Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 Laser Engraver Cutter with Easy
Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 Laser Engraver Cutter with Easy Assembly and APP Smart Control, Linear Rail Motion, Aluminum Frame, 400mm x 400mm Laser Machine for DIY Gift Making with Eye Protection Desig
Protective Laser Shield
Avoid accidental laser beam exposure for better safety.
32bit Board & Bluetooth 5.0
32-bit board allows for faster response and improved stability.
One-Click Repeat Button
Repeat your last laser project in just one click.
Specification:
| Max. Z-axis Material Height | 0.1mm-76mm |
| Focal Distance | 5mm |
| Power Supply | DC005, DC12V/5A |
| Data Interface | USB Type-C (Square USB Interface) |
| Machine Power | <60W |
| Laser Electric Power | 10~20W(Standard); 20~40W(Upgradeable) |
| Laser Optical Power | >4.5W(Standard); >8W(Upgradeable) |
| Laser Wavelength | 455nm |
| Motion Area | 400*400mm |
| Work Area | 395*365mm |
| Engraving Accuracy | 0.1-0.2mm(Standard); 0.05-0.08mm(Upgradeable) |
| Engraving Speed | ≤170 mm/s |
| Engravable Materials | Cardboard, plywood, non-transparent plastic, cloth, leather, stone, glass, stainless steel and metal with oxidized spray paint |
| File Format | JPEG/BMP/GIF/PLT/PNG/DXF/JPG/XJ/HPGL |
| Supported OS | Win7/Win8/Win10/MAC/IOS/Android |
Q: What Material Can I Engrave with the Jinsoku LC-40?
Cardboard, plywood, non-transparent plastic, cloth, leather, stone, glass, stainless steel and metal with oxidized spray paint
Q: What are the differences between the custom firmware and the GRBL firmware?
Custom Firmware:
● Mobile Phone APP and Custom PC Software
● Recommended for New Users
GRBL Firmware:
● LaserGRBL and LightBurn – PC Only
● Recommended for Seasoned Users
● Note: the machine will not home automatically when boot up in this mode. You can send the command via software.The limit switches works in both firmware.
Q: Can I use the two firmware at the same time?
No.
Q: How to switch the firmware:
You can now update the original firmware version and switch from original firmware to grbl firmware with the latest mobile phone application. But if you need to switch back to the original firmware from the grbl firmware, you will need to use a Windows PC and follow the video instruction. (The firmware switch software for Mac will be released soon).
Q: What Accessories do the Jinsoku LC-40 support?
Rotary Roller (Coming Soon)
Q: Where can I find the resources for the Jinsoku LC-40?
SainSmart Resources Center: (sainsmart.helpdocs.io/lc-40)
| Weight: | 6.1 kg |
| Dimensions: | 58.17 x 35.31 x 14.22 cm; 6.1 Kilograms |
| Model: | 325450550 |
| Part: | 325450550 |
| Pack Quantity: | 1 |
| Batteries Required: | No |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Manufacture: | Genmitsu |
| Dimensions: | 58.17 x 35.31 x 14.22 cm; 6.1 Kilograms |
| Quantity: | 1 |
Great product I have all three of there models, has not disappointed me yet and I have one that is over a year old..
Ottimo incisore laser facile da montare funziona sia con PC che con il telefono
I’m completely new to laser engraving, but I love crafting, so I thought I’d give it a try. I’ve never had laser engravers before, but I have experience with 3d printing. As I wanted to try some new tools for home crafting, I thought that this laser engraver would be a viable candidate to tinker with. This review is from a complete newbie, so I can’t give you a professional opinion on it, but I can give you a beginner’s first impression, which I hope will be useful. Because I’m just starting to learn how to use laser engravers, this particular machine has attracted my attention promising simpler software friendly to beginners.
