FDM printers are the most convenient and probably friendly for beginners as well, especially with how often they are the most affordable too, such as GEEETECH A10 Vs A20 on the entry-level. These compact yet capable machines are a great option for new users or as your starter since everything we need is already here. But, just like different machines made differently, they are not identical as well so let’s see below about what you can get from the two.
In this comparison, we are going to talk about:
- What to Look in an FDM Machine
- What are GEEETECH A10 and A20
- How are the Design of GEEETECH A10 and A20
- How are the Build Capacity of GEEETECH A10 and A20
- How are the Build Plate in GEEETECH A10 and A20
- What else GEEETECH A10 and A20 can offer
- How are the Performance of GEEETECH A10 and A20
- GEEETECH A10 Vs A20
FDM 3D Machines
3D printing is actually very useful so it is surprising to see how many people have never heard of the technology yet. But, if you are here then surely you are familiar with the tech already and yes, this is the type of machine that can create a physical object that we can touch and manipulate based on the digital design we can download or make on the computer. The type of machines itself can vary but usually they are either filament based or liquid resin based.
With widespread information as well as varying people’s hobbies, the machine took a special place in the hobbyist working space. They are pretty old technology however and just got more affordable in the last several years hence, the more people can join the hobby too. To start with a 3D printer, you don’t have to invest much, because we do have plenty of alternatives in the market and some are very cheap if we may say just as a learning tool at home.
When it comes to 3D printers, especially machines, you can choose to get a bare-machine or a complete and neater machine like Flashforge Adventurer 3 Vs Creator Pro but most beginners may stick to the cheaper options like Ender 3. This famous Creality machine is one of the typical choices when users are going to shop for a new, small machine because this is exactly what it offers. The cheaper they get, the more “bare” the machine and in most cases the smaller as well the built capacity.
Built capacity is decided by the printer’s form factor since it is limited by the size of the machine’s frame and build plate hence it is necessary to consider how large the printed object you will be printing or what items you want to print. Depending on the extruder and bed temperature, this area decides your type of materials or what can be used by the machine. For example the popular material ABS requires a very high heat to melt (around 240-260 C).
On the ease of use and performance, in most cases we will need to tweak some parts of the machine, depending on how well they are designed but bed levelling is a must in any 3D printers with a medium bed size. They are usually done manually but the machine’s software and additional sensor can make this process automated so if you don’t want to spend time fiddling with the setup, we suggest investing more and get a richly featured machine instead.
| Geeetech A10 | Geeetech A20 | |
|---|---|---|
  |   |
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| Product Dimensions | 18.82 x 16.26 x 19.09 inches | 19.69 x 19.13 x 11.42 inches |
| Shipping Weight | 23 pounds | 22.65 Pounds |
| Best offer | Check price | Check price |
About GEEETECH A10 and A20
After all, the option is all yours but the advantage of going with “bare” machine is we can learn from it about troubleshooting and how a better machine should be so then we can have a much better knowledge when upgrading into a larger or even dual extruder system that lets you print at double capacity at the same time. Basic machines are also cheaper so we don’t have to spend a lot on an item we are not sure if we will stick to the hobby or not in the future.
Creality is probably the go-to when people are asking which affordable FDM printer to buy but, we actually can find so many alternatives in the market, one of them is GEEETECH and while their name sounds cute, this brand is offering some of the best budget for beginners and enthusiast alike, some are even better than Creality basic machines, the Ender 3 which you can check in our GEETECH A10 Vs Creality Ender 3. Just like many other companies, GEEETECH also carries more than one interesting machine.
For those who can spend max at around $230 or less, the GEEETECH A10 and A20 will be your ideal choices and this is because the two fall right on the budget. If you are satisfied with smaller built capacity, the A10 itself is currently $165 and can produce models 50% larger the size of Flashforge Adventurer 3 despite being half its price. As you can expect, the latter is the big brother of A10 which means it should be able to defeat the former machine easily.
But, it is not always the case because both of them do have their own advantages; if not on the machine’s capabilities it will be on the price gap. In comparison between GEEETECH A10 and A20, the latter will give you a larger printing volume as well as being better in built system and this part is what impressed us the most since affordable machines tend to have a not so good product design.
GEEETECH A10 and A20 Design
As you can see from the sample picture above, they are almost similar yet different and if you are used to other budget machines like Ender 3, these two will comes already attached between the reverse “U” frame that hold the extruder so what we need to do is just securing this parts in A20 but with the A10, it still place the processing unit out of the printer’s housing so in comparison we prefer how neat the A20 was designed as it is less obstructive.
The display for control function is also made different as it is coming with the same housing and is slightly wider too but it still uses the rotating knob which can be pressed as well. Built quality wise the two are great, the machines are all metals except for some smaller parts like the extruder housing. The filament is usually placed at the top of the machine and the two are using the same Bowden style.
GEEETECH A10 and A20 Capacity
Now moving to the most important part, let’s see what you can get from GEEETECH A10 and A20 starting from the capacity. Cartesian machines like these two usually have a very decent width and depth for your printed objects but moderate on the height and in comparison, we do think the 220 x 220 x 260 mm capacity of A10 is not lacking at all for a machine at this price point yet, the A20 up the capacity a little bit so now the printer can work at 250 x 250 x 250mm.
GEEETECH A10 and A20 Build Plate
Next is about the build plate and what we want to mention first here is they are fixed in both machines, unlike those glass or peeling surface that we can remove, these printers have a fixed build plate which means while the surface is more stable, it also more concerning when you accidentally break it since it require replacement to the bed itself. There is also no auto-leveling yet on both machines but, you can add the 3D Touch sensor if needed.
Manual bed adjustment is just like with other FDM machine through the knobs below the bed and measuring each point on the surface of the bed but, with 3D Touch we can let the machine to do the calibration and the best thing is wiring them will be easier in these machines since GEEETECH already made the connectors easy to access. We find the bed levelling stay for so long so chances are you don’t need to re-level often.
GEEETECH A10 and A20 Features
Not only easy to use, the GEEETECH A10 and A20 are also convenient and this is due to the addition of some necessary features; the filament sensor and the resume printing ability. The filament sensor can be replaced easily too if they wore out since we heard some users complaining about the short-lived sensor. It makes sure the machine knows when the filament runs out or breaks while the resume printing is great in case your area often has power black-out to save the job and resuming it when the power is back.
GEEETECH A10 and A20 Performance
Lastly we want to talk about the print result because this is also impressive with both machines. Side by side we do think GEEETECH A10 and A20 are producing equally good printed objects. The details are there and when you get the settings right, they are just working smoothly. But, as for the features especially resume printing, they do work but, do note the result won’t be as good as when they are just running without interruption since the shift in layer is very visible.
Geeetech A10 vs A20
Both of these machines are equally amazing for the price point and the way they open for many possibilities by being open-source making them a great tool for learning and building your own desired system as well. The prominent difference is mostly on the capacity and overall design itself because the rest of the system remains the same yet improved on the A20, such as with a more streamlined machine.
Conclusion
We do think you can go well with any of them based on which seems to fit you the most but if there is the budget, we do recommend getting the A20 for the capacity or just for the better machine’s design and if you want to spend less, the A10 is just as amazing too.