Hardware transcoding unlike software transcoding, relies on the server’s CPU to convert media files into different formats, hardware transcoding offloads this intensive task to a dedicated ...

Using Plex itself is free, with an optional upgrade to unlock additional benefits, including hardware transcoding that works amazingly with a NAS device.

I Don't Need to Pay for Hardware Transcoding The most significant Plex feature that requires the Plex Pass is hardware transcoding.

The free version of Plex only offers software transcoding, which chews through resources. But I own a Plex Pass membership and can take advantage of hardware transcoding—a far more efficient ...

Transcoding requires Plex Pass One factor to keep in mind when it comes to hardware transcoding is you need Plex Pass to do it with the Plex Media Server.

The Synology DS218+ is enough to stream 4K content to a device that supports the same file format. It won't be enough for efficient 4K transcoding, which is where the issue lies.