Review: WD My Cloud Mirror
The WD My Cloud Mirror is a NAS that gives you your own private cloud, but offers the redundancy of a RAID1 backup, meaning your data is protected in the event of a hard drive failure.
The MCM is easy to setup: just download an application and link up the My Cloud Mirror. There’s also a mobile application which enables access to the MCM from anywhere with a connection.
The My Cloud Mirror has a number of storage options, we were provided the 4TB version for testing. Using the RAID1 option, this allows for 2TB of usable space. It’s a very quiet device, with only a very slight hum being occasionally noticeable in normal practice. I couldn’t get it above a hum, so WD have built the enclosure extremely well.
The strength of the My Cloud Mirror is in its streaming abilities. With quick access through the mobile apps to any part of the file structure, streaming videos is very simple. Downloading the file to your device is just as easy.
The My Cloud Mirror enables the removal of the biggest limitation to mobile devices today: the lack of space. The simplicity of accessing any file stored on your My Cloud Mirror means you can move your pictures, videos and documents off your device and on to the My Cloud, safe in the knowledge they are backed up. I would like to see the capability to upload images or videos automatically to your My Cloud, just like many third party services currently do.
Having control over our own information is becoming more and more important. There is growth in enterprise ecosystems of internal clouds, due to its improved quality of service and security compared to third party cloud providers. The ability to scale also means the costs of hosting an internal cloud over using a third-party provider actually often weigh in favour of the private cloud. This is the same, but for your home or small business.
With some small changes, the WD My Cloud would justify itself as a true alternative to third-party providers, with the ability to store vast amounts of data, and you wouldn’t need to worry what happens with your data or information. You know it’s not being sold to the highest bidder.Yes the WD My Cloud isn’t free compared to those third-party services. But as we all know nowadays, if you get something for free, you’re the product!
For those tinkerers out there, the WD My Cloud is hackable and you can install a number of applications, but this does void your warranty. I thought it best not to return a hacked device ;)
Pros:• Super quiet and discreet• Large amounts of storage (available in 2, 4 & 8TB)• Accessible from anywhere
Cons:• RAID1 ensures backup but you lose half the capacity• No ability to auto upload• Small application inventory
Summary:The WD My Cloud is a very good device, I’d call it the personal cloud for normal users. I’d be more than happy to put this in my parent’s house, knowing that they could easily use it and there wouldn’t be arduous support required.
I have heard user’s concerns about WD’s return strategy in the event of a fault (the user must pay to send it to Singapore). I hope this isn’t true, and that they have a New Zealand presence to support their devices. We’ll reach out to WD and ask them for you.
Support is a massively important part of a product, there’ll always be things go wrong, but it’s how the company responds to resolve the issue that you as customers should also be knowing about.
The My Cloud Mirror is a worthy addition to your household or small business, as long as you don’t want to concern yourself with the technical details and are happy to leave security up to WD.
Score 4 / 5
