Bambu Lab A1 mini

[...] Every other video or review I've seen, from multiple enthusiasts who use other brands, makes it clear any other printer (at least 2 years ago when I bought it) was "a hobby into itself", most definitely what I did NOT want. [...] I wanted something plug and play, zero fuss, and the A1 Mini delivers. [...]

[...] I’ve had an A1 Mini for a year now and it has been my favourite purchase in years. Like when I got my first mobile phone, I feel like I’ll have some sort of 3d printer for the rest of my life. [...] I’m completely against bullying and attempts to lock out open source software from using 3d printers directly; if they locked out OrcaSlicer from direct control I’d have a big problem with that. [...]

[...] I unboxed an A1 Mini and it's been like an epiphany. [...] I just send from my phone and it just works. Everything has been nearly flawless until last night where half a batch of mini utility knife frames started to spaghetti, probably my fault for not fully cleaning the build plate in a bit. [...]

[...] I’ve gotten into 3D printing in the past six months with an A1 Mini. [...]

How do I find it: Daily driver for 9 months now, no regrets, love the board, and I've probably paid more for mine than anyone other than the creator :). [...] Comfortable: It isn't your normal board... You make it what you need for comfort. [...] (I have 2 around, an A1 Mini and P1S.) Join the discord... [...]

[...] The A1/A1mini are still two of the best budget beginner printers IMO, though some clones come close, and I do recommend them if asked but with caveats around potential lock-in later and not believing promises due to a history of changed online posts, deliberately excluded from the WayBackMachine, and what to my understanding is an AGPL breach] -------- [1] “There is a way to use the feature, so it isn't an attempt to permanently deprive”, or “you agreed to the possibility of such changes in the EULA”, and so on.

[...] This started right after the firmware update, so it looks firmware-related rather than a hardware issue. I’ve downgraded back to 01.08.00.00 via Bambu Handy and will post an update if the problem comes back.

It’s added the steps push new filament and purge old filament to the workflow after hitting print when using external spool on both the A1 and A1 mini. I’m no professional and by no means a heavy user but both of these printers have clocked up close to a thousand hrs each and never been an issue before. The prompt isn’t immediate either, so you hit print, forget about it then realise nothing is happening 20 mins later.

[...] Since the last firmware update (01.08.01.00) my a1 mini has started acting as if new filament has been loaded when trying to print, even though filament is already loaded. [...]

[...] Compared with one button press and coming back to a print in a few hours, it’s a constant nightmare of debugging, print issues, and manually changing filaments that aren’t stored in an airtight container and get wet. It’s not even competition, as much as I would like to support open source tools the Prusa stuff is an order of magnitude more expensive than a A1 Mini that will make a reliable print every time. [...]

I bought a Bambu Labs A1 Mini. [...] Previously I bought an Ender printer for around the same amount. [...] And if my Bambu printer breaks I can generally buy a new one cheaper than paying someone who knows what they are doing to fix it. [...] For what its worth, I'm basically printing out puppet mechanisms and art figures. [...]

[...] However the time and money I spent into my ender to keep it barely alive is all wasted compared to these machines that just run perfectly out of the package. [...] I didn't regret it once, and have 3 printers at this point (2 of which free thanks to Bambu points) Also I am still amazed that my $150 A1 mini is basically just as good as the X2D or P2S.

I have to say the Bambu A1 Mini has been a game changer for me. [...]

i've never own a prusa printer, they are too expensive for me. [...] Now I own a bambulab. They are as cheap as the one from Anycubic, but much more reliable and easier to setup. I honestly don't know how can they make it so cheap, even my a1 mini, cost less than $250, has wifi, a camera for timeplase. [...]

Yeah I printed one of the Titan Dynamics airframes (before they closed up at access for the hobby market) on a Prusa MK3S using foaming PLA and CF spars. The fuselage came out in three prints, the wings as one print each, and then the two wing tip extensions got combined into one print. It would definitely have been tight on an A1 mini but the full size A1 would work great for sure.

3D printers have made so much progress in the last 1-2 years that rarely are second-hand printers a good deal unless you just get really lucky finding someone unloading a new model they just didn't use. [...] If you are on a budget, buy a brand new Bambu A1 Mini for <$250. [...] Or if you have a little more tolerance for messing around but want the most possible printer for your money, you can get an Elegoo Centauri Carbon for $300 (it's a cheaper knock-off of the higher-end Bambu P1S and X1C models). The used market is flooded with cheap old 3D printers right now because the new crop of printers is so much better that the old crop of printers are essentially paperweights. [...]

