With so many different models to choose from,

3D Printing
,
1

With so many different models to choose from, what do you look for when picking a 3D printer?

Vote by +1’ing the comments below.

2

Cost of ownership - Up-front price and cost of consumables

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Features - multiple extruders, heated beds, autonomous printing

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Reliability and properly engineered parts

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Print speed

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Achievable quality - many printers can achieve pretty decent results, but some get you there easier than others

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Ease of use and required maintenance / Customer service

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Brand - reputation, location, popularity, attitude towards the community, release of source files

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Ease of use?

10

@Aaron_Eiche right, added. Though it goes hand in hand with the reliability option.

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What about location of manufacturer.

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@Nigel_Dickinson added.

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@Loren_Brandenburg fits right in.

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Crowd Funding Hype (for those of us who are truly noobs).

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This may be mute given the communities intent but open source?

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I don’t think it is a moot point - because some of us became aware of this community after having committed to some kind of printer first. And then became aware of additional options and possible future solutions through this community. I don’t think this question is only about one’s first printer so much as perhaps their next printer - to upgrade from their first mistake, or perhaps to jump the hurdles created from their first home-brew version. Maybe giving up on their open source model. I’d say it should be included in the considerations (IMHO).

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I’m building my printers instead of buying them in one piece, but it’s open source for me all the way either way.
Should i leave that up there with the brand option or make it a separate point (i’d have to kick out @Aaron_Eiche 's comment to make space, though)

18

I’d almost consider being assembled or in kit form a feature. But if your doing all the sourcing and creating from essentially scratch (less the BOM and design itself perhaps), that would seem to be its own category, unless “Made By Me” is also a “feature”. Maybe @Aaron_Eiche won’t mind getting bumped for that.