Side-by-side specifications of the Synology DS218PLAY and DS220+, from official datasheets. Differences are highlighted.
| DS218PLAY | DS220+ | |
| CPU | Realtek RTD1296 | Intel Celeron J4025 |
| Cores / threads | 4-core / 4-thread | 2 |
| RAM (base) | 1 GB DDR4 | 2 GB |
| RAM (max) | 1 GB | 6 GB |
| Drive bays | 2 | 2 |
| Expandable to | 0 | 0 |
| M.2 slots | 0 | 0 |
| Network | 1x 1GbE RJ-45 | 2x 1GbE |
| 10GbE | no | no |
| Max raw capacity | 20 TB | 32 TB |
| Hot-swap | no | yes |
| Form factor | 2-bay tower | desktop |
| Released | 2018 | 2020 |
Choose the DS220+ if you want the clearly stronger and more future-proof box: it has a much faster Intel Celeron CPU, 2 GB RAM vs 1 GB, and the RAM can be expanded to 6 GB. It also keeps the same 2 bays and has no 10GbE or M.2 support, while the DS218play is slower, fixed at 1 GB RAM, and has no expansion headroom.