13 ms·

Louis Rossmann offers to pay legal fees for a threatened OrcaSlicer developer

628 points by iancmceachern 5mo ago

smitty1e 5mo ago
Who are some 3D printer vendors that are worthy of support?
- sottol 5mo ago
  I would have said Prusa a year or two ago but they've reneged a little on their open-ness. That was probably in response to Bambu being fully closed and gaining so much market share. The Core line of printers seems promising and a big leap towards closing the gap towards Bambu's corexy printers but haven't used one yet and I've been out of the game a little. Bambu though is probably more of a high-end appliance type than Prusas more utilitarian feel.
  - gmueckl 5mo ago
    I splurged a while ago and got a pre-assembled Core One. It worked great right out of the box and is has been worry-free so far. So far, I've treated it very much like an appliance with no tinkering on my part yet. The machine is still quite hackable. Prusa publishes the firmware and CAD files for their printers, although the CAD files aren't under a fully open license. The support is generally nice to people who tinker with their printers and sometimes even seems to be genuinely invested in seeing tinkering projects succeed.
- GuB-42 5mo ago
  I'd say Prussa. I am not going to say they are perfect, but I think they have a good balance of ethics, openness, product quality, innovation, availability and price. By that I mean their are the best in none of them, but I don't think of anything better as a combination.
  - nullstyle 5mo ago
    Prusa sat on its haunches for a decade, happy to leave progress on the table as long as their salaries got paid. Bambu actually got non-technical people into the hobby and has always had more bang per buck. Buy a bambu; use Orcaslicer Edit: didn't mean to say "held the industry back"; I would categorize my opinion more along the lines of "were happy to get fat on past offerings" or the like.
    - stavros 5mo ago
      How did Prusa hold the industry back? Were they suing other printer manufacturers who innovated? "Not innovating myself" isn't the same as "holding other's innovations back".
      - nullstyle 5mo ago
        I didn’t say Prusa held the industry back; I said they sat on their haunches. Even the basic differences in stepper motors between what bambu chose and what prusa or ultimaker chose demonstrates my point. Edit: whoops! guess i did say they held the industry back... my bad /facepalm.
    - sottol 5mo ago
      My thing with bambu was always that they polished whatever the industry (and hobbyists) had invented and closed it all off, then also innovating on top of that but never giving back unless they _had_ to. Polish and mechanical design are great but corexy kinematics, input-shaping are imo what made the X1 stand out as the fast+good-qual printer when it launched. A lot of what they added on top was then to build a moat. This may be a controversial take, but imo it would be Bambu to set the industry back by a decade if they "win" and lock up the market. That's clearly their strategy afaict. Does anyone remember Bambu patenting existing open inventions as their own? I can't seem to find good links anymore (?!) but there's some details here https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141 https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141
      - nullstyle 5mo ago
- Lukas_Skywalker 5mo ago
  I have a Prusa MK3S and it has been very very reliable. There's also a ton of mods you can download and print, which modify or extend the printer for specific use cases. They are a bit more expensive then their Chinese counterparts, but in my opinion, it's definitely worth the extra cost for the peace of mind.
- stavros 5mo ago
  Prusa is the most open of the printer manufacturers. They did have to backtrack a bit because Bambu copied their slicer to use for themselves and undercut them, but they're still as open as you can get in a capitalist economy.
- kennywinker 5mo ago
  I just bought a qidi printer. It arrives in a few days, so I can’t speak to the machine’s quality beyond saying it’s reviewed pretty well - but the software is all open source klipper with no locks preventing you from modifying it. The hardware itself is closed source, but if you want an open hardware machine in 2026 you need to build your own voron.
- cjbgkagh 5mo ago
  Obviously it depends on what you’re doing and what is importante to you. It’s hard to beat Bambi Labs H2D or X2D for versatility, practicality, and price. Engineering filaments are getting a lot cheaper as the market expands so it helps to have a printer than can handle those. Given Bambi Labs is so cheap compared to the alternatives customers would probably be better off putting aside the savings to buy a second printer from a different supplier when one starts to catch up.
  - kennywinker 5mo ago
    As I mentioned in a sibling comment, I bought a qidi q2 because i am gambling that they have caught up in terms of quality. The price is comparable to the bambu p1s, while the specs are closer to the x1c. Reviews seem to put it roughly on par with the p2s, which costs 30% more. It’s clear nobody’s caught up in terms of ux / user friendliness - but as an experienced printer i don’t need my hand held quite as much - and the openness is worth a lot to me. Being able to define custom klipper macros alone makes it worth it to me to stay away from bambu
- the__alchemist 5mo ago
  Prusa. And my Raise3D E2 has been solid for ~5 years. I can't directly compare it to Bambu, but it was a massive step up from the Creality Ender it replaced. It's a "Just works" machine.
- lawn 5mo ago
  Get a VORON printer and get a kit. They're completely open (both software and hardware) and you can mod and do whatever the hell you want with them.
  - scronkfinkle 5mo ago
    +1, my wife and I have been working on a VORON 2.4 together and it's been a blast!
ChristianJacobs 5mo ago
Bambu showed their true colours last year when they would've eliminated offline access altogether if not for public outrage. You don't own your Bambu printer, you're leasing it at a subsidised premium. This move does not surprise me at all, and I'm genuinely happy that Louis is willing to shell out money to help those that can't defend themselves. I'm happy that Bambu finally made Prusa care, but I will not cheer them even if they consistently innovate. It's just sad.
- finaard 5mo ago
  And the yet again I got told over and over again that Bambu didn't really mean to, and if they did they learned their lesson, and after all you can still keep them offline. And spending more for a prusa obviously is silly. I'm really getting too old dealing with morons who didn't learn anything after the same patterns repeating for decades now.
  - cybercatgurrl 5mo ago
    companies don’t learn lessons. they will always push the boundaries of what they can get away with as long as it improves their bottom line
  - imtringued 5mo ago
    What pattern? I'm honestly not getting the complaint here. Bamboo Lab forced competitors to step up and actually produce good products. Now that there are many Bamboo Labs competitors you are no longer dependent on Bamboo Labs anymore. I'd love for this pattern to repeat for eternity. If anything this is the good ending to the story. The rise and fall of a giant.
- SOLAR_FIELDS 5mo ago
  I bought a Prusa several years ago that I had a rollercoaster of feels on. It's reliable, works great, but also cost me $900. For the next 3 years or so I was wondering whether I should have just bought a $250 Bambu and gotten almost same results. Now I'm happy I didn't.
j1elo 5mo ago
Pawel Jarczak could consider donating the code to an anonymous random friend who happened to upload it to a chinese code forge where development could continue.
PunchyHamster 5mo ago
Definitely gives me second thoughts about getting one. They look like easiest way to get into 3d printing as a tool (rather than another hobby), but their recent attitude just makes me think I should suffer a bit less advanced product just to not have to deal with that shit.
- vitaflo 5mo ago
  You can use Bambu printers fully offline. All this vitriol about them is severely misplaced IMO.
  - stavros 5mo ago
    That comes with a big caveat. You can either choose to use the printer offline, or online, with no ability to use both. If you want the ability to monitor or pause a print when you're not home on the off chance something goes wrong, you HAVE to send every print through their cloud, there's no middle ground. That's not Bambu being open, that's them doing the absolute minimum to allow people to say "you can use Bambu printers fully offline" in comment sections.
