|
Kodak, coming from years down as one of the most successful imaging company has now come up with its first release of 3D printer.
Although the printer is not developed by the company itself, it does make a sense to put it forward with that name tag. Indeed, an Argentinian start-up named Smart International actually created this machine while convincing Kodak for the rights for their illustrious name.
The duo combination did work and the 3D printer is nothing less than a flagship debut that offers a huge array of features for its users.
By only looking at the printer, one can notice that the machine isn’t just fun but is very well designed to incorporate the essential functionalities to serve professionals and businesses.
And, a detailed Kodak Portrait 3D printer review can further help melt down the benefits for a closer look.
Kodak Portrait 3D Printer Features
The FDM 3D printer is backed with the most essential features to help it combat the leading alternatives. Occupying some of the rarest features together and building a strong ecosystem for making 3D printing easier and safer is what Kodak 3D printer intends to do.
Closed Frame: Starting with a closed frame, the 3D printer clears its motive of being safe for houses and buildings with minimal ventilation. A fully enclosed body means that the printer is able to maintain a consistent temperature for working, hence, best for advanced materials too.
HEPA and Carbon Filter: Talking about the safety and here comes another feature that makes it even more friendly to work around children or around an educational setup. The HEPA and Carbon filters ensure that the fumes released when working with materials like ABS is filtered for a safer experience. Most of the professional range printers have the feature included in their design and Kodak seemed to be following the trend too.
Dual Extrusion: Here is another amazing feature that many professional printers lack and some offer too. With dual extrusion and the compatibility to print with PVA would help used print with multiple materials, including water dissolvable support at a time. One can even print in different colors when printing with this machine.
Two Lockable Clear Plastic Cases: The company has included sealed compartments, the filament-compatible units for ensuring smooth printing with hygroscopic filaments such as Nylon. One can print for days and the compartments would ensure that the filaments are safe from moisture.
Cartesian XY-Head Layout: Kodak did not try to bring any uniqueness to the head layout and has decided to stick with the common Cartesian XY-head layout. However, it does the job that it intends to.
Color Touchscreen: This 3D printer can be managed without a need for a desktop to work around the settings. The color touchscreen provided on the printer can be used for twigging almost every feature provided with the machine. It does look a bit aesthetic and some may find it as a flaw. However, as long as it works fairly, it surely is a positive addition to the 3D printer.
Automatic Nozzle Lifting: The company has introduced this feature to retract the inactive nozzle for avoiding any issues related to oozing. Hence, ensuring cleaner transitions between materials as well as colors.
Interchangeable Metal Hot Ends: The metal hot ends can withstand higher temperatures, hence provide amazing results when printing with materials that have high melting points. And, these are interchangeable too. Definitely a cheery on the cake.
Removable Glass Bed: The print bed is made of glass and is snapped inside with the help of magnets. Hence, easy to remove and place back again.
Heated Print Bed: A heated print bed is essential for adhesion of the first layer. This further increases the accuracy and avoids the warping of the parts. Hence, providing the best results without the worries of failed prints.
Cloud Access: With the help of the inbuilt camera, users can check the print progress through their smartphones. As well as the cloud access provides users the provision to upload the designs even when away. However, if one wants to have an offline connection for design uploading, the printer does have the LAN and USB ports.
These are a few of the many fantastic features that the Kodak 3D printer holds. Hence, making this device well suited among the list of professional 3D printers falling under mid-range price tags.
Kodak Portrait 3D Printer Specifications
The Kodak Portrait provides sufficient print space for most of the jobs, however, not very large. It has 200 x 200 x 235mm of print volume. The printer can achieve layer heights between 20 to 250 microns.
Hence, helping users build high-resolution prints with ease. With 295 degrees Celsius of maximum extruder temperature, the printer allows a variety of materials to work with.
Kodak Portrait Price
How can we miss the price when discussing the Kodak Portrait 3D printer review? Keeping it closer to the other professional 3D printers, the price is set at around $3499.
Hence, one can definitely understand that the printer is not for home use. It is created for those looking to print some serious work out of the machine.
First Impressions
Credit: fabbaloo.com
You would be stunned to look at the printer for the first time. Unlike many other 3D printers that fail to cease the attention, the Kodak 3D printer gets it right in the first impression itself.
One can witness the smart exterior build with aluminum, steel, and tempered glass. The overall dimension of the printer is 18 x 17 x 18-inches and it weighs 60 lbs.