Setup was quite easy. The instructions are well written, easy to follow, and I was able to put it together relatively quickly in less than one hour. I would recommend two people working together assembling this machine, so you’ll have someone to help you by holding things together when you screw and connect everything together, but you can get away doing it by yourself, it will just take a bit longer. The build quality of this machine is quite good, it feels solid and is well made. The parts it’s made of are precisely made and fit together very well, they are polished, and all corners are deburred. The operation of the machine is flawless, the laser moves smoothly on rails. I’ve only tried it on a piece of wood so far, next I’m planning to try some steel scrap to see how it performs on more rigid materials. So, the machine performed very well on wood.
I installed the app on my phone from the AppStore, no problem here. Bluetooth connection to the machine was straightforward and I did not experience any issues. The app itself is easy to use, exactly what was promised, perfect for beginners. I actually think it’s too simplistic and that I’ll “outgrow” it very quickly. The app might not be ideal for people who don’t like to tinker around, customize, reprogram devices, it’s really limited in sense of customization and advanced options. Don’t get me wrong, the app works perfectly, but it’s not something you want to use in the long run.
I have tried to install their PC software as well. And this is where things go downhill. The app opens up fine, but images are loading unacceptably slow, it’s like 30 seconds per image subjectively to process each change to the image. I had the software crash on me several times while trying to do something with it. If you need to replace the image during the process, you will have to restart the program. So, my advice, don’t touch the PC software, stick to the phone app for now. I can’t comment about Mac software, which I did not try. I’ll be looking for other open-source desktop software, which is more reliable and gives you access to advanced features, I’m pretty sure it exists, maybe I’ll try LightBurn if I’ll be able to re-flash the firmware, we’ll see.
I had a couple of issues with the machine initially. One is laser focus. Initially, I did not know about the focus feature and tried to engrave a picture on a piece of wood as-is and it came out all fuzzy and pixelated. Turns out the laser is out of focus. I tried to find the focus button, but couldn’t, so I had to watch YouTube videos to figure it out. Apparently, they provide a 5mm spacer for focusing the laser. It’s tucked into one of the corners of the printer frame and has a rubber pad to easily slide it out of its storage space. The other complaint is that it’s not clear how to properly position items to engrave. It would be helpful if there was a ruler on the side of the machine, as it’s difficult to find where to place the objects and align them in the app. Apparently, the machine creates a square around the engraving area, so I played with that until it lined up. Once everything was in place, the engraving results were perfect. The machine is a little on a slower side than I would like it to be, it takes about 35-40 minutes to engrave a 6 inch by 4 inch square image, so be sure to bring coffee and something to read while you wait. The engraver is super quiet while running and there is very minimal motor noise, and the cooling fan is also pretty quiet.
*** TL;DR ***
Yes, I recommend this engraving machine. Overall, I’m happy with the laser engraver hardware itself, it’s rock-solid and well built. It works smoothly and very well, the results are fantastic (if you properly focus the laser), though it’s a bit slow, which is okay. I don’t have any complaints about the hardware, but I feel that the app is too simplistic. It works fine, no problem here but it lacks advanced features. I think I’ll outgrow the app very quickly and I hope there is a 3rd party open-source software for controlling this machine. Still, I’m going to give it 5 stars because it works fine and I had zero serious issues with it, only a few minor issues.
+++ Pros +++
1) Very solidly and precisely built.
2) Runs smoothly and quietly.
3) Works with practically any material.
4) Can engrave even steel and glass!
5) Easy to assemble and setup.
6) Results are great even if you are a beginner.
7) The phone app is easy to use.
— Cons —
1) No rulers or guides to position the piece for engraving.
2) Not clear initially how to focus the laser.
3) The phone app is too simplistic.
4) PC software is horribly buggy.
Really well made and easy to assemble. I’m having trouble getting the software to work on my computer but it is easily controlled by phone via bluetooth.
