Bambu Lab pushes a “control system” for 3D printers, and boy, did it not go well

Security measure? Boxing out third-party tools? Or something more complex?

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[wagnerrp]

Besides a subscription fee for the required cloud service, they probably have plans to DRM the filament spools somehow "to protect the device" like HP, etc. do.

I'll be honest, I wouldn't be against some sort of standardized RFID system for 3D printers. Every version of every brand has it's own special behavior that can be tweaked, and when you try out a new filament, it takes some time to get it "just right". Having some system that would automatically pre-load settings for the filament you have loaded would be great. But... it would have to feed back into the slicer, because you're running your own slicer and not leaving that up to the machine/cloud, right?

At least HP subsidizes the printer to get you locked into their toner or ink. Bambu charges full price for the printer then will still gouge for the rest.

That's the real problem. Any meaningful push to tag filament would really just be a push to restrict filament.

 

[wagnerrp]

Some of his choices are a little odd like choosing to move to and pay taxes in company loving, 0%(?) corp tax Texas while being entirely anti company

He owns and runs a company that does electronics repairs. He is very pro-right-to-repair, as that is central to his business, but it makes sense for him to move somewhere that as you claim is pro-business.

 

[wagnerrp]

I don’t want something that can start a fire connected to the internet.

PLA autoignition temperature is nearly 400C, and ABS nearly 500C. The only way it's going to catch fire is if you could somehow burn out the windings on one of the stepper motors, and then you have to hope there's enough flammable in that motor for it to spread.

It's not like these are paper printers with large volumes of paper and ink nearby.

You should never print unsupervised anyway.

You're going to stay up and monitor an entire multi-day print?

 

[wagnerrp]

You can flash the firmware remotely and remove any safety cutoffs on extruder temperature. The idea would be to print out a bunch of material and ignite that with the hot end, which can reach those temperatures.

https://www.snapmaker.com/blog/3d-printer-fire-safety-causes-prevention-best-practices/#:~:text=a) Thermal Runaway Failure,countermeasures are implemented in advance.

But please, by all means ignore this advice.

The firmware can just fail all on its own without malicious intent. Mosfets can fail closed, preventing the firmware from cutting power, if there aren't backups in series. This sure sounds like somewhere that could and should have a $0.25 thermal fuse, like most consumer heating appliances.

 

[wagnerrp]

Wait wait. So they are pushing this controversial update to make sure the printer isn't controlled remotely by an unauthorized actor. Why the heck is the printer remote controllable to begin with?

When is the last time you've used a paper printer that didn't have remote access? If not network, USB, or Centronics? Even "offline" printers invariably come with a serial port (or serial over USB) to print through.

but if you actually use a printer and crank out multiple prints in a day, the flash drive shuffle is a waste of time.

I expect the average entry user does that for about as long as it takes to ship in something that will run Octoprint.

 

[wagnerrp]

The average Ars user maybe. I wouldn't underestimate the appeal of "it just works" for the average user though. The beauty of 3D printing getting so popular is we're reaching a point where we have users who's eyes will glaze over the moment you say "just get a Raspberry Pi bro".

Alright. We'll handicap them a week before they start asking what that little red button data port on the side is for.

 

[wagnerrp]

I have been thinking that the ideal setup is buying one "just works" printer, probably on the compact side, and using it to print the parts for a Voron as printer #2.

Is that like buying a second Jaguar to use while the first is in the shop?