    - Toutouxc 5mo ago
      Wait, that’s still just about their phone app. When you disable the cloud features, you lose the phone app, but otherwise the printer is fully usable. You can still connect to it through Bambu studio, you just have to roll your own networking (e.g. a VPN), right?
      - stavros 5mo ago
        You can only connect to it from the same LAN, yes, except you can't connect locally to it unless you disable the cloud features first.
      - CSSer 5mo ago
        Yes and no, it seems. Yes in Developer Mode. With that configuration, which confusingly requires you to turn on LAN mode first, you can use your own software to control all features of the device. In LAN mode it’s more complicated. LAN mode requires you to still use their slicer because the majority of functions beyond the extremely basic are still restricted by their authorization layer. This means using their SDK/network plugin for anything you develop, effectively coercing developers into their ecosystem for use-cases by the majority of users. It seems pretty clear, in my opinion, that what they’re trying to communicate by using the “developer mode” language is that owning your device end-to-end is big, scary, and only for professionals. Oh, btw, developer mode leaves your device completely open and introduces various UX friction points to the experience related to constantly needing to rebind. Effectively it’s malicious compliance on their end. They’re giving the middle finger to anyone who wants to cut them out, and it’s hard to say anyone who feels that way is imagining it.
Aurornis 5mo ago
OrcaSlicer supports Bambu printers already. Does anyone have any better sources for what this other fork supposedly did? EDIT: I’m not going to sit through another angry Louis Rossmann video, but from what I can see someone tried to make a branch of OrcaSlicer that interacted directly with Bambu’s private cloud APIs to impersonate Bambu Studio. I don’t agree with the legal threats but this case is about connecting to their non-public cloud APIs, not connecting to the printer directly.
- exitb 5mo ago
  Some time ago the printers were able to communicate over both cloud and local protocols. Then, in a firmware update, they created distinct modes for those. You can still use the printers with OrcaSlicer, but in a mode that prevents being controlled by cloud too.
  - ben-schaaf 5mo ago
    Note that at least for now you can also downgrade the firmware and use the "legacy" plugin with OrcaSlicer to fully restore functionality.
  - hamdingers 5mo ago
    This is a feature. When I enable LAN mode I do not want Bambu to be able to control my printer. It remains astonishing to me that this is controversial. Not everyone has the knowhow to block internet access to their printer, so having a toggle in firmware is terrific. I've verified after turning it on that it never phones home. Couldn't be happier.
    - exitb 5mo ago
      It’s fully understandable to want that and exactly what I use too. It still sucks for people that did want to start their prints locally and control them over the app.
    - nullc 5mo ago
      Almost no one meaningfully isolates their bambu-- lots of people isolate the printer but bambu makes you run their mystery meat 'network plugin' on your host. Unless you're running qubes or some other virtualization setup their network plugin punctures whatever airgap you put around the printer and also gives them access to your system as well.
johnsea 5mo ago
[flagged]
- gosub100 5mo ago
  he projects a lot of is emotional issues into his work. I support what he does, but he appears to make himself miserable in the process.
  - cjbgkagh 5mo ago
    I think there is an element of audience capture. Similar to how ElectroBOOM has to keep electrocuting himself for his audience. It’s a living…
    - stavros 5mo ago
      Maybe you know this, but ElectroBOOM doesn't actually electrocute himself, it's just a running gag.
      - cjbgkagh 5mo ago
        The few I’ve seen were obviously staged but it did appear real in that he was hit with a high voltage. Looking it up suggests that he has been injured a number of times due to miscalculations.
      - gosub100 5mo ago
        It sure seems real to me. although some of those HV circuits like the jacob's ladder seem way too dangerous.
        dralley 5mo ago
        As a matter of fact he has mentioned that one of the Jacob's Ladder videos was the only time he messed up and came close to actually electrocuting himself (by reflexively trying to grab the leads as they fell off a table). Otherwise all of the shocks are "calculated" to be nonharmful.
iwontberude 5mo ago
They just can’t help themselves, they want market share and the margins
exabrial 5mo ago
Louis is one of the most passionate YouTubers you can watch. I don't think he gets it right 100% of the time, but when you are that vulnerable (and what appears to be authentic) you're bound to not make the the right call every once in awhile (as we all do). I support him even though people can pick him apart.
- the_biot 5mo ago
  As a matter of fact he's a never-ending source of drama and outrage, all of which are his own opinions. His repair channel isn't even about repair anymore, it's all drama, all the time. I can hardly believe people fall for his shtick anymore.
  - stingraycharles 5mo ago
    Yeah I agree, it’s almost a political drama channel at this point and his opinions lack nuance. I don’t understand why an article from Tom’s Hardware about an opinion of Louis Rossman who tells a 3D printer maker to go fuck themselves is currently the most upvoted article on HN.
    - sillysaurusx 5mo ago
      And yet he’s having an effect. Are either of you pledging $10k to defend hackers in court? I can hardly believe headlines like these are met with anything but cheers. It’s literally the hacker spirit in the classical sense: a big company is trying to legally threaten a project offline, and people like Louis are helping prevent that. You could at least throw in a “it’s cool that he’s pledging money” before insulting his channel. And if his channel wasn’t as political as it is, it’s doubtful he could rally the kind of support we’re seeing here.
      - stingraycharles 5mo ago
        > I can hardly believe headlines like these are met with anything but cheers. My point is that I have an issue with his tone and rhetoric, not with the thing he’s advocating. He appeals to a certain audience that likes rage over proper discourse. I am fairly certain the HN etiquette prefers proper discourse over rage.
rdiddly 5mo ago
Can someone explain to me like I'm 5, why you would need to communicate with a cloud service to use a 3D printer?
- junon 5mo ago
  You don't really, but the entire ecosystem is quite ergonomic for people who don't want to fiddle with software, connections, config, permissions, etc. and Just Print something. Not defending Bambu. The UX is quite straightforward and easy, however.
- coldbrewed 5mo ago
  Remote device control allows for running and monitoring prints from another networks with zero effort, but more importantly local device control can't be monetized. It's just about the money.
  - CamperBob2 5mo ago
    Remote device control allows for running and monitoring prints from another networks with zero effort To reiterate the GP's question: why would I want to do that? In practice whenever I want to monitor anything from anywhere, I just VNC or RDP to my PC. If it's just about ease-of-use, as the other replies suggest, and not actually gating the functionality of the hardware, I'm having trouble understanding the outrage. It sounds as if they are trying to be the Apple of 3D printing, while also still supporting "sideloading." If the hardware itself isn't locked down, why does anyone care what they do with their cloud service? OTOH, if the hardware is locked down, then that's what people should be complaining about, not an optional cloud service.
    - MBCook 5mo ago
      It’s handy? Prusa supports the same thing, though they don’t force you to use it and are VERY clear it’s fully optional. You can go to their model site (Makerworld vs Printables) and if you’re logged in your can slice and start the print right in your browser. It’s a fantastic convenience for someone printing a lot of pre-made models.