The engraver itself is a wonderful piece of equipment. Assembly took about 30 mins and straightforward. The instructions were good enough to figure everything out. All the parts and pieces which were much less than in other similar priced lasers, felt precision made for a secure tight fit. The cable management system with this laser is top notch, the best I’ve seen.
The iPhone App was pretty easy to install and get going with. I am having some issues with it on some settings. For example using the TEXT menu, it won’t work. However the pre-made graphics and drawing menus work fine. I was able to print them with just a few clicks to choose parameters. Live choice of Power and Speed is typical with most lasers, and this one’s works great.
I did use the App to enable it to work with Lightburn. However when doing so it disables the App. It took some online searching to figure out how to reset it back to App control. With some further refining of the App this could be a 5 star product easy. As it is, it gets a solid 4 stars. It works best for advanced users with Lightburn knowledge. Be prepared for a little bit of a learning curve if you’re new to lasers. 4 stars.
If you are just getting into the hobby like me, the Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 laser engraver is well worth a look!
It was very easy to assemble and download the app, btw … the unit also works with Windows. Out of the box it took maybe 15-20 minutes to set up. I took my time. Then if you are like me you need to spend a little bit of time acquainting yourself to the application and before long I was off and printing!
I primarily print to balsa wood and I practiced on cardboard. Printing is not super fast but it is fun to watch! The LC-40 does a terrific job of recreating an image on wood. To really get to optimal output it is best to use a black and white or uncluttered picture as you’re source. The LCD-40 excels in engraving type fonts onto wood.
There is a firmware upgrade that, when I am ready, adds more functionality to the LC-40, so I can see this being a good engraver for both the novice and seasoned pro!
I’m not giving this product a 5 star rating because the machine is not able to connect with a mac computer, not one but all of my machines with different OS from El Capitan to Monterrey are not able to communicate with this machine, I had installed the latest drivers, from the manufacturer’s website, I’ve used the terminal app to search for the ports, this machine connects and I only get detection thru Bluetooth, I can see the machine, but not an physical port to connect to be detected by Lightburn, I performed the recommended firmware updates from the manufacturer website several times, via my computer and via the phone app in where is very easy to switch from one firmware to the other with ease, but not luck on making this machine to work with MacOSX, Just for that I could easily give this machine 1-2 stars.
I had to look for an older PC with windows 8 and install Lightburn on it, and I could finally make it work every time without problems, but is not acceptable that the Mac connection is unavailable.
Another reason I could give this machine low rating is because there’s not eye protection that comes with it, And yes! The laser diode comes with a protection in the form of an orange plastic that seems to stop some light, but this is not enough, in my opinion every laser machine sold in this country, specially in this country has to come with eye protection, not excuses! your sight is more important than anything and not caring about this from the manufacturer is totally reckless.
Now this machine has many positives, here I’ll tell you some.
Very easy to assemble, since this machine comes partially assembled you just have to put together less parts and it will take you about 30min if you lay down all the parts in order, and trust me it is so easy that you don’t even have to see the instructions.
The frame is very sturdy once is all together and the rolling system consists on rails and sliders, not pulleys which is in my opinion a great add to this machine, that system provides more stability and virtually zero backlash, plus it slides very smooth, the down side is that if you are thinking on to expand the size of this machine, you’re constrained to use the 400mm by 390mm area with not possible upgrade in size, if you need a bigger space than that do not get this machine thinking you can upgrade the size later, the cable connections are great and very clean and easy to install, with type C connectors and some type of molex on the other side where it attaches to the laser unit, but like I said, very easy and there’s not any cables hanging like other machines, very clean, the cable management is great on this machine!
The laser diode unit is a focused type of laser and the machine comes with a little metal bar that you slide under the diode unit and separates it about 5mm from the cutting area, that’s the way you focus the laser relative to the surface you are about to cut, so you get 5mm from the surface to the rim of the laser diode enclosure.
