WD MyCloud Network Attached Storage

I've had this device for 10 days now and I'm ready to give it fair review. This device does EXACTLY what you want it to do. Very simple to set up and the drive writes data remarkably fast. Let me say on the first day after a long day at work I came home and connected it to my router and plugged it in. I downloaded the install software but couldn't access the unit's control panel. The WD website was very confusing and I didn't find it user friendly at all. It offered up several programs which I downloaded many and they were no help either. There was little documentation that came with the unit and that disappointed me. At this point I was very angry and was ready to return the item back to Amazon. On the 2nd day, again after a day at work, I decided to call the WD Concierge Service help line. Wow what a difference a good tech support person can make. "Carlos" explained to be how to get to the control panel which immediately resolved 90% of my questions. He went through each screen and explained each option which he really didn't need to do because its very intuitive. Many reviews have complained about having to restart this device and it not staying connected to the network. I have NOT had that problem. The 2nd day I had it it was "offline" when I got home from work. There had been an update to the firmware which caused my cloud to stop functioning. I had previously set firmware updates to manual mode (in the control panel) because I normally don't like my hardware/sorftware updating itself without my knowledge. I decided to switch the firmware update to automatic and I've been connected every since then without any problems. My wife and I have connected both at home and remotely with our cells phones and Kindle Fires with absolutely no issues whats so ever. I have a Galaxy Note II and she has a windows phone and the WD app you download works in all of these units. I have also connected from my desk at work to my cloud at home, again without any problems. One concern I have is having to use the WD app or login from their website to access my cloud at home. I'd like to think I've got a direct connection without having to pass through Western Digital's firewall/website but I'm not tech saavy enough to know for sure. I feel confident that I have not done any port forwarding on my router so I'm thinking my firewall should keep my cloud safe from outside sources. Originally I wanted to set up FTP but not I'm not so sure I want to do that now. The reason is I can upload/download anything locally and remotely using the WD app as is. I'm not sure I want to open ports to allow FTP. Other reviews have discussed how much noise this unit produces when its spins up. I have yet to hear any noise at all. Outside of the booting up process the blue led light has stayed on continuously which means the unit is operating normally. I am completely satisfied with this product and would highly recommend it to anyone looking to purchase their personal cloud storage. I know of 2 other people who have purchased this item just from hearing me talk about mine and a 3rd person is buying it for her husband for his birthday in May. I only wish I had the 4tb unit.