The price of a desktop 3D printer just keeps on tumbling. Once upon a time, we would gibber with excitement if a decent 3D printer carried a price tag less than $600. But as the technology continues to mature, designers and manufacturers continue to find ways to bring the price even lower.
The following article will give you clear description of the two 3d printer devices, Monoprice Mini and Ender 3. After you read through the article, hope you will make a decision.
Monoprice Mini
DESIGN
The Monoprice Select Mini has a compact and versatile build quality. It looks like a tank but is sturdy and portable. The Select Mini has a single fan for cooling the nozzle. This can limit the type of filaments you can use with this machine. The machine is a Cartesian style fused filament fabrication (FFF) printer. One side of the printer has an arm that holds the print bed.
The extruder diameter of the hotend is 0.4mm and can heat up to 230 degrees Celsius. Replacing the nozzle can be a bit challenging though. The customer care team can help you in case you encounter any problems when trying to replace the nozzle.
| Monoprice Mini | Ender 3 | |
|---|---|---|
  |   |
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| Product Dimensions | 7.5 x 11.3 x 13.5 inches | 18.3 x 17.3 x 16.1 inches |
| Shipping Weight | 14.1 pounds | 20 pounds |
| Best offer | Check price | Check price |
The main pillar of the 3D printer has a spring-loaded, quick-release extruder with a steel gear. This design allows feeding the filament to the hotend using a Bowden cable setup. The machine has a Z-home micro switch that alerts it to stop lowering the head to avoid crashing into the build plate.
MP Select Mini has wireless connectivity. The control interface will alert you whether Wi-Fi has been activated or deactivated.
FEATURES AND SPECIFICATIONS
Build Area: It has a build area of 120 x 120 x 120mm
Print Resolution: The highest print resolution with this printer is 100 microns
Printig Speed: The printer has a printing speed of 55mm per second. It also has a heated build plate.
MicroSD card slot: You can upload files to the printer using the microSD card slot or a USB connection.
Slicing software: The printer is compatible with the Cura, Simplify3D, ReplicatorG or Repetier-Host. The printer can parse any standard GCode when youíre preparing your objects for printing.
Filament Type: Any standard 1.75mm spool of ABS or PLA thermoplastic.
We love the MP Select Mini for its open ended filament and software use. Some 3D printer manufacturers like XYZ and M3D lock you into operational ecosystem by limiting the type of filament or software their printers can use.
PRINTING QUALITY
For our test print, we started with the pair of 3D models; an elephant and a cat, which were preloaded on the microSD card. We printed these with a resolution of 200 microns.
Printing the cat 3d modelWe did not have a big challenge when printing the elephant, which we did at 10% infill. We were impressed with how the printer handles things like overhangs and bridging. The retraction was also so tight that we had no stringing.
Creality Ender 3 Pro
DESIGN
Like on the Creality CR-10, the Ender 3 Pro’s frame is made from aluminum extrusions. A single leadscrew drives the Z-axis on the left-hand side of the frame. However, unlike its forebear Ender 2, which featured a cantilever style that left the X-axis rail projecting into thin air, the Creality Ender 3 Pro completes the loop and closes the frame out.
Like the Creality Ender 3, the Ender 3 Pro features a generously sized heated print bed which measures 220 x 220 x 250mm – nearly double that of the Ender 2 and comparable to a Prusa i3 Mk3 (250 x 210 x 200 mm).
Another cool feature of this series is the ability to fully recover and resume a print after losing power or getting disconnected – a feat made popular by the Prusa i3 MK3 3D printer. We’re pleased to see it implemented on a sub-$200 3D printer.
On the right-hand side of the Creality Ender 3 Pro frame is an attached LCD display with a clickable control wheel. The control board isn’t covered, so a cover might be one of the first modifications you print for your new machine. The interface is the same as for any other Creality 3D printer. It offers some of the more obscure settings, but overall, it’s relatively easy to use.
Whereas the Ender 3 is fully open source, there are no blueprints of the Ender 3 Pro available yet. We’ll keep you up to speed on this one.
PRINTING QUALITY
We started out with the test-dog.stl that Creality provides as a test model on their SD card. Unfortunately, the print didn’t turn out satisfactory – on the contrary.
We encountered layer dropouts and underextrusion. To make matters worse, the filament ripped off near the end of the print. So we re-leveled the bed, adjusted the speed settings in Cura – this time, it worked.
Next step was printing a Benchy with white PLA filament from Raise3D. The Benchy turned out satisfactory, with just some minimal layer lines and the occasional blob visible. Overall, this model gave a glimpse of what the Ender 3 Pro is capable of.
Then we switched to eSun’s Bamboo filament, as we wanted to 3D print a lampshade, which we bought from Cults 3D. We made several attempts for this 12-hour print, but unfortunately, every time it ended with snapped filament and the printhead printing empty circles in mid-air. The culprit for these issues, a clog, took an additional hour to clear. It even required sacrificing a short length of PTFE tubing, which had completely smeared and clogged from the molten wood filament. Read also: Longer Orange 30 Vs Orange 10.
Monoprice Mini Vs Ender 3
CONCLUSION
Overall, the Monoprice Select Mini printer is simple and easy to use. The printer provides a great opportunity for teachers, students and beginners to learn the basics of 3D printing and modeling. Moreover, its price is way low for the value it offers, which is similar to that of 3D printer that cost even three times more.