I have contacted the manufacturer to know a little bit more about any options for a rotatory unit compatible with this machine to engrave cylindrical objects and at the moment of this review, there’s none for this machine, also they told me that a 10W laser unit is on the making, but as for today no signs of it and not even a comment in their website yet.
The unit comes with some extras, a dry pen, a brush and some more little things that are not critical for functioning and like I said, No Eye Protection.
The diode optical power is 5W not very potent but very popular among everyone that has an entry level machine like this one for cutting paper and very thin card board.
Overall the performance of this machine is good, it does what it was made for, I can’t say much more about a very wide range of materials because I’m just using it to cut paper and some thin card board 1-2mm, I don’t think this is the machine you’re looking for cutting plywood above 1 to 2 mm the engraving is not bad but is not great either, the laser point is somehow a bit bigger than others. but it does the job with good resolution, all this is subjective for what your project is, in my case all I do is paper cutting art and it does the job for me.
My recommendations are to look for a PC if you are a Mac user, because it will not work, no matter what you do, in my case I could make it work once or twice after doing a lot of back and forth between the terminal app and restarting the machine to force hardware detection, a complete waste of time and frustration.
This could be a 5 star machine but is not, My initial reaction to all the frustration was 3 stars, but I decided to play devil’s advocate and give them the benefit of the doubt and give this machine 4 stars because is easy to put together, the cable management is great and when it works, it works very well.
But leaving out eye protection on a laser machine is not justified in my opinion, simple no! Not being able to connect to a Mac computer and forcing you to look for or buy a PC is simply not acceptable either.
In my opinion if you want more power and the convenience to upgrade the frame size and have more power, go with the competition, NEJE or the Ortur.
I hope this review helps you in any way, I don’t have any ties with the manufacturer and my opinion is honest and not biased, this is just my experience on assembling and using this laser cutting machine.
I bought some laser safety glasses prior to using the engraver. No glasses are included. Assembly was straightforward. The quality of the parts is amazing. Looks much like it would cost more. I have only used the app to do some test engravings on wood. I am very new to Laser engraving so it took a little bit of time to dial in the correct settings. While the laser is 5.5w versus 10w, it does an excellent job putting the image down on the wood. I would recommend this laser and I will update my review once I have more time and used more materials.
I love to craft and make things. I’m also in charge of a lot of fundraisers and team sports. So, I have been able to make things for both of those things with this laser engraver. I did senior signs for the high school bowling team this year and they turned out amazing. The modular design and easy to use mobile phone APP make it ideal for beginners. In addition to the easy-to-use software we provided, GRBL-based firmware is also available for the Jinsoku LC-40. If you want to do more customization to your engraving projects when you gain more experience in laser engraving, simply flash the firmware, and you can use LightBurn and LaserGrbl to control the LC-40. It was easy to set up and once I used it a few times it was easy to use as well. The phone app makes it quick and easy. A little pricey but I will use the soup out of it.
This is a nice laser engraver that is easy to assemble and works really good.
I have several laser engravers and I can tell you other then laser wattage they are all just about the same.
What sets this one apart from them is the look and finish of the frame, it looks good and the smoothed corners are nice.
The coiled wires are a real bonus and really keep the wires out of the way and give no resistance to the moving parts.
Limit switches on the rails is a nice addition too, most laser engravers have only bump stops.
Little things like these make a difference to me and I appreciate them.
I would buy again.
5 STARS
I have knocked out quite a few projects with this already and have been extremely impressed. It was always a PITA having to pull out one of my Windows computers to get gerbl running for my other laser but this one you can simply use with your phone. The footprint is a little smaller than some of the other cheaper lasers and it makes it able to actually fit on counter tops instead of requiring setup on a full-size table. This is my go-to laser now, extremely impressed!
Excellent instructions for the assembly. I successfully used the device in metal, cloth, resin, and paper. The only material it did not do was stone.
