Usually power consumption and noise aren't a big deal, but if you are new to the idea of leaving your system on 24/7, then knowing your electric bill won't shock you can be important. While the power supply is rated at 200 watts, we found the P400T consumed a mere 44 watts of power under normal operating conditions. The noise generated by the fans was barely more than a whisper. Because it was so quiet, we were a little concerned about adequate airflow, so we kept the unit on overnight. Surprisingly, heat did not become an issue. Our tests with a calibrated digital contact thermometer measured a temperature of only 96 degrees at the exhaust fan. This compares to 93 degrees from the much louder and only marginally more effective fans of our 3.0GHz computer.

With its System on a Chip (Debian Linux), the Yellow Machine is not laden with extra operating system overhead, so boot to ready takes just less than a minute and should be dependable and nearly immune to virus invasion. Other cool features include an email system warning notification that can be automatically sent to you if the system detects any errors or if the drives fill past an amount you specify. And while we didn't have a chance to use the router or dig into security details, these are very attractive included features if you don't already have these in place.

If you are using multiple computers in your home/office and are constantly aching for more storage of standard definition video and other media, it's worth taking a close look at the P400T Yellow Machine. If, however, you plan to jump to high definition soon, an NAS compatible with gigabit Ethernet will be required.

Size: 5.5"(w) x 7.9"(h) x 12.1"9(l)
Weight w/o HDD: 8.65 lbs.
Weight w/ 4-HDDs: 14 lbs. (approx)
Operating Temperature: 32-95 degrees F
AC Power: 95-132 V/190-264V
Power Consumption: 200 watts (our tests averaged only 44 watts)
Acoustic Noise: (sound pressure level); 36dB/Operating: 45dB
Capacity as configured with 4 250GB PATA drives in RAID 5 configuration: 681.74GB
Firewall: both NAT and SPI

• Integrated WAN router with 8-port switch
• security features
• Solid build
• Quiet
• Low power consumption

• Write/read speeds are slower than some comparable NAS units we've tested
• Lack of USB connections

This is a professional level hard disk recording/audio editing solution, at a very affordable price.

$1,300
Anthology Solutions, Inc.
2457 Augustine Drive
Santa Clara, CA 95054
(408) 454-6700
ww.yellowmachine.com

Brian Peterson is Videomaker's Editor in Chief.