One of the most popular 3D printers on the market is a Creality printer called the Ender 3. I have owned an Ender 3 for the past two years, and here are my thoughts on the pros and cons of owning one:
Pros:
- It’s cheap: this is a typical 3D printer because it’s cheap, only $200, which, compared to its competitors, like Prusa and Makerbot’s printers, is an accessible price for beginners just entering the 3D printing space.
- Great for beginners: With the cheapness and the ability for it to be taken apart quickly and put back together. It does come disassembled. It’s a great learning experience for newer beginners just coming into 3D printing. Since it’s a popular printer, there are hundreds of guides and tutorials on almost any topic about this printer.
- Upgradability: Since its popularity, many 3rd party brands have offered upgrades to this printer. For example, the BL touch, which in my opinion, is one of the best upgrades that this printer needs, the BL touch auto levels the bed, so there is no need to fine-tune the hotbed manually anymore, which is a hassle. Even Creality offers their own upgrades, they offer an upgraded silent stepper board that improves the sound, and they also sell a CR Touch (their version of the BL touch).
Cons:
- Cheap Quality: since this is cheap and straight from China, the parts and pieces are not of the best quality, and I found myself upgrading almost every single aspect of this printer to make it better, and after upgrading all of the small things like a new motherboard and a BL touch, adds up over time. I’ve spent at least an additional $200 on upgrades for my printer.
- The Noise: Buying a new motherboard was a HUGE change from the printer’s noise when printing. It is rather loud with the standard motherboard. Which for some isn’t an issue as you can move it into another room or buy an enclosure for it. But even with the motors making almost no noise, there is still the fan’s noise, specifically the extruder fan and the power supply fan. Both are pretty loud, which you can also upgrade with Noctua’s silent series fans.
Final Thoughts:
Should you buy the Ender 3 in 2022? No, but I believe that if you are set on buying a cheaper printer, I would save money and go for the Creality Ender 3 pro, or the Creality Ender 3 V2, or the Ender 3 max. which has all of the base upgrades you need at a slightly higher price. I would also recommend the Prusa i3 MK3s+ edition if you want the more expensive 3D printers, since it has a vast community, and the owner is based in the Czech Republic and is seemingly going for quality rather than cheap and quick parts. Unlike what Creality3D produces. I also wrote about how I upgraded my Ender 3 with many upgrades here
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