amelius 5mo ago
Reminds me of: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tQIdxbWhHSM https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tQIdxbWhHSM
rafram 5mo ago
When was the last time Rossmann had anything nice to say? He seems utterly miserable. I don’t doubt this is an important issue, but when he inserts himself into a dispute, it only gets more overblown and vitriolic on all sides. (The ridiculous NYC to Austin thing is pretty representative. Complained incessantly about loony liberal New York, moved to Austin, now he complains about Texas. Sorry! Turns out there is no utopia for pathological contrarians.)
- gambiting 5mo ago
  He's just like Steve nowadays - he built his entire brand on being angry, so he has to be angry or his core audience will leave. And if that's what you like then fine, but for me it's just not interesting anymore.
  - overfeed 5mo ago
    It's the sad thing about field experts who become YouTubers: to keep up the viewership, they undergo self-Flanderization. I was sad to watch Sabine Hossenfelder devolve from a level-headed critic of how research is done, into a loony crank who selects the contrarian angle on every issue. I'm sure the YouTube analytics inform her which topics perform better.
  - superkuh 5mo ago
    ...or, or(!) maybe things really do suck right now? I don't think this is a controversial view. There's reasons to be upset and demand change regarding intellectual property legislation and computing and related technology's hardware.
    - gambiting 5mo ago
      Of course, but they get to choose what their channel is about, and we as viewers choose if we're intersted in it. Louis specifically used to put up videos of really interesting repairs of apple products and he just doesn't do that anymore. I'm not saying he should change or that he chose a wrong path - I'm just saying I'm not interested in his channel anymore, just like I stopped watching Gamers Nexus once Steve decided that his entire personality is just going to be ranting for 60+ minutes every video. Some people love that, I don't. That doesn't mean his complaints don't have merit or are not worth doing - just that consuming content(and it's very much content) takes time, which we all have in limited supply and I'd rather watch someone being happy with something rather than being angry at everything. If I feel like being angry I just open the news.
the_af 5mo ago
I have to say the Bambu A1 Mini has been a game changer for me. I wouldn't own a 3D printer otherwise. While it doesn't really "just work" as the hype would have it (I believe this is impossible with current tech), it comes pretty damn close. Probably the printer that does it best. I didn't want another hobby, fiddling with settings and materials, and generally going down the 3D printing rabbit hole. I just wanted to print stuff for my actual hobbies. And the A1 does this, with little fuss, for which I am forever grateful.
- galleywest200 5mo ago
  This is part of the reason their attempts frustrate me so much. I love my A1 Mini but I do not want to support this kind of behavior so I will probably go to another company if I ever upgrade.
- daneel_w 5mo ago
  I have the A1 Mini as well. Mostly having sat unused since I bought it a few years back, I'm now wondering if the thing will function normally again. Any advice on basic "cold boot" maintenance? It's been a year since I last turned it on.
  - bdcravens 5mo ago
    Shouldn't require much. Very light oil (ideally the oil that came with it) on the rails, wash the removable build plate with basic soap and water (may be dusty from sitting), and then run a test benchy to clear out any filament in the hotend.
    - quietsegfault 5mo ago
      You might want to run a tension adjustment process. It’s in Bambu’s highly useful documentation.
  - the_af 5mo ago
    I've had it paused for some months, and just a bit of WD40 and re-running the auto calibration was enough maintenance in my case. Maybe I was lucky?
selectively 5mo ago
[flagged]
sottol 5mo ago
Bambu also tried to patent several widely used techniques in china, fyi. https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141 https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141
- raynr 5mo ago
  Josef Prusa also commented on this last year: https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-printing-is-dead/ https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-prin... The motive appears to be to get tax credits as opposed to becoming a full-on patent troll, though with how quickly China is speedrunning their version of capitalism I would not be surprised if it turns into patent trolling. Their behaviour overall is really giving me mixed feelings, because the Bambu A1 I have is an absolutely amazing machine for the price, and I've been casually in this since the Printrbot days.
- gamblor956 5mo ago
  Most countries are first to file, not first to invent or first to disclose. First to file rewards this type of behavior.
  - nullc 5mo ago
    That's a common but highly misleading view. If you invent something and publish it (including by offering it to the public in product) your work constitutes prior art and is an absolute bar against the subsequent (valid) patenting of the invention by a third party. F2F vs F2I has no impact on this. What F2F means if that if two people working in secret create the same invention and show up at the patent office at the same time-- the first one to file gets it. The earlier F2I scheme instead had a contest where the party that is the most ambitious in fabricating lab notebooks to backdate their invention gets the patent. Because of a poor choice in naming many people wrongfully assume F2F means you can go pick up other people's inventions out of the public sphere and claim them as your own because you filed first. The misunderstanding is exacerbated because fraudulently patenting other people's inventions is commonplace-- as there is no consequence for doing so except losing the patent after getting defeated on review/litigation-- but the practice isn't meaningfully influenced by F2F vs F2I.
jchw 5mo ago
I made the tragic mistake of getting a Bambu printer (an X1C, with AMS even...) right before they gave all of us the middle finger. I now have it offline, running out of date firmware, connected to a special WiFi network that is isolated from the Internet. That upset me, but now I'm pissed. Now I don't even care about their stupid printers. Now I'd like to waste Bambu Lab's time and cause problems for them. And also, while this X1C should be going strong for years, my eyes are on Prusa should I want another printer any time soon for any reason. Less polished or not, they seem like they're still better for consumers even though they are apparently less open than they used to be. But I'm of course interested in hearing what people recommend, too. (I got an X1C because I knew it would be simple, but I don't particularly mind getting my hands dirty or anything. I did build an Ender 3 kit before that.)
- sottol 5mo ago
  Once you have a reliable printer, the workflow is mostly to slice -> send to printer -> wait and check on it every couple of hours until it's done ime. Imo it no longer super matters how much better the on-screen ui or webcam are. Mutli-color though is where Bambu has a good leg up. (Diluted) Vision Miner Nano Polymer Adhesive and a good bed leveling probe has done a lot to make my printer set and forget, no matter which print sheets I use.
  - nicce 5mo ago
    Wasn’t the main hassle in calibrarion and Bambu was good in that and is major reason for popularity? So ”once you have a reliable printer” is kinda big thing.
    - anamexis 5mo ago
      Prusa is on par with Bambu in that respect. Really, Prusa are the ones that pioneered hassle-free calibration.
      - holowoodman 5mo ago
        What Prusa is that? Last one I've used (not my own, community lab), I had to level the bed using the sheet-of-paper-method. Which is the reason why I got a Bambu for myself.
TurdF3rguson 5mo ago
30 Million requests per day is not coming from hobbyists, and even if it were, a $40/month VPS can handle that easily.
Jabrov 5mo ago
“Our cloud services are inundated” … says company that killed product from working offline and forced it to be connected
- bdcravens 5mo ago
  You can put your printers in LAN Mode to not use their cloud. You just have to choose one or the other, and the software in question enabled features they didn't want unless you ran off their cloud.