You can guess the enormous weight in spite of the smaller size because of the involvement of steel in the design frame.
Because of the sturdy body, one can print seamlessly with great accuracy. Further to enhance the view, the printer provides a 180-degree vision space when looking through the front and side windows. The side window even reaches to the top of the printer. This helps in viewing the print in action.
Kodak Portrait Setup
Kodak has thought it through and has tried to keep it as competitive as possible. Hence, the plug and play feature is welcomed in the design too.
With automatic bed leveling and a lot of other cool features, the setup of the device is nothing more than a breeze. It would not take more than 20 minutes to start the printer after unboxing it.
Printing Type/Cost
Kodak 3D printer is an FDM machine. This means that the printer runs on the spool of filaments.
These filaments are crossed through a temperature just above their melting point and the extruder deposits the material on the print bed, layer by layer. Once a layer cools down, another layer is deposited. This is how the printer works.
Talking about the printing cost, we do not have to worry as much as we must when working with printers that work with resins. Comparatively, there is a huge difference in the price of resin and filaments.
And, the fact that the printer is compatible with standard as well as advanced filaments, one can keep the cost at the lower side by choosing the cheap material.
All in all, every printer comes with maintenance and energy consumption cost. You must bear the same with the Kodak 3D printer as well. However, apart from the initial high cost, the operational cost won’t be that expensive, if your print requirement is too often.
Kodak Portrait 3D Printer Print Quality
Like any other 3D printer, it is challenging for the first few experiences. One has to understand the settings before expecting a high-quality result.
However, the company has tried to bring down the complexity as low as possible. By introducing automated features, the ease of operation has been multiplied.
The printer does deserve a pat on the back with the way it has settled the features together for providing high-quality print. The dual extrusion system isn’t just for the showcase.
However, it does work miracles. If you have worked with 3D printers with dual extrusion, you may know that not every printer is as good as it claims.
However, in the case of the Portrait 3D printer, the claims are well justified. The portrait can certainly handle almost any design, either it’s simple or complex to its real worth.
Software
For software, the company has trusted its own, the Kodak 3D Slicer. This is a popular Cura software which has already been tested for its performance many times. It is easy to install and setup. The friendly interface makes it even handier. Users can also create custom printing profiles.
Customer Service
As you would be guessing, the company has a reputation to serve. And, this goes along ensuring that the users have all essentials in place when working with this 3D printer.
Factors Influencing the Buying Decision
Although the 3D Printer has a lot to offer, it isn’t for everyone. Depending on the needs and your budget, you must decide for yourself before investing such a huge amount on this printer. Here is a recap of the Kodak Portrait 3D printer review for your assistance.
3D Printer cost: This is an expensive printer for beginners, especially, if one is only looking to see what it is like to work with a 3D printer. For those who are only wanting to explore the technology for fun can check out the budget printer. That would be more practical.
3D Print quality: You cannot go wrong with the print quality. The printer offers dual extrusion and an amazing slicing software to ensure that the parts are created with a great finish. Users have the freedom to work with the designs and create the most optimum one for the best results.
3D Print speed: You can rely on print speed. This is a competitive 3D printer. And, being an FDM machine, the speed won’t be an issue.
3D Printer capability: One can print great details with this printer. The 3D printer is capable of producing highly precise items right out of the machine. With water dissolvable support, one can even achieve a cleaner surface finish which most of the FDM printers fail to exhibit.
3D Printer Practicality: This 3D printer is designed for professionals as well as small scale productions. One can utilize the machine for applications into different niches. Support for multiple materials also makes it available for many different tasks.
3D Printer User expectations: The printer has tried to ensure that the expectations are met completely. Release of the first 3D printer with so many features included, the company definitely is looking to offer the best to its users.
The Verdict
Kodak along with Smart International has come up with the most competitive 3D printer for its users falling under the specific needs.
A mid-range 3D printer, designed for professionals and enthusiasts does deserve an applaud for bringing so many nice features together under one roof in the first release itself.
The team has worked its magic and has created a great machine that is capable of producing fine prints while keeping the speed intact.
The Kodak Portrait 3D Printer has been manufactured to help users in a wide range of applications. The company does have labeled the printer for professional use, but the price range seems to fit the category of enthusiasts too.
Some of the prints can be described as being the best as well. The 3D printer has proved that the advancement in the technology is still progressing and there is always something better to offer to the users.
The Kodak Portrait 3D printer review illustrates clearly that the printer is a well thought out design that is going to impress a lot of audiences.
