I don’t know. I use Prusa’s slicer, a thank you to them for giving it away for free. Good software usually has a price, sometimes quite steep, so you need to take that into account. But they stated boldly that the included software takes care of it all. Had it done that, then the price would have been OK. But it doesn’t and they haven’t done anything about it.
And no, I don’t have apple products. But those who use them are always happy, so I assume they don’t struggle too much with them. My point was that snapmaker has become worse than apple, which is old tech in a nice package at 10x the reasonable price. I know they are made in China and I also know that nobody uses a three year old iPhone. Myself I use a PC + 27" screen for internet and a two meter screen for sports/movies. For talking I use an old Nokia (not made in china). I can imagine what you all think, but the battery still outlasts my family’s touch toys, it hasn’t broken despite countless falls to the ground, the sound is excellent and it fits in a pocket. And I don’t need a user account nor agree to anyones license rules to use it.
I was replying to your previous comment, when I saw this, but I’ll answer here instead. I purchased my A250 for the same reasons, believing I could do a little this and that with it. I’m not comparing it to a cheap Ender. The A250 was 1500€ without enclosure (not available at the time) + shipping. Add new rails, new print head and new laser, and possibly enclosure and air purifier and we are up to double. While some consessions were expected (and I’m not complaining about those), it should also be more cost efficient than three separate machines, considering you use the same set of rails, controllers, power unit, etc.
Now, for the amount of money we are talking here, you can get a good 3d printer (e.g. Prusa i3 MK3S for 770€, made in Czech), a more useable laser (e.g. one mentioned in another thread) and a larger and stronger cnc (e.g. STEPCRAFT-2/D.420, 939€ made in Germany). There is still money left for accessories and now you have a lot more creative options than Snapmaker has. Maybe there are better options as well, these came up with a simple search.
Yes, they require more room, but can also be used at the same time if you need stuff done. If you have limited room, then you appreciate the all in one option, but you need to be aware of what you get. Unfortunately not close to what they promise.
I do regret that I took this path, which is a dead end already. I too was lured by the slick marketing and inspired by all the promises of an upgradable machine you can grow with. But I expected additional features for additional price. Not additional purchases to make the original work decently. Had it worked as promised, or they tried to fix the issues, I would be happy. Had I known that I need to cough up another 1500€ to get the basics to work properly, I would have gone the other route.
Well, at least I was reminded that early adopters always pay a price and wise people wait to see how it plays out. Stupid me for being too carried away.
We can agree or disagree and still be friends. Everybody is in a different situation, different needs etc. For those who still like snapmaker, I’m happy for you. But for those going through different options, these are some things to be aware of. The biggest take away is to take a deep look in the forums to see what people achieve with it and what they struggle with. But don’t for one second believe the fancy markenting.