echelon_musk 5mo ago
Nowhere in TFA did they say what OrcaSlicer does. I must be expected to go to the GitHub and find out for myself!
- delecti 5mo ago
  A slicer is software that takes a 3d model file and "slices" it for 3d printing. It outputs a series of instructions for a 3d printer to build up a physical object, layer by layer (slice by slice). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing) Particularly relevant for this discussion is this part of that page, showing the lineage of the various software involved. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing)#List_of_slicer_software https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing)#List_of_s...
kristofferR 5mo ago
Found a clone here: https://github.com/unS0uL/OrcaSlicer-bambulab https://github.com/unS0uL/OrcaSlicer-bambulab
everyone 5mo ago
I like Rossman and usually agree with him, but imo hes a very bad speaker. I cant watch his videos. His problem is that, instead of getting to the point, he spends an inordinate amount of time pre-defending against bad faith arguments he assumes he will receive in response to his point. Thats just pointless imo, he should just make his point and if idiots dont get it then who cares, I dont think theres anything we can do for them anyway.
everyone 5mo ago
I mean considering how absolutely fucked the 2d printing space has been (HP) It's not surprising that 3d printing will involve identical shenanigans once it becomes even slightly mainstream. And that's what Bambu does, make 3d printing accessible.
kamranjon 5mo ago
Does anyone know if there is another printer manufacturer that has an equivalent to the Bambu A1S with it's custom AMS system. I don't think people realize how good that printer and AMS system is (the AMS system for the X1C pales in comparison), and I'd love to support another company, but haven't really seen another bed slinger with the simple center-rotating AMS style system seen on the A1S AMS. For context I run a business where I sell 3d printed parts for old film cameras - and the A1S is a workhorse.
- aschla 5mo ago
  The upcoming Prusa support for INDX (by Bondtech) is going to be interesting, especially for business use cases where waste is a primary concern. https://www.prusa3d.com/product/indx-conversion-kit-8-toolhead/ https://www.prusa3d.com/product/indx-conversion-kit-8-toolhe... The main thing keeping me from making the multi-material jump is the waste. I have a couple Vorons and would love to be able to print with different materials at the same time, but the waste with the current solutions is so egregious.
  - ryanobjc 5mo ago
    The multimaterial is going to be really interesting, combining TPU + PLA for example. Or TPU + PETG, who knows! In addition to standard multi-color needs!
- starkparker 5mo ago
  I don't know what the A1S is (did you mean the A1 or the P1S?) but the Snapmaker U1 is on my wishlist. More expensive than either but eliminates the AMS waste by using multiple toolheads. Open firmware, most of Bambu's convenience features.
  - hnben 5mo ago
    i switched from bambu a1 combo to snapmaker u1 and i am very happy. I installed paxx12 custom firmware, and now i am even happier.
  - 5mo ago
syntaxing 5mo ago
I’m so torn about bambulabs. Prusa needs to redesign their core one so it doesn’t use 3D printed parts (I get how that’s part of their philosophy but it’s not working anymore), $400 cheaper, and have a reliable AMS system. There’s just no other brand that can compete with Bambulab right now in terms of price vs performance.
- MBCook 5mo ago
  INDX replaces their existing MMU solution, it will fix that. I’m not sure why 3D printed parts matter. Thats not why Bambu is cheaper. The visual design you can argue. Despite being on the Prusa side I do like the more consumer-y visual aesthetic of Bambu machines better.
meta-level 5mo ago
Currently looking for a printer, and stories like this one are what I'm looking for, thanks.
shevy-java 5mo ago
We see again and again how companies, even those affiliated with open source, want to milk the ecosystem dry. In this case Bambu Lab does so via the golden cloud. This is not ethical to try to sabotage the ecosystem, so Bambu Lab indeed needs to go bleep itself here.
999900000999 5mo ago
More people should be angry companies are stealing products from customers by effectively bricking them for certain use cases. Louis Rossmann isn't polite, but he cuts though the corporate speak.
deepsun 5mo ago
> its cloud servers were inundated with roughly 30 million “unauthorized” requests per day. So make it possible to connect directly to printer over LAN? Prusa supports that, you can use the printer without ever connecting it to internet.
- rcdemski 5mo ago
  You can. It’s a single checkbox on the printer UI that toggles between cloud control or local LAN control.
billy_bitchtits 5mo ago
Well great. I bought an h2c a couple of months ago before learning this was going down.
somelamer567 5mo ago
I trust BambuLabs about as much as I trust the Chinese Communist Party. That's to say, that they are obviously a cat's paw of the CCP, and bring the reactionary, authoritarian attitude with them, whilst using every underhanded, sneaky trick in the book to put Western manufacturers out of business, and ultimately compromise the West's ability to defend itself. As a Westerner, I value my freedom, so I will happy pay way over the [Chinese-imposed] odds to build a 3D printer of my own than suck on the teat of the CCP and buy a subsidised 3D printer that attacks our freedoms. I would encourage other right-thinking people who value freedom, democracy and rule-of-law to do the same: build your own or -- at the very least -- support Western 3D printer vendors like Prusa who share our values and contribute back to the community.
dekhn 5mo ago
I don't have a Bambu; previously, I had Prusa printers from the MK3 generation and I struggled to get good prints (poor bed adhesion and the extruder breaking frequently, requiring very intensive repairs); since not having a working printer slows my hobbies down, I ended up with two. Both broke down and I got tired of fixing them, but when I looked at the prices of new Prusa, they were high enough to make me pause. Instead of a Bambu, I got a Flashforge Adventurer 5M. It is incredibly cheap (cheap enough that I am more than happy to replace it after two years if it stops working), and is pretty reliable (compared to the Prusa MK3 and MK3S I had), and most of all, the self-calibration works well enough that I don't spend any time debugging prints that fail at the first layer anymore; I just re-run calibration and it's fine, and if it's not fine, I clean the plate and it works. It also comes with a terrible slicer (dervied from Slic3r I believe) with annoying "log into the cloud every time you start the app", but I moved to OrcaSlicer. I had to give up a few nice features but it hasn't truly impacted my workflow. And it does receive firmware updates (it's connected via wifi to my home network). My hope- just a hope- is that they don't do anything truly stupid with future firmware updates or end up getting in a hissy fit with prominent youtubers.
darkteflon 5mo ago
This was shared here last year and was excellent. Relevant to this discussion: https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-printing-is-dead/ https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-prin...
jccx70 5mo ago
[dead]
h4kunamata 5mo ago
My X1C lived for 3 months, never ending quality issues, never ending CF rod noise, etc, etc. Mind you, LAN mode didn't exist, we had to use SFT to send files to the printer locally. I build a DIY LDO Voron Trident and it is slice and print.
gist 5mo ago
Damn this is like a variation of the Streisand Effect [1] I am not involved in this industry so I never heard of the company or the youtuber before reading this. I am tempted to buy one just to make some things (that I don't need but might be fun to make). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect
tedzhu 5mo ago
Mind you, Bambulab has region Locks on Chinese-version hardware which are strictly disabled overseas. What's the difference between these version? Nothing. Just oversea versions are more expensive.
drake99 5mo ago
A classic ploy by Chinese commercial companies: offer a 'free-to-play' model with extremely high lock-in costs, all while claiming they’re just lowering the barrier to entry for your own good.

