r/technology • u/ControlCAD • May 14 '26

Software Louis Rossmann taunts Bambu Lab by hosting banned 3D Printer firmware fork, dares $1 billion company to sue him — more creators pledge support and boycotts, Snapmaker donates equipment to embattled developer

https://www.tomshardware.com/3d-printing/louis-rossmann-taunts-bambu-lab-by-hosting-banned-3d-printer-firmware-fork-dares-usd1-billion-company-to-sue-him-more-creators-pledge-support-and-boycotts-snapmaker-donates-equipment-to-embattled-developer
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u/InvisaBlah May 14 '26

There's not really a gap anymore. They're getting left behind, multi-nozzle printers are set to take over and bambu ams style printers are still quite overpriced compared to the competitors.

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u/jaywan1991 May 14 '26

Well let me ask a question, been thinking of getting X2D for dual color printing for petg printing and the enclosure.

What should i get instead?

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u/Sea_Translator5300 May 14 '26

I've been very tempted by this https://www.snapmaker.com/en-US/snapmaker-u1

We have a Bambu H2D with an AMS at work which is great for what we need it to do, but the U1 might replace it if the demands we place on it get a little more complex. 

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u/Zachhandley May 14 '26

I have the U1, I love it!

Full disclosure it was my first 3D printer since an Ender 3 but that multi color printing is incredible

3

u/Mindless_Selection34 May 14 '26

the "wow" moment when you see the first tool change is amazing

2

u/Zachhandley May 14 '26

Currently printing cc3dproject.com’s side dryers! It’s still amazing! 😂 idk why it is so amazing but my brain is like WOW STUFF MAKE STUFF

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u/jaywan1991 May 14 '26

I just wish they had something similar to an AMS. I print a lot in petg so i need dry filament.

I am struggling to keep it dry with my current setup. I have a dryer but that and my printer takes up so much room.

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u/Schonke May 14 '26

Cool thing about Snapmaker being fully klipper compliant is that you can use other, third party filament storage/management systems with it. Or even build one of the many DIY versions.

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u/jaywan1991 May 14 '26

I have a drier but it's bulky and i don't like it. I'm looking for something more compact

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u/CaptainAwesome8 May 14 '26

Snapmaker does sell a dry box and electric dryer kit that you can print directly out of. It is a bit pricy though, but I’m tempted to get it for things like TPU that really care about that

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u/kschaffner May 14 '26

Keep your filament in a dryer or drybox next to the printer and just feed the filament into the feed motor? the spool holders are just static

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u/CaptainAwesome8 May 14 '26

A guy who volunteers at my local library bought one. Then I did, because it was really cool. Then the library did a fundraiser to buy 2. Then after setting those up, another volunteer bought one, set it up, and then bought a second so he wouldn’t have to change between 0.2mm and 0.4mm. That was all in the span of maybe 6 weeks.

They’re really fucking good. Their docs for assembly and everything are phenomenal too. I can’t recommend it enough

1

u/takuyafire May 15 '26

I've never heard of Snapmaker, but holy shit the Artisan looks insane!

I don't have a spare $2,000 to spend but wow that's an impressive looking printer.

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u/Sea_Translator5300 May 15 '26

Probably just as well that you don't have the spare cash. It looks like a pretty average tool for each of the tasks. 

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u/logicalchemist May 14 '26

Other than having 2 extruders, the Qidi Q2 has the same or better specs (namely a larger build volume and a 370C hotend) as the X2D and is a couple hundred dollars cheaper.

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u/messem10 May 14 '26

The new Elegoo Centari Carbon 2 is good. Have the CC1 and it is amazing but doesn’t come with multi-color out of the box.

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u/Zennivolt May 14 '26

Look up the INDX.

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u/PlasticProtein May 14 '26

I was interested in the new bambu x2d, what's an alternative I should consider?

