I do like the Ender.
It is a comparatively simple, repairable machine that is cheap to keep alive.
Yesterday for instance, an old donor machine supplied the parts needed to get another one going. I’ve got a ridiculous stockpile of compatible bits that I have picked up and I’m happily making tools gifts with it.
As I said yesterday in my post on Coffee With Allan, my wife and I own two Ender V2 Neos and an Ender clone, a Voxelab Aquila. But it is frustrating when things go wrong and then you find that Creality brought out multiple versions of the same thing. It can be very confusing trying to work out which parts are compatible and which aren’t.
Just don’t start me on the Sonic Pad.
I do enjoy tinkering, and I intend to restore the old machines that I’ve collected as a shared hobby with my grandkids. But when it comes to printing, I want something that works, and that is easy to troubleshoot.
I don’t necessarily want to go the Bambu Lab route where everything seems to be so easy that it takes a lot of the decision making out of the hands of the user.
Then there is the ecosystem.
I like the the idea of a smoother experience, but I’m wary of becoming too dependent on one manufacturer’s system. I want to retain the freedom to choose filament, software and how I use a machine that I own.
I’ve enjoyed using Creality printers, but whether I would buy another one today is a different question. I’ve been looking at the K2 Plus, but my questions have shifted from things like “How fast is the K2 Plus?” to things such as Will Creality support it long-term? Will parts remain available? Will firmware remain maintained? Will I spend my time making things, or maintaining the machine?
The Creality English language wiki shows that at the moment, the company is providing user guides, troubleshooting, replacement procedures and firmware information. This shows that Creality is actually maintaining the K2 family. WIll it be doing so in three years though?
This is a key part of my decision. As I said to my robotic offsider Rob, I would rather stay in the ecosystem that I am familiar with, rather than learn a new one.
That’s one reason why I will probably never buy a Bambu Lab machine, though I have been tempted by the A2L Combo model with the cutter upgrade. But when it comes down to it, it’s just a bigger version of what I’m used to, from another maker.
I have been looking at other models. Notably the Qidi Max 4 and Kobra S1 Max, but again, I do have concerns there as well.
I’m not going to buy tomorrow, and as I am semi retired, I’m being careful about how I spend my resources. And of course, my wife is part of this as well, so that adds another factor to the discussion.
So to be fair, Creality is still well ahead because I am familiar with their system, and they have a huge community, but gee they make it hard.