628 points by iancmceachern 5mo ago

smitty1e 5mo ago

Who are some 3D printer vendors that are worthy of support?

sottol 5mo ago
I would have said Prusa a year or two ago but they've reneged a little on their open-ness. That was probably in response to Bambu being fully closed and gaining so much market share. The Core line of printers seems promising and a big leap towards closing the gap towards Bambu's corexy printers but haven't used one yet and I've been out of the game a little. Bambu though is probably more of a high-end appliance type than Prusas more utilitarian feel.
- gmueckl 5mo ago
  I splurged a while ago and got a pre-assembled Core One. It worked great right out of the box and is has been worry-free so far. So far, I've treated it very much like an appliance with no tinkering on my part yet. The machine is still quite hackable. Prusa publishes the firmware and CAD files for their printers, although the CAD files aren't under a fully open license. The support is generally nice to people who tinker with their printers and sometimes even seems to be genuinely invested in seeing tinkering projects succeed.
GuB-42 5mo ago
I'd say Prussa. I am not going to say they are perfect, but I think they have a good balance of ethics, openness, product quality, innovation, availability and price. By that I mean their are the best in none of them, but I don't think of anything better as a combination.
- nullstyle 5mo ago
  Prusa sat on its haunches for a decade, happy to leave progress on the table as long as their salaries got paid. Bambu actually got non-technical people into the hobby and has always had more bang per buck. Buy a bambu; use Orcaslicer Edit: didn't mean to say "held the industry back"; I would categorize my opinion more along the lines of "were happy to get fat on past offerings" or the like.
  - stavros 5mo ago
    How did Prusa hold the industry back? Were they suing other printer manufacturers who innovated? "Not innovating myself" isn't the same as "holding other's innovations back".
    - nullstyle 5mo ago
      I didn’t say Prusa held the industry back; I said they sat on their haunches. Even the basic differences in stepper motors between what bambu chose and what prusa or ultimaker chose demonstrates my point. Edit: whoops! guess i did say they held the industry back... my bad /facepalm.
  - sottol 5mo ago
    My thing with bambu was always that they polished whatever the industry (and hobbyists) had invented and closed it all off, then also innovating on top of that but never giving back unless they _had_ to. Polish and mechanical design are great but corexy kinematics, input-shaping are imo what made the X1 stand out as the fast+good-qual printer when it launched. A lot of what they added on top was then to build a moat. This may be a controversial take, but imo it would be Bambu to set the industry back by a decade if they "win" and lock up the market. That's clearly their strategy afaict. Does anyone remember Bambu patenting existing open inventions as their own? I can't seem to find good links anymore (?!) but there's some details here https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141 https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141
    - nullstyle 5mo ago
Lukas_Skywalker 5mo ago
I have a Prusa MK3S and it has been very very reliable. There's also a ton of mods you can download and print, which modify or extend the printer for specific use cases. They are a bit more expensive then their Chinese counterparts, but in my opinion, it's definitely worth the extra cost for the peace of mind.
stavros 5mo ago
Prusa is the most open of the printer manufacturers. They did have to backtrack a bit because Bambu copied their slicer to use for themselves and undercut them, but they're still as open as you can get in a capitalist economy.
kennywinker 5mo ago
I just bought a qidi printer. It arrives in a few days, so I can’t speak to the machine’s quality beyond saying it’s reviewed pretty well - but the software is all open source klipper with no locks preventing you from modifying it. The hardware itself is closed source, but if you want an open hardware machine in 2026 you need to build your own voron.
cjbgkagh 5mo ago
Obviously it depends on what you’re doing and what is importante to you. It’s hard to beat Bambi Labs H2D or X2D for versatility, practicality, and price. Engineering filaments are getting a lot cheaper as the market expands so it helps to have a printer than can handle those. Given Bambi Labs is so cheap compared to the alternatives customers would probably be better off putting aside the savings to buy a second printer from a different supplier when one starts to catch up.
- kennywinker 5mo ago
  As I mentioned in a sibling comment, I bought a qidi q2 because i am gambling that they have caught up in terms of quality. The price is comparable to the bambu p1s, while the specs are closer to the x1c. Reviews seem to put it roughly on par with the p2s, which costs 30% more. It’s clear nobody’s caught up in terms of ux / user friendliness - but as an experienced printer i don’t need my hand held quite as much - and the openness is worth a lot to me. Being able to define custom klipper macros alone makes it worth it to me to stay away from bambu
the__alchemist 5mo ago
Prusa. And my Raise3D E2 has been solid for ~5 years. I can't directly compare it to Bambu, but it was a massive step up from the Creality Ender it replaced. It's a "Just works" machine.
lawn 5mo ago
Get a VORON printer and get a kit. They're completely open (both software and hardware) and you can mod and do whatever the hell you want with them.
- scronkfinkle 5mo ago
  +1, my wife and I have been working on a VORON 2.4 together and it's been a blast!

ChristianJacobs 5mo ago

Bambu showed their true colours last year when they would've eliminated offline access altogether if not for public outrage. You don't own your Bambu printer, you're leasing it at a subsidised premium. This move does not surprise me at all, and I'm genuinely happy that Louis is willing to shell out money to help those that can't defend themselves. I'm happy that Bambu finally made Prusa care, but I will not cheer them even if they consistently innovate. It's just sad.

finaard 5mo ago
And the yet again I got told over and over again that Bambu didn't really mean to, and if they did they learned their lesson, and after all you can still keep them offline. And spending more for a prusa obviously is silly. I'm really getting too old dealing with morons who didn't learn anything after the same patterns repeating for decades now.
- cybercatgurrl 5mo ago
  companies don’t learn lessons. they will always push the boundaries of what they can get away with as long as it improves their bottom line
- imtringued 5mo ago
  What pattern? I'm honestly not getting the complaint here. Bamboo Lab forced competitors to step up and actually produce good products. Now that there are many Bamboo Labs competitors you are no longer dependent on Bamboo Labs anymore. I'd love for this pattern to repeat for eternity. If anything this is the good ending to the story. The rise and fall of a giant.
SOLAR_FIELDS 5mo ago
I bought a Prusa several years ago that I had a rollercoaster of feels on. It's reliable, works great, but also cost me $900. For the next 3 years or so I was wondering whether I should have just bought a $250 Bambu and gotten almost same results. Now I'm happy I didn't.

j1elo 5mo ago

Pawel Jarczak could consider donating the code to an anonymous random friend who happened to upload it to a chinese code forge where development could continue.

