which you will need to mount SATA SSDs.
Chances are you won’t need to use SATA SSDs, as the new server also comes with two M.2 slots to host up to two NVMe SSDs. And these slots are easily accessible: All you have to do is open the server’s right side panel—a hex screw driver is included for this job. That’s also how you can access the PCIe Gen 4 4×8 slot in case you need to add more hardware to the server.
On the front, the server has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, an SD card reader, and a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port. On the back, there’s another USB 3.2 port, two USB 2.0 ports, two Multi-Gig 10GBASE-T network ports, the standard low-profile PCIe 4×8 slot, an 8K-capable HDMI port, and an OCuLink port for hosting an external GPU or other high-speed devices.
So, it looks like the NASync iDX6011 Pro has everything you’d need for a top-notch NAS server. Well, almost.
Built-in internal SSD, no flexible RAID or data-safe upgrade path
As with the DXP6800 Pro, the iDX6011 Pro (as well as the iDX6011 variants) comes with an internal 120GB SSD to house the operating system. As a result, you can get the server up and running without adding any storage.
However, this small convenience doesn’t make up for the fact that UGREEN’s UGO Pro NAS operating system only supports standard RAID configurations—it lacks flexible RAID options like Synology’s SHR. Consequently, keep the following in mind:
- When you mix drives of different capacities in a RAID, the capacity of the lowest-capacity drive applies to all drives.
- There’s no way to scale up a volume by replacing its drives with larger-capacity ones without losing data.
What’s more, with the iDX6011 Pro, I also found that UGREEN doesn’t support moving drives from one server to another while keeping data on the existing volumes, which is a standard migration method on Synology servers.
Specifically, I tried moving the six HDDs and two NVMe SSDs from my DXP6800 Pro, which has been running reliably since the review, to the iDX6011 Pro, in hopes of preserving all the data. Alas! That proved to be impossible. The new server would not recognize any storage pool created by the old server.
This rigid storage-management approach means UGREEN is still far behind other NAS vendors in terms of long-term usability. Imagine the amount of work needed when you want to scale up the storage or even upgrade the server down the line.
Speaking of upgrades, the iDX6011 Pro has another minor shortcoming: it has no RAM slots. Instead, its system memory is soldered to its motherboard. However, 64GB (even 32GB) is plenty. To put things in perspective, most NAS servers still come with only 4GB or 8GB out of the box.
UGREEN iDX6011 Pro: Everything in the NASync DXP6800 Pro is plus AI
Aside from hardware differences, the iDX6011 Pro is essentially the same as the DXP6800 Pro in setup, management, and features. Well, almost.
Specifically, the UGOS Pro is a Linux-based operating system that includes a robust web-based user interface accessible via its local IP address (assigned by the network router).
This interface resembles that of a native operating system. On the web page, there is a desktop area, a taskbar, a notification area, and icons for multiple apps, allowing users to further customize and manage the server.
For example, the Control Panel app manages the server’s settings, the Storage Center app handles the server’s storage, and the App Center is a store for installing additional apps.
And this App Center is where you’ll find the biggest difference between the iDX6011 Pro and any other UGREEN server: the AI Console app.
This app allows users to download and install multiple AI modules, powered by Qwen AI, for local use—even without Internet access—and then apply them to the server in two significant ways: by integrating with other apps and by using an independent chatbot called Uliya, which functions locally, within the servers’ web-based interface, similarly to Chat GPT or Qwen Chat which requires internet access and, often, your perosnal information.
The helpful AI and its quoarks
The AI integration makes life much easier when you need to find something or get something done fast.
For example, I could pick out specific photos among thousands by giving a specific command, such as “show photos of kids wearing red during the 2025 trip to Spain.”
Additionally, Uliya proved excellent at responding to commands about coding and to questions about established scientific information, such as the solar system or math.
However, when I asked it to do anything in the realm of being “creative”, such as writing an essay on a particular topic or a product review, it often produced generic-sounding text or even nonsensical or misleading content.
It’s worth noting that while Uliya can work completely offline, you can toggle on Online Search mode to fetch up-to-date information. This mode is often needed when you want answers about current events, such as movie showtimes or the weather.
In all, the iDX6011 Pro’s AI feature proved to be a real deal. Among other things, it gives users their own chatbot with a vast knowledge base, usable even without an Internet connection.
As for how useful this feature is, that depends on how you want to rely on AI—I’d personally only recommend trusting it with coding or amoth. But that’s a different story.
UGREEN iDX6011 Pro: Excellent storage performance
Given the iDX6011 Pro’s hardware specs, I expected top performance, and it didn’t disappoint. I tested the server for over a month using multiple RAID configurations and storage types, and it consistently topped performance charts.
Keep in mind, though, that the server’s real-world throughput, as shown in the charts, is limited by its 10Gbps ports.
Despite its large size, the server proved quiet, with only a subtle hum, and remained cool to the touch even during prolonged operation.
Conclusion
The UGREEN NASync iDX6011 Pro is first and foremost a powerful traditional NAS server that gives you (almost) everything you’d expect from a storage machine of its caliber. In fact, with a couple of large NVMe SSDs, you can use it to host multiple advanced virtual machines, and that alone makes it worth the cost.
That said, the AI features—which proved to be a real deal that’s about as good as it gets from any AI chatbot—are the icing on top. And it’s safe to say this feature will only get better over time.
AI is a nuanced tool that can be helpful or dangerous depending on how much you rely on it. With that, if you are looking for a personal AI chatbot that doesn’t infringe on your privacy, keep the NASync iDX6011 Pro in mind. With some patience, you’ll have your own soon enough.