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May 13, 2023

ELEGOO Neptune 4 3D printer runs at 500mm/s for $259

It’s no surprise that ELEGOO is updating its 3D printing line with new models

It's no surprise that ELEGOO is updating its 3D printing line with new models that have some pretty impressive features. Bambu Labs started what seems to be a revolution, with many manufacturers focusing on making their printers faster than ever before. Typically, we would see FDM printers run in the 100-150mm/s range, but to stay up with the competition, the new Neptune 4 and 4 Pro line from ELEGOO can reach a maximum speed of 500mm/s, which puts it in line with the latest printers from other manufacturers. The Neptune 4/Pro seems to have pretty solid offerings all around, including network printing, a 121-point auto leveling system, and Klipper are preinstalled and are quite intriguing for the price and specs. Plus, with the Saturn line now bringing 12K printers to affordable price points on the LCD side of things, today's ELEGOO announcements are shaping up to be pretty impressive all around. Head below the fold for all we know about the latest ELEGOO 3D printers.

Until now, if you wanted what I’d call "hyper-fast printing," it was gonna cost several hundred dollars. The Bambu Labs P1P is $699, the Creality K1 is $599, and other offerings from lesser-known brands came in at a bit less. Now, ELEGOO is making the 500mm/s printing market even more approachable as its entry-level printer is just $259 during the prelaunch sale, with a normal price of $280. The ELEGOO Neptune 4 has a lot to like about it, and the print speed is just the beginning.

You’ll also get an 11×11 grid auto-leveling system (121 points) with auxiliary manual leveling should the need arise. On top of that, the system comes with Klipper preinstalled, something that's becoming more common on 3D printers as manufacturers move away from the older Marlin firmware that's been used for years. There's also a 300C high-temp dual-gear direct drive extruder here to push out various filaments like PETG, PLA, ABS, and TPU onto the 225x225x265 bed. And, to round it all off, it has both USB and LAN printing options.

Now, upgrading to the ELEGOO Neptune 4 Pro gives a few benefits and doesn't cost a whole lot. You’ll most notably get the ability to leverage an intelligent segmented heat bed, which can detect how large a print will be and only heat that portion of the bed. That helps to save on electricity and can benefit you in the long run if you print a lot of smaller objects.

The MSLA/LCD printers from ELEGOO are also getting upgrades today too. Both the Saturn and Mars now have a next-generation counterpart with solid feature bumps all around. Starting with the Saturn 3 and 3 Ultra, you’ll find that this premium printer has now been upgraded with a 10-inch 12K mono CLD display boasting a resolution of 11520×5120. This will help to create even higher-quality and more true-to-life prints at home. The Saturn 3 Ultra is capable of reaching printing speeds of up to 150mm per hour, which is "three times faster" than previous Saturn products, and "outperforms other peer products in the market."

Moving onto the Mars 4 and 4 Ultra, you’ll find that the more budget-friendly model has now been upgraded with a 9K screen, offering a resolution of 8520×4320. Other than that, you’ll find a lot of similar functionality to the Saturn 3 here, just in a more budget-friendly package.

Both the new Saturn and Mars printers are also compatible with ELEGOO's just-released Mars Mate, which is an air purifier for resin printers. This helps to make your creative space safer and easier to use when leveraging resin 3D printers.

Pre-orders are now live for all of ELEGOO's latest releases. The Neptune 4 costs $259, while the 4 Pro will run $299 on sale, the Mars 4 9K will be $259, and then upgrading to the 4 Ultra at $309. However, the Saturn 3 12K will cost $399 and the 3 Ultra a full $499.

The thought that I could have a $259 printer that prints reliably at 250mm/s and up to 500mm/s is pretty mind-blowing for me. I currently have two 3D printers that I use for a side hobby, and they top out at around 100mm/s and typically are in the 60mm/s range. So, being able to nearly print five times faster than before is pretty wild – and for such a budget-friendly price.

I’m really excited for what 2023 is bringing to the 3D printer space. It feels like for years it's been pretty stagnant, and only minor updates have been made to printers, like moving from a Bowden tube to direct drive, adding auto leveling, or built-in Wi-Fi. But with printers now seeing real-world performance improvements like this, I’m very excited for what the future holds for consumer 3D printing.

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