PunchyHamster 5mo ago

Definitely gives me second thoughts about getting one. They look like easiest way to get into 3d printing as a tool (rather than another hobby), but their recent attitude just makes me think I should suffer a bit less advanced product just to not have to deal with that shit.

vitaflo 5mo ago
You can use Bambu printers fully offline. All this vitriol about them is severely misplaced IMO.
- stavros 5mo ago
  That comes with a big caveat. You can either choose to use the printer offline, or online, with no ability to use both. If you want the ability to monitor or pause a print when you're not home on the off chance something goes wrong, you HAVE to send every print through their cloud, there's no middle ground. That's not Bambu being open, that's them doing the absolute minimum to allow people to say "you can use Bambu printers fully offline" in comment sections.
  - Toutouxc 5mo ago
    Wait, that’s still just about their phone app. When you disable the cloud features, you lose the phone app, but otherwise the printer is fully usable. You can still connect to it through Bambu studio, you just have to roll your own networking (e.g. a VPN), right?
    - stavros 5mo ago
      You can only connect to it from the same LAN, yes, except you can't connect locally to it unless you disable the cloud features first.
    - CSSer 5mo ago
      Yes and no, it seems. Yes in Developer Mode. With that configuration, which confusingly requires you to turn on LAN mode first, you can use your own software to control all features of the device. In LAN mode it’s more complicated. LAN mode requires you to still use their slicer because the majority of functions beyond the extremely basic are still restricted by their authorization layer. This means using their SDK/network plugin for anything you develop, effectively coercing developers into their ecosystem for use-cases by the majority of users. It seems pretty clear, in my opinion, that what they’re trying to communicate by using the “developer mode” language is that owning your device end-to-end is big, scary, and only for professionals. Oh, btw, developer mode leaves your device completely open and introduces various UX friction points to the experience related to constantly needing to rebind. Effectively it’s malicious compliance on their end. They’re giving the middle finger to anyone who wants to cut them out, and it’s hard to say anyone who feels that way is imagining it.

Aurornis 5mo ago

OrcaSlicer supports Bambu printers already. Does anyone have any better sources for what this other fork supposedly did? EDIT: I’m not going to sit through another angry Louis Rossmann video, but from what I can see someone tried to make a branch of OrcaSlicer that interacted directly with Bambu’s private cloud APIs to impersonate Bambu Studio. I don’t agree with the legal threats but this case is about connecting to their non-public cloud APIs, not connecting to the printer directly.

exitb 5mo ago
Some time ago the printers were able to communicate over both cloud and local protocols. Then, in a firmware update, they created distinct modes for those. You can still use the printers with OrcaSlicer, but in a mode that prevents being controlled by cloud too.
- ben-schaaf 5mo ago
  Note that at least for now you can also downgrade the firmware and use the "legacy" plugin with OrcaSlicer to fully restore functionality.
- hamdingers 5mo ago
  This is a feature. When I enable LAN mode I do not want Bambu to be able to control my printer. It remains astonishing to me that this is controversial. Not everyone has the knowhow to block internet access to their printer, so having a toggle in firmware is terrific. I've verified after turning it on that it never phones home. Couldn't be happier.
  - exitb 5mo ago
    It’s fully understandable to want that and exactly what I use too. It still sucks for people that did want to start their prints locally and control them over the app.
  - nullc 5mo ago
    Almost no one meaningfully isolates their bambu-- lots of people isolate the printer but bambu makes you run their mystery meat 'network plugin' on your host. Unless you're running qubes or some other virtualization setup their network plugin punctures whatever airgap you put around the printer and also gives them access to your system as well.

johnsea 5mo ago

[flagged]

gosub100 5mo ago
he projects a lot of is emotional issues into his work. I support what he does, but he appears to make himself miserable in the process.
- cjbgkagh 5mo ago
  I think there is an element of audience capture. Similar to how ElectroBOOM has to keep electrocuting himself for his audience. It’s a living…
  - stavros 5mo ago
    Maybe you know this, but ElectroBOOM doesn't actually electrocute himself, it's just a running gag.
    - cjbgkagh 5mo ago
      The few I’ve seen were obviously staged but it did appear real in that he was hit with a high voltage. Looking it up suggests that he has been injured a number of times due to miscalculations.
    - gosub100 5mo ago
      It sure seems real to me. although some of those HV circuits like the jacob's ladder seem way too dangerous.
      - dralley 5mo ago
        As a matter of fact he has mentioned that one of the Jacob's Ladder videos was the only time he messed up and came close to actually electrocuting himself (by reflexively trying to grab the leads as they fell off a table). Otherwise all of the shocks are "calculated" to be nonharmful.

iwontberude 5mo ago

They just can’t help themselves, they want market share and the margins

exabrial 5mo ago

Louis is one of the most passionate YouTubers you can watch. I don't think he gets it right 100% of the time, but when you are that vulnerable (and what appears to be authentic) you're bound to not make the the right call every once in awhile (as we all do). I support him even though people can pick him apart.

the_biot 5mo ago
As a matter of fact he's a never-ending source of drama and outrage, all of which are his own opinions. His repair channel isn't even about repair anymore, it's all drama, all the time. I can hardly believe people fall for his shtick anymore.
- stingraycharles 5mo ago
  Yeah I agree, it’s almost a political drama channel at this point and his opinions lack nuance. I don’t understand why an article from Tom’s Hardware about an opinion of Louis Rossman who tells a 3D printer maker to go fuck themselves is currently the most upvoted article on HN.
  - sillysaurusx 5mo ago
    And yet he’s having an effect. Are either of you pledging $10k to defend hackers in court? I can hardly believe headlines like these are met with anything but cheers. It’s literally the hacker spirit in the classical sense: a big company is trying to legally threaten a project offline, and people like Louis are helping prevent that. You could at least throw in a “it’s cool that he’s pledging money” before insulting his channel. And if his channel wasn’t as political as it is, it’s doubtful he could rally the kind of support we’re seeing here.
    - stingraycharles 5mo ago
      > I can hardly believe headlines like these are met with anything but cheers. My point is that I have an issue with his tone and rhetoric, not with the thing he’s advocating. He appeals to a certain audience that likes rage over proper discourse. I am fairly certain the HN etiquette prefers proper discourse over rage.

rdiddly 5mo ago

Can someone explain to me like I'm 5, why you would need to communicate with a cloud service to use a 3D printer?

junon 5mo ago
You don't really, but the entire ecosystem is quite ergonomic for people who don't want to fiddle with software, connections, config, permissions, etc. and Just Print something. Not defending Bambu. The UX is quite straightforward and easy, however.
coldbrewed 5mo ago
Remote device control allows for running and monitoring prints from another networks with zero effort, but more importantly local device control can't be monetized. It's just about the money.
- CamperBob2 5mo ago
  Remote device control allows for running and monitoring prints from another networks with zero effort To reiterate the GP's question: why would I want to do that? In practice whenever I want to monitor anything from anywhere, I just VNC or RDP to my PC. If it's just about ease-of-use, as the other replies suggest, and not actually gating the functionality of the hardware, I'm having trouble understanding the outrage. It sounds as if they are trying to be the Apple of 3D printing, while also still supporting "sideloading." If the hardware itself isn't locked down, why does anyone care what they do with their cloud service? OTOH, if the hardware is locked down, then that's what people should be complaining about, not an optional cloud service.
  - MBCook 5mo ago
    It’s handy? Prusa supports the same thing, though they don’t force you to use it and are VERY clear it’s fully optional. You can go to their model site (Makerworld vs Printables) and if you’re logged in your can slice and start the print right in your browser. It’s a fantastic convenience for someone printing a lot of pre-made models.