I gotta say the A1 Mini is the only printer I see myself using, unless something better comes along that is even easier to use. [...]

I walked into my company hardware labs at the right time and was gifted a bambu labs a1 mini with 350 printing hours on it. [...] Stick to some matte pla to begin with and with the a1/a1 mini it's as close as you can get to plug and play. [...]

[...] But it's twice as expensive as a Bambu P1S and lacks various features that are optional on the prusa but included on the P1S. [...] I have a P1S + AMS and also an A1 Mini, I think it's amazing how much value you get for your money at 180 euro. I actually use the A1 Mini more lately when I have something small to print due to the easily exchangable hotend (I often print small high-detail stuff on it with the 0,2mm nozzle). [...]

[...] I picked up an A1 mini during their recent sale and unfortunately after using it...I don't think I'll ever use my Ender 5 Plus ever again (poor thing)...when I have enough space I'll just buy an X1C. [...]

Dry/Print A1 Mini with AMS HT (2x) Hi! [...] My only complaint is the lake of dry while printing ability with the A1 Mini / AMS HT Combo like with my P2S / AMS 2 Pro Combo. Dont know if it was overseen or something, but it would be very nice if i can print while dring with the A1 Mini using AMS HT like with the other printers since the new software release. Please @Development implement dring while printing on A1 Mini THX an much love from germany! [...]

[...] I getting a bambu A1 mini next week after researching on all the brands and types out there. I was stuck between bambu A1 and A1 mini but decided to go with mini for couple reasons.how much I will use it .space I have and the excellent price and all the reviews. I’m debating will I get the A1 mini with AMS system or not. [...]

Hi, I have an A1 mini and I’ve used TinMorry TPU and the generic TPU profile with great results. [...] I made a new profile and slowed the initial layer and walls down to 80 and set the max and min temp to 225 and 200. [...]

I bought a Bambu A1 Mini to replace an Ender 3, thinking it would just be for occasional printing. [...] I found them harder to justify on price, but I also understand why people choose them for that reason. [...]

An A1 Mini requires a smaller nozzle, a customized profile, specific filament, and quite a bit of work in Blender and the slicer to successfully print 32mm figures (approx. [...] I don't think my A1 Mini would have success trying to print at 1/72 at the same detail as an injection molding process. [...]

But maybe the worst part is that BambuLabs printers are actually really great and popular printers, for an affordable (but not cheap) price. [...] This is the only part I was aware of: I own an A1 Mini and having lots of fun with it. [...] I was aware about the update (which is optional so far) and wasn't too concerned about it, but I understand why other people may be. [...]

[...] To me, the best offering they have right now is the A1-Mini with the AMS-Lite. [...] At $389 for the combo of the AMS-Lite and the A1-Mini - I can scale this up as needed without a ton of concern for my bank account. [...]

on the understanding it was reasonably hackable and open While this lock down doesn't seem right it is far from unexpected, I question the amount of research done prior to your Black Friday purchase (BF and well-thought-out-decisions often do not go hang-in-hand!)… I bought one (an A1 with the multi-material add-on) some months before that in full knowledge that the company would prefer to funnel people into a walled garden because if you look anywhere you'll find proponents of other makes warning that exactly this is possible & likely, with the "must take many steps to print without talking to their servers" being the key evidence in those warnings. Good reasons to buy a BBL machine (at least my reasoning when I did): They work out of the box more so than many of the competition (many will say "X is better or better value, if you spend Y amount of time tuning" which while often correct, I wasn't looking to spend that time tuning), certainly more so than others at similar prices. QoL features (good auto leveling, dynamic flow control) that weren't exactly ubiquitous on similarly priced or cheaper machines. Certainly in the case of the newest A1/A1-Mini line: a working MMU option cheaper than you find in other ranges (some manufacturers have started addressing this and the out-of-box experience, in their product lines, 2025 could be an interesting year), and very easy nozzle changes (useful if you want to both do detailed minis (without going resin) and mostly larger items). [...] There are regular complaints of slow support response more generally, but there are for other printer manufacturer

I got an A1 mini about a month ago and so far it’s been decent as a beginners printer. I transfer models to the printer via the microSD card and refused to install their networking software on my machine because I don’t trust it’s safe enough. Im also very reluctant to get updates whenever they’re pushed. [...]