My husband likes to use the phone to control it, but I installed the software included on a thumb drive and used my computer to load images for use. The software is user-friendly; it is easy to know and understand what I am doing, but I can go back to the manual when in doubt.
Excellent machine for small projects; I would gladly pay more if the machine could do stone. The noise, smoke, or fumes from the materials used are minimal to none. The device can fit on a standard counter.
I have a small portable laser engraver but needed a larger one to use at home and to take with me at vendor events.
This is a game changer for that.
This was easy to put together and the app is extremely easy to use.
I can upload my design to the app and get it engraving for my customers while they shop.
The Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 is my first laser engraver. My goals for wanting to get into using a device like this were pretty modest: to engrave text on metal ID tags and maybe make some small signs. So pretty much a text only plan. One thing I have been impressed with while studying the various machines available is that there are guys out there that are obviously from some sort of of advanced super race of craft and technology beings who are way more into this stuff than I will ever be. Seeing what’s possible with a tool like this is inspiring but humbling. That said, my novice impressions were pretty favorable after setup and initial trail use of the Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40.
The Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 is easy to setup and has a solid build and a quality feel about it. The instruction book is clear and well illustrated. To start out with I decided to stick with just the standard phone app for working with he machine, but may explore other options when I get a bit more experienced. Although others have commented that they were annoyed about the app asking for various permissions it’s currently standard, on Android phones at least, for a Bluetooth connection to require that location GPS be enabled and of course the app has to have access to your image folder to use artwork and the to camera to take images if you’re not uploading them to the phone as files.
My only gripe off the top is that despite having a lot of well thought out features the LC-40 does not have an alignment or layout grid for symmetrically placing objects to be etched. My initial attempts required some trial and error to get to what I was after but getting a good result was pretty easy from the start. The depth alignment routine for the laser head and the layout of the Engraver app are pretty straight forward. Selecting or making images that are laser engraver friendly is a trial and error process until you learn the abilities of the engraver. Images that are either straight black and white or have a very limited set of lithograph like tones are best. Full tone photos are probably going to be frustrating to convert into etched images. So this beginner has begun, and we’re making progress. First impressions are very positive, and I would recommend the Genmitsu Jinsoku LC-40 if you’re looking to get into laser engraving at a budget price point with easy to use app based software.
This is my first laser engraver and I was extremely impressed by how easy it was to assemble. How good the mobile software is (even though you have to download it from a web link). And even more impressive is how good this machine really engraves.
I have experience assembling Creality 3D printers and this was a breeze by comparison. There are 12 screws total, and 3 cables that need to be added, and two additional cable connections. It took me about 30 minutes and I was moving at a leisurely pace. The instructions are remarkably good.
App installation is easy using the QR code. It’s not available in the any app store so you have to download it from the web. Depending on your phone you may have to enable the app install in settings. I’m not a big fan of downloading apps like this but the app seems pretty good. I powered on my printer once the app was installed and with one tap was able to connect to my printer.
Once I had it assembled and the app installed, I had a test piece of balsa wood that I bought to test. Unfortunately it was slightly warped but it still worked well. I had and overexposed picture of my dog on my phone and I loaded it into the app. Getting it converted to the style I wanted to print was easy, and I was able to adjust the image to get a decent image (sort of) for printing.
The next step was focusing the laser. I had no issues with this since they provide a 5mm spacer that perfectly focuses the laser. It’s tucked into one of the corners of the printer frame and has a rubber pad to easily slide its out of its storage space.
I sent the image to printer (about 6 inches by 4 inches in greyscale) and once it was transferred it started printing. Printing was reasonably fast, about 35 minutes and the quality was really quite good considering the mediocre image I was using. I then did a test print of some text using the phone app and that came out perfectly. Edges were crisp and clean. The printer is very quiet while running. There is minimal motor noise going from side to side and the fan is also pretty quiet.
