+1 for the ethernet add-on! I have lots of X1C’s begging to be hooked up to my server.
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Well, yes, that might be an option, but I think there will definitely an amount of users “pimping” their printers via the bambu bus or USB extensions in official or semi-official firmware builds. I would love to see ethernet aswell!
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I agree, the printer is fantastic when it is working, but this network issue is causing me lots of headaches. I do not understand why they want to limit their market to only people with WiFi. There are lot of facilities that do not support WiFi because of the vulnerabilities which means they cannot use an X1 Carbon printer.
I’ve had an X1C for several months now, and I’ve been using it successfully for that whole time, so I figure: why not chime in!
Yes, I agree with everyone that WiFi-only access to the machine is a mistake. I was surprised to see that a $1500 machine was WiFi-only, and even more surprised to learn that Bambu Handy required cloud access, and even more more annoyed to learn that the machine had to be “bound” to an account.
Well, that last one is not strictly true: in LAN mode, all you need to do to connect to a printer on the same network as the computer, you enter the access code. But that’s not obvious, nor is it the default. And when it’s in LAN-only mode a number of features available in the cloud mode are gone, most notably the ability to browse files on the SD card. What’s up with that? Why should I have to ftp into the machine to do basic file management? This is just a dumb decision by BambuLabs’ product managers.
Even better: why doesn’t the printer run a web server, like every network-attached laser and inkjet printer? Users can then configure the machine with a browser interface, including obvious things like file management. (Octoprint users are nodding their heads in agreement.) YES, there is the user authentication issue, but this is a solved problem.
Hardwire Ethernet should be standard on a $1500 machine, and that it does not have it while the X1E does tells me that a) Bambu knows how to do this, and b) they don’t it except on the X1E to maintain some kind of market differentiation. That is, “the customers that absolutely require hardwire Ethernet will just have to pay more for that feature!”
All of the reasons that people have elucidated here are very valid and very obvious, and that leads me to think that the guess about market differentiation is correct. That said, if Bambu offered a controller board swap for one that adds Ethernet support, even if it was overpriced at $300, they would have a lot of takers.
Regarding USB on the machines. The USB interfaces on Creality and other machines just expose a VCOM port, with something like a CH340 (absolute garbage) or FTDI (decent) or SiLabs (best) USB-to-serial chip. Those ports accept gcode which is parsed and handled, and this is how Octoprint works: Octoprint knows which file (in its file system) it is printing, and it reads it and sends it piece by piece to the printer over the USB-serial interface. The machine, which moves mechanisms, is always slower than the serial interface, so there’s no danger of it being starved for commands.
The X1C doesn’t have the USB-to-serial interface, so Octoprint (as it is now) won’t be very useful.
A COM port is slow. You wouldn’t use 115,200 bps serial data to send large files to the printer (note: in ancient times, we did use it to send large files!). Adding this support to the Bambu printers adds no value, since the printer works by reading files from the SD Card. The first time you print a file with Bambu Studio, it copies the file to the card in the printer, so if you want to print it again you select the file that’s already been transferred.
Anyway, we know BambuLab decision makers don’t read this forum, so we’ll never get a direct answer from them about this.
I agree with 90% of the posts herein, and especially by “asp_digital”. The areas where his answer is not accurate are those with a Catch-22 in the answers, instructions, and suggestions that do not fully address the initial question.
Dr. An Wang’s computer innovations were advanced, but because they were only specially designed for a single purpose rather than open to desired improvements, they failed and died.
same, i wish they had this
There are adapters and cables available to convert between different USB connector types, such as USB-A to USB-C or USB-C to Micro-USB, allowing you to connect devices with other ports for various purposes.
The question is, how can we use these to connect our computer to our printer?
We require the specifics and options necessary for our purpose.
Indeed, some knowledgeable members can shed some light and provide such an answer.
I have already invested in X1Plus Expanded card (a great alternative), but have run into the same issues of connecting to the Internet, and being required to log on to a site with all my personal identification that has little bearing on the issue, except for maybe warranty.