3 ms·

Author here. I have used Prusas, as well as many other 3D printers. I know how they are distinguished from the rest. The thing is, there really isn't much of a

Author here. I have used Prusas, as well as many other 3D printers. I know how they are distinguished from the rest. The thing is, there really isn't much of a difference between an Ender 3 and a Mk4 that a typical consumer (that is, not an enthusiast) would understand as justifying the bigger price tag. The Mk4 is a better printer, by a long shot, but not by the same factor as the price tag. The Mk4 price completely eliminates Prusa from the entry- to mid-level market which is a big lost opportunity when new enthusiasts are learning on other brands -- and by the time they want to upgrade to a Mk4 price-point, they have much, much better options than Prusa and brand loyalty to someone else. Prusa is not the right choice at any price point anymore and has little to no market relevance left, except maybe among a certain niche of enthusiasts.

riddley 3y ago
> The thing is, there really isn't much of a difference between an Ender 3 and a Mk4 that a typical consumer (that is, not an enthusiast) would understand as justifying the bigger price tag. I'm not sure what makes you feel so comfortable deciding that for everyone? Having vastly better components that are much less likely to fail is something I think anyone would find valuable. If you give an absolute beginner an MK4 and an Ender 3, they're going to use the MK4 every time. It's vastly less effort to get started and the QC of one vs the other isn't even a competition. > The Mk4 price completely eliminates Prusa from the entry- to mid-level market which is a big lost opportunity when new enthusiasts are learning on other brands I mean, this is the trick of your faulty logic, right? Prusa makes flex-plates popular and the Chinese printers all jump on board. Prusa makes auto-leveling popular and the Chinese companies (eventually... why aren't you talking about how long it took them to do this?) jump on board. And on and on it goes. And it's not just Prusa, it's the whole 3d community that's been looted by these Chinese companies. They're happy to steal from Voron and really anyone and then you act like it's innovation and decry Prusa for not innovating recently enough for you and praise the looters for selling you something cheaper because it's made by slaves. You seem great at spotting these lost opportunities, but you act like just because a company isn't doing the things you want, they're dying. It's poorly conceived at best and astro turfing/stanning at worst. > and by the time they want to upgrade to a Mk4 price-point, they have much, much better options than Prusa You could really help your position by backing up these claims. What makes them "much, much better" ? Initial cost of ownership and what else? Cloud slicing is not something I would want -- ever, so please don't list that as some objective "better." > Prusa is not the right choice at any price point anymore and has little to no market relevance left, except maybe among a certain niche of enthusiasts. And yet, they can't make printers fast enough.
- MegaDeKay 3y ago
  > And yet, they can't make printers fast enough. I generally agree with your comments but I think you've accidentally brought up a really good point. Prusa would do well do improve on getting their new models out the door faster. The Mk3S was getting fairly long in the tooth before the Mk4 came out. The printer they introduced before that also suffered from a very long development cycle. This leads to lost sales in a competitive market.
  - riddley 3y ago
    What you've said is true, but it assumes the goal is money. If that's the measurement, then yes they should do that. I'm not him so I can't say for certain, but money doesn't seem to be Jo's end-goal.
    - TheCleric 3y ago
      I’m 100% in favor of money not always being the primary purpose of a business. That being said, you still have to be profitable (if even by a penny), or the business will cease to exist at some point. I hope there is enough of a niche for what Prusa wants to continue to do, but I’m not sure.
      - riddley 3y ago
        I'm not sure either, but AFAIK they've expanded every year. They seem to be doing fine.
        kiba 3y ago
        They will be doing fine until suddenly they're not doing fine. There's a delayed effect that you see from your business decisions because it might take years to play out. It's best to get ahead of problems before they become problems. I think Prusa should step up their again and realize that open source isn't really the problem. Everybody gets cloned, closed source or not. It's the nature of the beast.
- 3y ago

riddley 3y ago

> The thing is, there really isn't much of a difference between an Ender 3 and a Mk4 that a typical consumer (that is, not an enthusiast) would understand as justifying the bigger price tag. I'm not sure what makes you feel so comfortable deciding that for everyone? Having vastly better components that are much less likely to fail is something I think anyone would find valuable. If you give an absolute beginner an MK4 and an Ender 3, they're going to use the MK4 every time. It's vastly less effort to get started and the QC of one vs the other isn't even a competition. > The Mk4 price completely eliminates Prusa from the entry- to mid-level market which is a big lost opportunity when new enthusiasts are learning on other brands I mean, this is the trick of your faulty logic, right? Prusa makes flex-plates popular and the Chinese printers all jump on board. Prusa makes auto-leveling popular and the Chinese companies (eventually... why aren't you talking about how long it took them to do this?) jump on board. And on and on it goes. And it's not just Prusa, it's the whole 3d community that's been looted by these Chinese companies. They're happy to steal from Voron and really anyone and then you act like it's innovation and decry Prusa for not innovating recently enough for you and praise the looters for selling you something cheaper because it's made by slaves. You seem great at spotting these lost opportunities, but you act like just because a company isn't doing the things you want, they're dying. It's poorly conceived at best and astro turfing/stanning at worst. > and by the time they want to upgrade to a Mk4 price-point, they have much, much better options than Prusa You could really help your position by backing up these claims. What makes them "much, much better" ? Initial cost of ownership and what else? Cloud slicing is not something I would want -- ever, so please don't list that as some objective "better." > Prusa is not the right choice at any price point anymore and has little to no market relevance left, except maybe among a certain niche of enthusiasts. And yet, they can't make printers fast enough.

MegaDeKay 3y ago
> And yet, they can't make printers fast enough. I generally agree with your comments but I think you've accidentally brought up a really good point. Prusa would do well do improve on getting their new models out the door faster. The Mk3S was getting fairly long in the tooth before the Mk4 came out. The printer they introduced before that also suffered from a very long development cycle. This leads to lost sales in a competitive market.
- riddley 3y ago
  What you've said is true, but it assumes the goal is money. If that's the measurement, then yes they should do that. I'm not him so I can't say for certain, but money doesn't seem to be Jo's end-goal.
  - TheCleric 3y ago
    I’m 100% in favor of money not always being the primary purpose of a business. That being said, you still have to be profitable (if even by a penny), or the business will cease to exist at some point. I hope there is enough of a niche for what Prusa wants to continue to do, but I’m not sure.
    - riddley 3y ago
      I'm not sure either, but AFAIK they've expanded every year. They seem to be doing fine.
      - kiba 3y ago
        They will be doing fine until suddenly they're not doing fine. There's a delayed effect that you see from your business decisions because it might take years to play out. It's best to get ahead of problems before they become problems. I think Prusa should step up their again and realize that open source isn't really the problem. Everybody gets cloned, closed source or not. It's the nature of the beast.
3y ago