The next test was the PC app. And this is where things came off the rails. When you install it, it does not show up in your apps list. You have to search for “laser” to find it in Windows then you can create shortcuts where you like. The app opens fine. Loading images is ridiculously slow, and any change you make takes 30 seconds or more to process. Eventually on both attempts it locked up and I had to try restarting it. Also, if you decide to change images during the process you have to shut down the program and open it again. I can’t even express accurately how TERRIBLE the PC app is. Maybe the Mac one is better.
There currently is not roller available so if you are an expert with laser engraving you may opt to install the GRBL firmware and use LightBurn. I did not attempt that.
I will say that the user experience for a new user was quite good (minus the PC app) and I got very good results on my first two prints, EVER! I am pleased. I just wish the PC app was usable.
My first impression of this product was from the initial setup, everything comes so well packed with foam to protect the components so that everything arrived ready to go without damage. The instructions for setting this up were very easy to follow, I’ve built several of these before, but this has some of the better instructions overall from the ones I’ve tested. In about 30 mins I had it set up and began the process of installing the software to use with my Windows computer, the recommended software to use are either Lightburn, which is paid, or LaserGRBL which is free. Since I already paid for and had Lightburn installed I went ahead and just used that since I’m already familiar with the workflow.
My first time using this to etch some art onto wood didn’t go so well, the laser worked fine, and everything was level and focused, but for whatever reason the result had quite a few errors and just looked sloppy. After fiddling with things to make sure everything was setup correctly and tightened, I attempted the same print again, and this time it came out beautiful and I haven’t had any issues with subsequent prints since the initial one.
Overall, this is a great low powered laser engraver that can be a great tool for both beginners and more advanced users. 5/5 stars.
The setup wasn’t too difficult at all but it wasn’t easy. The manual comes in handy. Love that it can be used with my phone or laptop. Rather loud does scare my chihuahua and the light is very bright. Not perfect at doing this but it’s my first time and I’m learning as I go. Overall completely satisfied
The hardware is very nice. It isn’t just a bunch of standard parts thrown together, but a well thought out system with wires that are coiled, just the right length and fastened to keep them out of the way. It has limit switches to keep the travel from getting out of step with where it is supposed to be. The power adapter has lots of safety marks like UL and TUV. Now to the bad stuff. I liked that it came with a USB flash drive with the software on it. However, for some reason that I don’t understand, the flash drive failed, so I had to resort t downloading the software from the website given in the manual. The files that I could find on the website were not all the files needed, for example the USB serial driver for the CH340 was not obviously available. Also the example files to print were not available. I was able to come up with a source for that driver that let me install firmware that worked with the open source software. I was only able to change the firmware once. After that attempts at changing the software back to the original failed with a message that the device wasn’t found. I was able to test this out using an image I already had. It took me a couple of tries to get the power level settings correct, but was very pleased with the result. I like how the fan pulls the smoke away from the surface. The premium software that is available from the USB and the website is only a trial version. I opted for the free open source software. The hardware is well done and I am pleased with this product.
Set up was fairly straightforward. The instructions were well written and I was able to set it up by myself. I would suggest having one other person with you to hold things in place when plugging in everything but outside of that I didn’t struggle to put the device together. I was a bit worried that something wouldn’t be plugged in right but was pleasantly surprised when everything worked exactly as intended.
When I installed the app on my phone I liked that it was a fairly quick install and the Bluetooth connected exactly how it needed to. My one issue was trying to find the focus key but after watching a youtube video I realized that it was something you popped out of the device and laid down to make sure it was at the right level vs. something you controlled via a button.
The app itself is okay, it’s nothing special and is missing some things. This might not be ideal for those who hate playing around and figuring out the device. For me, it was pretty simple to figure out how the device worked. My biggest complaint is figuring out where to place the item you’re engraving. It would be really nice if the device itself had a ruler on the side because it was hard to figure out where to place the item and have it lined up in the app. Luckily, the device will do a square around the engraving area so it was just playing with it until it lined up.