amelius 5mo ago

Reminds me of: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tQIdxbWhHSM https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tQIdxbWhHSM

rafram 5mo ago

When was the last time Rossmann had anything nice to say? He seems utterly miserable. I don’t doubt this is an important issue, but when he inserts himself into a dispute, it only gets more overblown and vitriolic on all sides. (The ridiculous NYC to Austin thing is pretty representative. Complained incessantly about loony liberal New York, moved to Austin, now he complains about Texas. Sorry! Turns out there is no utopia for pathological contrarians.)

gambiting 5mo ago
He's just like Steve nowadays - he built his entire brand on being angry, so he has to be angry or his core audience will leave. And if that's what you like then fine, but for me it's just not interesting anymore.
- overfeed 5mo ago
  It's the sad thing about field experts who become YouTubers: to keep up the viewership, they undergo self-Flanderization. I was sad to watch Sabine Hossenfelder devolve from a level-headed critic of how research is done, into a loony crank who selects the contrarian angle on every issue. I'm sure the YouTube analytics inform her which topics perform better.
- superkuh 5mo ago
  ...or, or(!) maybe things really do suck right now? I don't think this is a controversial view. There's reasons to be upset and demand change regarding intellectual property legislation and computing and related technology's hardware.
  - gambiting 5mo ago
    Of course, but they get to choose what their channel is about, and we as viewers choose if we're intersted in it. Louis specifically used to put up videos of really interesting repairs of apple products and he just doesn't do that anymore. I'm not saying he should change or that he chose a wrong path - I'm just saying I'm not interested in his channel anymore, just like I stopped watching Gamers Nexus once Steve decided that his entire personality is just going to be ranting for 60+ minutes every video. Some people love that, I don't. That doesn't mean his complaints don't have merit or are not worth doing - just that consuming content(and it's very much content) takes time, which we all have in limited supply and I'd rather watch someone being happy with something rather than being angry at everything. If I feel like being angry I just open the news.

the_af 5mo ago

I have to say the Bambu A1 Mini has been a game changer for me. I wouldn't own a 3D printer otherwise. While it doesn't really "just work" as the hype would have it (I believe this is impossible with current tech), it comes pretty damn close. Probably the printer that does it best. I didn't want another hobby, fiddling with settings and materials, and generally going down the 3D printing rabbit hole. I just wanted to print stuff for my actual hobbies. And the A1 does this, with little fuss, for which I am forever grateful.

galleywest200 5mo ago
This is part of the reason their attempts frustrate me so much. I love my A1 Mini but I do not want to support this kind of behavior so I will probably go to another company if I ever upgrade.
daneel_w 5mo ago
I have the A1 Mini as well. Mostly having sat unused since I bought it a few years back, I'm now wondering if the thing will function normally again. Any advice on basic "cold boot" maintenance? It's been a year since I last turned it on.
- bdcravens 5mo ago
  Shouldn't require much. Very light oil (ideally the oil that came with it) on the rails, wash the removable build plate with basic soap and water (may be dusty from sitting), and then run a test benchy to clear out any filament in the hotend.
  - quietsegfault 5mo ago
    You might want to run a tension adjustment process. It’s in Bambu’s highly useful documentation.
- the_af 5mo ago
  I've had it paused for some months, and just a bit of WD40 and re-running the auto calibration was enough maintenance in my case. Maybe I was lucky?

selectively 5mo ago

[flagged]

sottol 5mo ago

Bambu also tried to patent several widely used techniques in china, fyi. https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141 https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5134/8/6/141

raynr 5mo ago
Josef Prusa also commented on this last year: https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-printing-is-dead/ https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-prin... The motive appears to be to get tax credits as opposed to becoming a full-on patent troll, though with how quickly China is speedrunning their version of capitalism I would not be surprised if it turns into patent trolling. Their behaviour overall is really giving me mixed feelings, because the Bambu A1 I have is an absolutely amazing machine for the price, and I've been casually in this since the Printrbot days.
gamblor956 5mo ago
Most countries are first to file, not first to invent or first to disclose. First to file rewards this type of behavior.
- nullc 5mo ago
  That's a common but highly misleading view. If you invent something and publish it (including by offering it to the public in product) your work constitutes prior art and is an absolute bar against the subsequent (valid) patenting of the invention by a third party. F2F vs F2I has no impact on this. What F2F means if that if two people working in secret create the same invention and show up at the patent office at the same time-- the first one to file gets it. The earlier F2I scheme instead had a contest where the party that is the most ambitious in fabricating lab notebooks to backdate their invention gets the patent. Because of a poor choice in naming many people wrongfully assume F2F means you can go pick up other people's inventions out of the public sphere and claim them as your own because you filed first. The misunderstanding is exacerbated because fraudulently patenting other people's inventions is commonplace-- as there is no consequence for doing so except losing the patent after getting defeated on review/litigation-- but the practice isn't meaningfully influenced by F2F vs F2I.

jchw 5mo ago

I made the tragic mistake of getting a Bambu printer (an X1C, with AMS even...) right before they gave all of us the middle finger. I now have it offline, running out of date firmware, connected to a special WiFi network that is isolated from the Internet. That upset me, but now I'm pissed. Now I don't even care about their stupid printers. Now I'd like to waste Bambu Lab's time and cause problems for them. And also, while this X1C should be going strong for years, my eyes are on Prusa should I want another printer any time soon for any reason. Less polished or not, they seem like they're still better for consumers even though they are apparently less open than they used to be. But I'm of course interested in hearing what people recommend, too. (I got an X1C because I knew it would be simple, but I don't particularly mind getting my hands dirty or anything. I did build an Ender 3 kit before that.)

sottol 5mo ago
Once you have a reliable printer, the workflow is mostly to slice -> send to printer -> wait and check on it every couple of hours until it's done ime. Imo it no longer super matters how much better the on-screen ui or webcam are. Mutli-color though is where Bambu has a good leg up. (Diluted) Vision Miner Nano Polymer Adhesive and a good bed leveling probe has done a lot to make my printer set and forget, no matter which print sheets I use.
- nicce 5mo ago
  Wasn’t the main hassle in calibrarion and Bambu was good in that and is major reason for popularity? So ”once you have a reliable printer” is kinda big thing.
  - anamexis 5mo ago
    Prusa is on par with Bambu in that respect. Really, Prusa are the ones that pioneered hassle-free calibration.
    - holowoodman 5mo ago
      What Prusa is that? Last one I've used (not my own, community lab), I had to level the bed using the sheet-of-paper-method. Which is the reason why I got a Bambu for myself.