[...] I think if you need a budget, you a probably best sticking to a Prusa Mini, Bambu P1s or A1 Mini. [...]

[...] I have a blink camera on a nearby shelf with zoom capability and record from there is I need. [...] The screen seems to refresh quicker. My suspicion is that the A1 mini software cannot support mini SD cards above 64GB as their tables are too large. [...]

(A1 Mini-2050 hours; A1 Mini-986 hours) Recently, my screens started locking at random times. [...] I did it on one and no freezes since. [...] Can the A1 Mini not handle FAT tables of a 128GB mini-SD? [...]

ChrisDD96: Today, I updated my three A1 mini printers with this new firmware. [...] Security Enhancements: Included necessary security updates. Chamber Light: Fixed an intermittent flickering issue with chamber light. [...] Bambu Lab Wiki A1 mini Firmware Release History This guide provides all firmware release records for the A1 mini. [...]

I found a TPU profile specifically for Sunlu 95a TPU on MakerWorld. IMG11131920×1440 535 KB IMG11141920×1440 440 KB The print on the left uses this profile and the right one uses the built in generic TPU profile. I’m using Sunlu opaque grey 95a TPU. When I use Tinmorry translucent 95a TPU, either profile works fine. My room is 47% humidity and I didn’t have to dry the filament. Link to the profile When saving this out as a user profile, you’ll get an error that you can’t save an embedded profile as a user profile. ChatGPT or Claude can help you export it as json and re-import as a user profile.

I was in your shoes about a year ago with an A1 mini, getting into OpenSCAD to make my own keycaps. If you're getting into OpenSCAD I'd highly recommend getting Belfry ASAP. I wouldn't really consider using OpenSCAD without it

Last year, I bought the entry-level Bambu Lab 3D printer, the A1 Mini. A few weeks ago, I finally anchored a shelf to a few wall studs and set up a stable, solid platform for the printer, which is helpful for cleanly printing large things. I put it to use for Christmas.

I bought a bambu lab a1 mini a few months ago. It’s pretty much set and forget and very cheap for the quality. Highly recommend

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. [...]

Absolutely LOVE my A1Mini. [...]

Just pla basic in use on this one, not used TPU or anything like that. If it was listing the action as a flow check or something I could get it being a feature, but based on the messages it gives to me it just seems the printer is forgetting it’s already got filament loaded. Also nothing in the firmware notes to suggest it was an intended change (although not to say it couldn’t be an unlisted change).

I don't know about other brands or even models, but I can attest that the Bambu A1 Mini "just works". [...] 3D printing as a hobby doesn't appeal to me, I just wanted something that solved the problem and was relatively cheap. [...]

I love the thoughtful response. I feel you on every point, but I'd point out that they sell VERY reasonably priced replacement parts for basically everything on the A1 Mini that I have that is worth repairing.

Eh honestly I would always recommend someone just buy a bambu a1 mini for like 150£ and keep it around for odds and ends It's basically at the point where it's plug and play. [...]

[...] Step 3, design a housing to fit four drone motors/control board/battery, etc. [...] [0] The Bambu a1 mini is a perfectly competent entry-level product. [...]

[...] Truthfully these organic shapes are more of a use-case for 3D modelling software like Blender rather than CAD, but I'd be keen to hear if you end up giving OpenSCAD a go. My Bambu A1 mini has been reliable despite the challenging geometry; pretty sure your P2S will work just as well if not better. [...]

I wouldn’t call the A1 build plate small, more like average/typical sized. [...] Then you’ve got the A1 mini being ao popular that many times people will make variants just for the small plate on that machine.

All of this was on a Bambu A1 Mini? These are the types of things I want to print. My Ender 3 was so finicky, I only got a few out before I gave up.

Just got a 3d printer (Bambu a1 mini) and my girlfriend brought home a whole bag of plant cuttings. Thought I would give a modular plant pot (i.e with elements that allow for expanding the pot) in fusion 360 a shot.

I got a Bambu A1 Mini a few weeks ago and it's practically easier than 2D printing. Printed a whole tabletop game that I played with friends, and replacement parts for a gun that held up at the range.

I, too, once looked into this, but for anything trivial you immediately exceed the cost of just buying a Bambu Lab A1 mini. So you might as well buy that and have a lower-spec iteration, because you're going to run into all sorts of design problems before you get to finer constraints.