TBH I prefer the older machines, I stay away from the proprietary all-in-one stuff. I’m all about modularity, and usually means keeping parts and processes standard between builds for production’s sake.
Comment on Hot take: 3D printing toys kinda sucks
squaresinger@lemmy.world 3 weeks agoThat’s mostly outdated. Sure, you can still get an Ender 3 in 2025 and spend years fixing it up and upgrading it, but you can also spend €200, get an Anet A1 Mini and be done with it.
These things print almost flawlessly out-of-the-box and are dirt cheap.
€200 for the printer, €20 for a roll of filament and you are set.
RedEyeFlightControl@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
squaresinger@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
That’s a totally valid viewpoint, and I myself am also running an Ender 5, modified to death. The only original components are the frame, the motors and the bed, and I even have a toolchanger setup for multi-material prints.
But it’s not the right device if your goal is just to print. For that, the proprietary ones aren’t a bad choice.
RedEyeFlightControl@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
It’s all about what works best for the particular individual. The majority of people want some hand-holding, and that’s ok. Not everyone is into designing their own hotends or completely rebuilding stock printers into monsters :)
squaresinger@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
And it’s not only a person-thing alone, but also a thing-thing. For example, I love modifying my printer or my phone (I designed and built a keyboard attachment for my phone). But I want my 2D printer to just work. And my car as well, same as my dishwasher, my laundry machine and my stove.
TropicalDingdong@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
So I should buy the Anet A1 mini?
fishy@lemmy.today 2 weeks ago
I recently got a flash forge adventure 5m and was printing in 30 minutes with no prior experience. There’s definitely a learning curve but if you can get a paper printer working, you can do a 3d printer
squaresinger@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
It’s a good printer if you just want to print and don’t care for hardware modding. If you fit into that profile, yes, get it.