TurdF3rguson 5mo ago

30 Million requests per day is not coming from hobbyists, and even if it were, a $40/month VPS can handle that easily.

Jabrov 5mo ago

“Our cloud services are inundated” … says company that killed product from working offline and forced it to be connected

bdcravens 5mo ago
You can put your printers in LAN Mode to not use their cloud. You just have to choose one or the other, and the software in question enabled features they didn't want unless you ran off their cloud.

echelon_musk 5mo ago

Nowhere in TFA did they say what OrcaSlicer does. I must be expected to go to the GitHub and find out for myself!

delecti 5mo ago
A slicer is software that takes a 3d model file and "slices" it for 3d printing. It outputs a series of instructions for a 3d printer to build up a physical object, layer by layer (slice by slice). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing) Particularly relevant for this discussion is this part of that page, showing the lineage of the various software involved. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing)#List_of_slicer_software https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slicer_(3D_printing)#List_of_s...

kristofferR 5mo ago

Found a clone here: https://github.com/unS0uL/OrcaSlicer-bambulab https://github.com/unS0uL/OrcaSlicer-bambulab

everyone 5mo ago

I like Rossman and usually agree with him, but imo hes a very bad speaker. I cant watch his videos. His problem is that, instead of getting to the point, he spends an inordinate amount of time pre-defending against bad faith arguments he assumes he will receive in response to his point. Thats just pointless imo, he should just make his point and if idiots dont get it then who cares, I dont think theres anything we can do for them anyway.

everyone 5mo ago

I mean considering how absolutely fucked the 2d printing space has been (HP) It's not surprising that 3d printing will involve identical shenanigans once it becomes even slightly mainstream. And that's what Bambu does, make 3d printing accessible.

kamranjon 5mo ago

Does anyone know if there is another printer manufacturer that has an equivalent to the Bambu A1S with it's custom AMS system. I don't think people realize how good that printer and AMS system is (the AMS system for the X1C pales in comparison), and I'd love to support another company, but haven't really seen another bed slinger with the simple center-rotating AMS style system seen on the A1S AMS. For context I run a business where I sell 3d printed parts for old film cameras - and the A1S is a workhorse.

aschla 5mo ago
The upcoming Prusa support for INDX (by Bondtech) is going to be interesting, especially for business use cases where waste is a primary concern. https://www.prusa3d.com/product/indx-conversion-kit-8-toolhead/ https://www.prusa3d.com/product/indx-conversion-kit-8-toolhe... The main thing keeping me from making the multi-material jump is the waste. I have a couple Vorons and would love to be able to print with different materials at the same time, but the waste with the current solutions is so egregious.
- ryanobjc 5mo ago
  The multimaterial is going to be really interesting, combining TPU + PLA for example. Or TPU + PETG, who knows! In addition to standard multi-color needs!
starkparker 5mo ago
I don't know what the A1S is (did you mean the A1 or the P1S?) but the Snapmaker U1 is on my wishlist. More expensive than either but eliminates the AMS waste by using multiple toolheads. Open firmware, most of Bambu's convenience features.
- hnben 5mo ago
  i switched from bambu a1 combo to snapmaker u1 and i am very happy. I installed paxx12 custom firmware, and now i am even happier.
- 5mo ago

syntaxing 5mo ago

I’m so torn about bambulabs. Prusa needs to redesign their core one so it doesn’t use 3D printed parts (I get how that’s part of their philosophy but it’s not working anymore), $400 cheaper, and have a reliable AMS system. There’s just no other brand that can compete with Bambulab right now in terms of price vs performance.

MBCook 5mo ago
INDX replaces their existing MMU solution, it will fix that. I’m not sure why 3D printed parts matter. Thats not why Bambu is cheaper. The visual design you can argue. Despite being on the Prusa side I do like the more consumer-y visual aesthetic of Bambu machines better.

meta-level 5mo ago

Currently looking for a printer, and stories like this one are what I'm looking for, thanks.

shevy-java 5mo ago

We see again and again how companies, even those affiliated with open source, want to milk the ecosystem dry. In this case Bambu Lab does so via the golden cloud. This is not ethical to try to sabotage the ecosystem, so Bambu Lab indeed needs to go bleep itself here.

999900000999 5mo ago

More people should be angry companies are stealing products from customers by effectively bricking them for certain use cases. Louis Rossmann isn't polite, but he cuts though the corporate speak.

deepsun 5mo ago

> its cloud servers were inundated with roughly 30 million “unauthorized” requests per day. So make it possible to connect directly to printer over LAN? Prusa supports that, you can use the printer without ever connecting it to internet.

rcdemski 5mo ago
You can. It’s a single checkbox on the printer UI that toggles between cloud control or local LAN control.

billy_bitchtits 5mo ago

Well great. I bought an h2c a couple of months ago before learning this was going down.

somelamer567 5mo ago

I trust BambuLabs about as much as I trust the Chinese Communist Party. That's to say, that they are obviously a cat's paw of the CCP, and bring the reactionary, authoritarian attitude with them, whilst using every underhanded, sneaky trick in the book to put Western manufacturers out of business, and ultimately compromise the West's ability to defend itself. As a Westerner, I value my freedom, so I will happy pay way over the [Chinese-imposed] odds to build a 3D printer of my own than suck on the teat of the CCP and buy a subsidised 3D printer that attacks our freedoms. I would encourage other right-thinking people who value freedom, democracy and rule-of-law to do the same: build your own or -- at the very least -- support Western 3D printer vendors like Prusa who share our values and contribute back to the community.

dekhn 5mo ago

I don't have a Bambu; previously, I had Prusa printers from the MK3 generation and I struggled to get good prints (poor bed adhesion and the extruder breaking frequently, requiring very intensive repairs); since not having a working printer slows my hobbies down, I ended up with two. Both broke down and I got tired of fixing them, but when I looked at the prices of new Prusa, they were high enough to make me pause. Instead of a Bambu, I got a Flashforge Adventurer 5M. It is incredibly cheap (cheap enough that I am more than happy to replace it after two years if it stops working), and is pretty reliable (compared to the Prusa MK3 and MK3S I had), and most of all, the self-calibration works well enough that I don't spend any time debugging prints that fail at the first layer anymore; I just re-run calibration and it's fine, and if it's not fine, I clean the plate and it works. It also comes with a terrible slicer (dervied from Slic3r I believe) with annoying "log into the cloud every time you start the app", but I moved to OrcaSlicer. I had to give up a few nice features but it hasn't truly impacted my workflow. And it does receive firmware updates (it's connected via wifi to my home network). My hope- just a hope- is that they don't do anything truly stupid with future firmware updates or end up getting in a hissy fit with prominent youtubers.

darkteflon 5mo ago

This was shared here last year and was excellent. Relevant to this discussion: https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-printing-is-dead/ https://www.josefprusa.com/articles/open-hardware-in-3d-prin...

jccx70 5mo ago

[dead]

h4kunamata 5mo ago

My X1C lived for 3 months, never ending quality issues, never ending CF rod noise, etc, etc. Mind you, LAN mode didn't exist, we had to use SFT to send files to the printer locally. I build a DIY LDO Voron Trident and it is slice and print.

gist 5mo ago

Damn this is like a variation of the Streisand Effect [1] I am not involved in this industry so I never heard of the company or the youtuber before reading this. I am tempted to buy one just to make some things (that I don't need but might be fun to make). [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect

tedzhu 5mo ago

Mind you, Bambulab has region Locks on Chinese-version hardware which are strictly disabled overseas. What's the difference between these version? Nothing. Just oversea versions are more expensive.

drake99 5mo ago

A classic ploy by Chinese commercial companies: offer a 'free-to-play' model with extremely high lock-in costs, all while claiming they’re just lowering the barrier to entry for your own good.