Hi All,
I'm pondering joining the Ultimaker community but I'm having trouble deciding between a UM+ and a UM2. I have a couple of questions that I would love to have answered:
Print Quality:
What is the difference between a UM+ and a UM2? The UM+ now states a layer resolution of 20um, just like the UM2. Does this close the gap in terms of print quality? What other factors improve the UM2 print quality?
Dissolvable Supports:
Dissolvable supports are a huge deal for me. I'm happy to wait a few months for this ability but its definitely something that I'm going to be very interested in and I would be disappointed if it were not possible. I know that the UM2 will be getting dual extrusion early 2015 which I am happy to wait for.
Click & Print:
I know that this isn't entirely realistic and that there will likely be various issue that I need to address. I would however prefer something that I don't have to fuss over every time I use it.
Sound:
Being able to run this at night in an apartment without bothering the neighbours or myself sleeping in the next room is a must.
Assembly:
I'm fairly experienced at putting stuff together, I have done my fair share of keyboards, electronics, RC cars and planes so I'm not really worried about the difficulty. In fact, I feel sure that I would enjoy the process. I assume it's pretty foolproof as well, it would be a shame to have lesser print quality due to some foolish assembly mistake.
Upgrades:
The 'more hackable' nature of the UM+ appeals to me as well. The idea that future upgrades might be more available on one platform than the other is something that could sway me in either direction.
Future:
The last question on my mind is what the future holds. Based on some of the conversation in here I get the feeling that a UM3 some time in early 2015 might not be a completely unrealistic proposition. If there is a UM3 just around the corner then I might be more inclined to wait or go with the UM1.
I had been worrying over things like heated beds and dual extrusion but I now the heated bed issue is moot and the dual extrusion one should be resolved by early next year I'm less worried on that front.
Lead Time:
The last thing is that if I order a UM+ now, I might be waiting 6 weeks for it to arrive. This means that it'll be pushing December when it gets here which doesn't give me much time to print all the Christmas presents I'm planning on
Any feedback on any of these points would be appreciated. I'm hovering over the buy button as I type this but I do have a habit of making impulse purchases and this one is a little too big to not think over carefully.
Thanks for you time,
mjmdavis