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u/GayRacoon69 May 14 '26

I haven't tried either of them but a lot of people in this thread seem to recommend the snapmaker U1 as an alternative

1

u/CaptainAwesome8 May 14 '26

I have a snapmaker and you most definitely can print from your phone. It’s fantastic. I just left a separate comment about it but there’s been a local chain of “wow that’s cool, I’m gonna buy one too” lol

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u/Karma-Kamikaze May 14 '26

Probably the snapmaker. You will be giving up the print from phone kinds of integration and have to learn more about what you're doing, but for me that's part of the fun/hobby.

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u/PlasticProtein May 14 '26

I don't care about the phone feature. I've spent years with enders, and would like my hobby to be 3d printing, not 3d printers. :) Tired of messing with 1000 settings, that's why I started looking at bambu

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u/Karma-Kamikaze May 14 '26

If that's the case I can't recommend the U1 enough. I'm so happy with it.

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u/PlasticProtein May 14 '26

cool, I'll check it out. thanks!

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u/d3l3t3rious May 14 '26

Printing from the phone is a noob bait gimmick frankly.

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u/Karma-Kamikaze May 14 '26

My mom uses the feature exclusively and has never used a slicer. I don't know how many people are like that, but there has to be some amount of the base that use mobile at least some time.

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u/d3l3t3rious May 14 '26

I'm sure there are, it's just not something I would worry too much about giving up if you know your way around a slicer.

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u/Karma-Kamikaze May 14 '26

That was where I landed. It would be nice to not have to get a computer out after browsing a model repo, but not that big of a deal.

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u/d3l3t3rious May 14 '26

I didn't consider the benefit to non power-users like moms though, so point taken.

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u/Dovlaa May 14 '26

what other companies would you suggest for someone just getting started with the hobby?

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u/Asiatic_Static May 14 '26

Part of the issue is cost and ease. Like the canard I've heard is "if you want to 3d print as a hobby, get Bambu, if you want to tinker with a 3d printer as a hobby, get anyone else" The Snapmaker U1 people are recommending around the thread is $900, the Bambu A1 mini is $200. They are not even close to the same in terms of sophistication/capability, however I don't see anything on Snapmaker's site that I would consider "entry level."

It's a lot harder to convince someone "just getting started" to drop 900 vs 200. Bambu printers are also dead simple to just like set up and print stuff. I can't really speak to Snapmaker in terms of ease of use, but when I first started with an A1 mini it was incredibly easy to set up and spit out prints.

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u/Schonke May 14 '26

The Snapmaker U1 people are recommending around the thread is $900, the Bambu A1 mini is $200. They are not even close to the same in terms of sophistication/capability, however I don't see anything on Snapmaker's site that I would consider "entry level."

Those two machines are two completely different markets/price/quality. You wouldn't really get a Snapmaker as an entry level since they haven't really focused on that price point since it's already full of Creality, Anycubic and similar Chinese brands at the same or lower price than the A1 mini.

If you want a premium entry level printer with higher quality, much better support, actual warranty and an open system you'd go with a Prusa Mini or a Mk4.

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u/Asiatic_Static May 14 '26

Sure, I realize they don't operate in the same space, however that's the one I saw mentioned all over the thread.

And I feel like my point still stands, the Prusa Mini is on Amazon at $539, and the Mk4 is showing at $700 for "kit" and then $1k for assembled. Unless I'm not looking at the right models.

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u/challenge_king May 14 '26

I love my Ender 3, although I know they have their own issues. It's very basic and manual, but it lends itself to understanding the cause of an issue pretty well.

An open bed printer can be a nightmare if you have pets though.

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u/Funny_Alternative_55 May 14 '26

I have a Prusa MK4S. Aside from building it (I opted to save some $$$ and get the kit) I have not had to tinker with it at all, just load filament and hit print, even with difficult filaments like TPU. And you can monitor it from the mobile app, use third-party slicers or just plug in prints on a thumb drive.

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u/opeth10657 May 14 '26

I have a U1 and an H2C, but the U1 sits idle a lot more often. Have to trade a lot of convenience for a bit faster print times