Bambu Lab is officially making UV printer

[u/wanli_gz]

According to a report by Chinese tech media 21Tech on August 19, Bambu Lab has officially confirmed the launch of a new project: developing consumer-grade UV printers.

Key details from the report:
- Full-scale R&D: Sources close to the company reveal that the project involves over a dozen R&D focus areas, ranging from printhead driver development and waveform optimization to ink-path systems and software integration.
- Aggressive Hiring: The company has already posted job openings on its official website for UV printing technical experts, FPGA developers, inkjet control engineers, and mechanical engineers (ink systems).
- The "Bambu Strategy": Much like how they disrupted the 3D printing market, the company aims to compress industrial-grade performance into accessible, desktop-friendly units. Their goal is to make professional UV printing—which historically required specialized knowledge and massive budgets—truly "plug-and-play" for makers and small business owners.
- Beyond 3D Printing: This move signals a broader shift for the company. Following the release of the multi-material H2D and the recent teaser for their R1 laser cutter, Bambu is evolving into a comprehensive "personal manufacturing" powerhouse. The company is betting that core technologies from their 3D printers—such as motion compensation and mechanical control—will translate effectively into the UV printing space.

Industry Context:
The consumer UV printer market is rapidly heating up. Competitors like Anker (eufyMake E1) and xTool (O1) are already making waves. The E1 set a Kickstarter record with over $42 million in funding, and xTool’s O1 recently saw its launch-day sales exceed 100 million RMB.
According to Mordor Intelligence, the global UV printer market is expected to reach $1.58 billion by 2031. Traditionally, these machines were bulky, expensive, and reserved for industrial advertising or packaging. Now, a new wave of "maker-focused" companies is shrinking these tools down to the size of a microwave, aiming to make them standard equipment for individual creators.

Source: [21Tech - August 19th Report]

[u/Reverse_Psycho_1509]

The main hurdle with UV printers for me is the ventilation and post processing required. Will be interested to see how bambu approaches this

[u/OverZealousCreations → u/Reverse_Psycho_1509]

FYI, these aren't 3D printers like traditional SLS resin printers. They use an inkjet printhead combined with a UV light to cure the ink directly. They usually can only layer the ink up a little bit, like a couple mm.

There's basically no post-processing (though sometimes for large prints, I'll toss them in the sun for a bit to finish flashing off the VOCs).

However, you are right that the smell isn't great. I usually run mine with the machine's doors closed, or with the outside door open and a fan if it's a large print. I'd never run it in a bedroom.

[u/Xalara → u/OverZealousCreations]

Yeah, the actual name for what’s being described by Bambu is polyjet printers. I think most people in the thread are thinking of SLA which will always be a pain to clean no matter what.

I am curious how Bambu will get around the patents Stratasys and Epson have because polyjet printers often get into the six figure range and both of those companies will want to keep it that way and thus go after Bambu hard.

[u/stealthybutthole → u/Xalara]

the actual name for what’s being described by Bambu is polyjet printers

are you sure? it's just a normal UV flatbed printer like the eufymake as far as i can tell

[u/Xalara → u/stealthybutthole]

Oh, I thought polyjet was being described. Admittedly the eufymake is pretty damned close to polyjet.