Once it was all lined up it was pretty quick to get engraving. I have this in an enclosure & on top of some leftover tiles we had in the garage. The device is a bit slower than I expected so make sure to bring a book or something to do while you wait (AKA don’t leave it alone to engrave). All in all, this device is pretty good but I would have expected a better app for a $400 device.
Pros:-
+ Packaging is really good
+ Doesn’t make any noise when moving
+ Larger engraving area
+ Has a movement detector whenever you put something when its engraving the operation is stopped
+ Application for controlling the operation
Cons:-
– The desktop app is not up to the point
– Assembling took more than 1 hou
The build quality of this machine is impressive. The parts have rounded edges and are machined well. The laser moves smoothly on the rails.
I have only tried this on mdf so far but I have a few scrap watch backs (stainless steel) a watchmaker friend gave me to play with soon. The mdf does tend to create little dark spots because it isn’t a consistent material on the top. The first few I ran into, my prints came out choppy and almost 8-bit looking. This turned out to be user error and I was able to fix it by focusing my laser closer to the wood (for people troubleshooting later).
The one complaint I have is about the app and the permissions required. It won’t function without access to media/photos, camera, phone, and location. I tried to deny it permission to phone and location (I actually originally tried to deny it access to my camera as well) but it WILL NOT FUNCTION without access to all if them. There is zero reason for this app to need acess my location and phone. Pictures can be taken with the camera then loaded from the gallery so I would prefer not to grant it access to my camera.
I was able to take a picture of my cat and print it out very easily. The most time consuming part was lining the mdf up.
Overall, I’m very pleased with the laser etched itself. I found the app to be effective and simple but suspicious.
Update: I’ve tried this out on glass using the “stainless steel” setting in the app. It turned out really well but it’s difficult to see because this was just a piece of scrap stained glass so the color isn’t ideal for showing it off.
The app doesn’t give you any kind of reminder, so when doing anything shiny (glass, steel, etc) make sure to use the white board marker by drawing all over where you’re planning to etch.
Assembly went very well and I have to admit that is one of the best manuals I have seen in years, very nice looking and well put together. Unit feels quality and is square.
Overall, I had this up and running in under 2 hours. The software was ok. The phone application was pretty straightforward. Now, I also chose this unit since it is compatible with Lightburn. This is where things kinda go downhill. It has a disclaimer that if you use Lightburn your home location changes and you will not be able to use rotary. Honestly, I was going to wait for the rotary they teased to be coming, but if I use Lightburn. Then what?
Currently, still testing the unit and contemplating if this was the best choice or if I should have gone with a unit with proven Lightburn and rotary compatibility.
In terms of cons, the desktop app experience isn’t the best, the included app is pretty barebones and the initial install had a bunch of Chinese in it; Haven’t tried any other software for it yet unfortunately. In terms of assembly or the machine itself, I wished for were slightly longer cables which would make assembly a bit easier and prevent as much tension in the lines when the head and gantry are in various positions. When the head is fully “homed” and the machine is turned off, there is enough tension in the cables to move the head slightly. The cables feel good enough quality, but it still makes me worried about longevity; especially as the plastic/rubber on the cables can get brittle over time. Also to connect to a PC, this machine actually uses a USB-B port (i.e. classic printer port) and the USB-C is actually only to connect the gantry and print head to the main board.
Overall, this is a great tool for enthusiasts and tinkerers. Would say that it may not be the best choice for those who don’t like to tinker as there are definitely still some fine tuning you’ll have to do part to part. There are simpler machines/units that require basically no assembly, but at the same time this unit gives you a significantly larger print area than those simpler machines. While the price may be slightly high, I’m still left impressed by this unit and would say that I could recommend it as long as you know what you’re getting into. Would only recommend for people who expect to tinker with a device like this; if you expect a flawless end user experience, you may want to look at other options, but with some patience this is a great laser engraver – with yet to be seen cutting abilities!