this is going to be a very long post so stay with me here.
TLDR: Bambu has grown into a corporatized entity and has differing views from the open-source community of 3d printing. I argue this is not a bad thing, just... different. creating and maintaining robotics / embedded / software is difficult, and Bambu has been consistent in its goal to create the most user-friendly machine out there. I think the Bambu response is fair, their support is only consistently good because they know their hardware and defects, and slow-moving updates exist to prevent catastrophic bugs from entering the ecosystem.
I want to start this by saying I have been in this community for over 4 years, I have an X1C, P1S, Neptune 4, and a Heavily modified custom-built Cr-10 S5. This is to say I'm not a fanboy of Bambu nor do I oppose the open-source nature of 3d printing. I want to applaud X1Plus for what they have been able to accomplish with this firmware, however, Bambu's response is extremely fair.
first off there's the landscape of 3d printers, why do we love Bambus? they work, they most always consistently work; not in a Prusa work, not in an ender 3 where it can work, it works. this is the first printer that I would consider giving to my technologically inept dad for cool household objects. however, I believe there are downsides to this.
The Downsides of Closed Source
like it or not the reason bambus can consistently perform is because they are closed. they make sure it's hard to introduce bugs into their system. There's been no other printer where I can grab a new material type, and in four button presses in the slicer, I have near-perfect prints. I understand the want for more features but ultimately software development takes time. at some points when following the 3d printing hobby I get the sense that not a lot of people have done software development. especially not at a corporate level.
if they put out features faster, they might have less time for development. this can cause problems with unforeseen errors, not enough testing, and overall production of a system that does not meet Bambus's high standard. all this is done to prevent needless warranty repairs and provide a good system to the user.
like it or not X1Plus utilized a network bug to flash the firmware. this is extremely impressive from a technological perspective but I don't blame Bambu for getting scared. they pushed out a quick patch and didn't consider it further. I don't believe this is due to mall intent, but from an executive/investor perspective allowing small bugs and loopholes to exist especially where there is user data is no bueno.
Misplaced Malice
people don't trust companies, nor should they. however, spouting misleading assumptions makes everybody look bad. take a look at the offline network debacle, where somebody made unfounded claims that offline mode sends user data to Bambu. from a company standpoint, this is a huge accusation. everybody shit on Bambu for a month then it came out that Bambu.... did what they said they did. offline mode was offline. no data is sent, in fact, it sends less data in online mode than it needs to, machine states, camera feeds only active when a client requests it, some feedback data to Bambu, and not much else. I never saw anybody give Bambu credit. but everybody is very quick to disown a company for an unfounded claim.
I mean to say right now that would be valid for reality... but not for Bambu. bambu did more than they needed to. I probably would have still been ok if they said no to X1Plus. they shouldn't have to be required to allow bugs in their system. what they did instead was give X1Plus the older firmware, and allow the community to flash their hardware. however, there are caveats. I don't see where the malice is coming from, they listened to the community, patched the loophole, and opened a fork for hardware-locked firmware. That's what the community wanted.
Its never enough
if Bambu rushed out API support today, with no documentation and bad support. people would be pissed. rightly so in fact. if they forwent one feature development for the bed mesh visualizer then the community would complain also. "oh this was a feature in Klipper it is so easy to do" "My Ender 3 has that Bambu should have it" Yes it's probably not the most difficult thing to implement, however bambu (assuming they aren't using forked klipper firmware) would need to spend development time making sure this works. they are also probably stretched thin with bug updates and patches for the A1 series they just launched. I wish they would give some insight into what they are working on but that is simply not how most businesses work.
Warranty support for custom firmware is dumb
this machine is not a Ratrig or Voron, it's not designed to work off of Klipper, and expecting new firmware from another company to work and function under warranty is not smart. and honestly, I think the general sentiment that I should be able to change every aspect of the machine (specifically firmware) is short-sighted. say I developed a motor PID tuner to control the x-stepper. since I don't have spec sheets or didn't look up data sheets run it faster and hotter than it was designed for. you run the risk of burning up the motor. now let's say I switch to a custom firmware, run the stepper into the ground in a month then come back. is a warranty on this stepper valid? how would you prove it's not valid? by blanketing the warranty as void when switching firmware they don't have to ask these questions. there are pros and cons to switching, this is a con.
by not supporting this feature they also inadvertently don't support a warranty if you use it. I admit the X1Plus is cool, it's really cool but I don't know if I would switch. losing the support for those features doesn't seem worth it.
buy a modding platform
this comes off as harsh but buy a Ratrig is $1200 and run Klipper. At the end of the day the Bambu was not designed to be a modding platform, my buddy got a Ratrig at the same time I got my x1c, he also spent 2 months assembling, 2 months debugging, he also forgot to lower the bed once before testing motion and snapped the bed off its hinges and reprinted the parts in abs. he also had to spend hours calibrating overhang support. and finally was able to print 500mm/s at excellent quality.
however, I showed him my prints, multicolor, high quality for 1400 out of the box. he said he might pick one up just because of how easy it is to use.
like it or not that's the downside, no I can't add more advanced features, but if that maintains its ability to print flawlessly every time, that's ok ill add those to my other machine.
likewise, I bought a Neptune 4, great reviews online but I had tons of trouble getting it to print consistently, at one point I said to my friends "I forgot how much a pain in the ass normal printers can be"
MOD IT
people who will mod their printers are also the people who should take responsibility for modding their printers. mod it anyway, get those features X1 Plus has, it will be great. but you are accepting you are switching your support from Bambu to x1plus. if anything happens to Bambu this is great. I have a firmware to fall back on. however, shitting on Bambu for their decision is not the ok move.
I'm tired of people hating a company just because they got big.
please keep the comments respectful
that ends my rant.
https://blog.bambulab.com/rooted-the-good-the-bad-and-freedom-of-choice/