Anycubic has lifted the veil on a new trio of resin 3D printers. Known collectively as the M3 series, the three new machines cover different build volumes and come with a bevy of new features and improvements. Enter the Anycubic Photon M3, M3 Plus, and M3 Max.
To followers of Anycubic’s releases, the new naming might come as a surprise. Especially given Anycubic released the Photon Mono 4K and Mono X 6K, the second generation, if you will, not too many months ago.
Now comes the M3 (read: third-generation) trifecta, bringing even larger build volumes, automatic resin feeding, cloud functionality, and, in the M3 Max, a completely new large resin 3D printer.
We took a peek behind the curtain to put together this short overview of what we know about Anycubic’s latest and biggest (looking at you, M3 Max).
Third-Generation Photon Printers
Here is all you need to know about Anycubic’s third generation of Photon Printers, the M3s, and how they stack up against Anycubic’s existing resin 3D printers and competitors on the market.
Anycubic Photon M3
The Anycubic Photon M3 could be seen as the quasi follow-up to the second-gen Mono series base printer: the Photon Mono 4K. It is the lowest spec printer of the lot and carried a price to match. Basically, the printer for budget or entry-level users looking for an easy, low-cost in to resin 3D printing.
Despite ditching 4K from its name (kudos Anycubic – it’s a silly practice that doesn’t tell you anything useful about a printer), the M3 does have a “4K” LCD, albeit beneath a much larger print area (and volume) than its predecessor.
Large Screen
That’s right, the Photon M3 gets a serious bump in size. With a 7.6-inch mono screen at heart, the Photon M3’s build volume pans out to 163 x 102 x 180 mm, a considerable uptick compared to the Mono 4K’s paltry-by-comparison 132 x 80 x 165 mm, and even outgunning the not-so-little Elegoo Mars 3 and its 143 x 90 x 165 mm.
Adding a couple of millimeters in all directions may not sound much at first, but it can make a difference in maximum print model size or when printing multiple objects in one pass. The average build volume of desktop resin 3D printers is growing, and of many companies’ “standard” models, the Photon M3 looks like it will be the largest yet.
With the increased build area and the 7.6-inch LCD huddling together 4098 x 2560 pixels, the XY-resolution should pan out to 40 microns, technically “worse” than the Mono 4K’s 35 microns, but we’ll go out on a limb here and say the difference between 35 and 40 microns is negligible. According to Anycubuic, the M3’s LCD has a 400:1 contrast ratio, which will aid in providing sharp surface finishes.
Flashy Lights
Further features that we know of so far include what Anycubic claims to be a new and improved light source. The larger the screen, the more light you need to illuminate it. Stands to reason. As such, Anycubic uses a parallel light matrix featuring 28 UV LEDs, for what the company says will be even more uniform UV-light transmittance. In previous Anycubic machines, you could adjust the UV light output anywhere from 30-100%, allowing you to match the printer to resins with different UV energy requirements, prolonging the LCD’s lifespan. No mention of this so far for the M3, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see it here too. At “full power,” the M3 is stated to print about 50 mm/h.
Checkerboard-style
Anycubic also notes its new laser-engraved build plate surface. With a texturized checkerboard pattern that we suspect is similar to the one we recently saw on the Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K. Print plate adhesion has, allegedly, improved dramatically. From our time with past Anycubic Photon printers, we don’t recall a notable “lack” of adhesion, but there you have it. It certainly looked fresh on the Mini 8K. The M3 also comes with an easy-to-replace FEP and an anti-scratch film to protect the LCD from being damaged.
Lastly, when taking a look at images of the printer, we presume the M3 to feature the same UI as past Photon printers. Although taking a look at its dimensions, it might be a larger touchscreen to jab commands at. The USB slot is located conveniently on the side with no mention of potential Wi-Fi compatibility, something its larger brothers feature, we’d have hoped to see this trickle down as a new standard feature. Can’t have it all.
Slated with a price tag of $299, the Photon M3 sets itself up as an affordable entry into resin 3D printing without breaking the bank and could pose a viable competition to our category’s current top pick, the Mars 3. We will know more once we test it.
Photon M3 Plus
Next up in Anycubic’s line of new printers is the Photon M3 Plus, the spiritual successor to the also not-so-long-ago released Mono X 6K. While the Photon M3 offers serious changes in build volume over its predecessor, the Photon M3 Plus appears to be cast much closer to the Mono X – at least in terms of print volume and resolution. It even has the same overall dimensions of 270 x 290 x 475 mm. The similarities end there though, with a few nifty improvements making the Photon M3 Plus a snazzy-looking medium-format printer.
Same Size, New Features
Print volume-wise, the Photon M3 Plus renders prints in a 197 x 122 x 245 mm space, identical to the Mono X 6K. For a medium-sized resin 3D printer, it’s not too shabby. Roomy, even. With a 9.25-inch 6K monochrome LCD (5760 x 3600 pixels) masking the UV light, it can print at a resolution of 35 microns, also as the Mono X 6K can.
So what really is new, you ask? Probably the most prominent new feature will be an automatic resin feeding system. While we haven’t seen it in action, we suspect it to be similar to Elegoo’s approach with its Jupiter printer (which we have seen). The printer’s vat will most likely feature an extension that serves as an inflow, where users can place resin bottles with a special screw-on, spring-loaded cap upside down inside the back of the printer to fill up the vat should it run low. Sounds complicated, but it isn’t. Having tested it during our time with the Jupiter, we quite liked its simplicity but rarely saw the feature in action while printing. The vat usually held enough resin for our prints, even the large ones, and then some.
Nevertheless, it’s considered a “pro” feature, and we’re fans of new and novel comfort features making their way onto consumer desktop printers.
Cloud Control
Other new features on the Photon M3 Plus include a larger touchscreen: 5-inches instead of the 3.5-inches found on the Mono 6K. A welcome feature for the more sausage-fingered among us, but it could be that you don’t need to use the display at all. Like the Mono X 6K before it, the M3 Plus is slated to play nicely with the Anycubic Cloud app. That means remote control via a Wi-Fi hotspot.
The app looks like it provides a free 3D printable model library, and user space to store and manage private models, which can then also be shared with the community. Online slicing and remote print control and monitoring in real-time are also set to feature.
A while back, we found the first-gen Mono X‘s Wi-Fi and remote capabilities a little lackluster. Fingers crossed Anycubic has stepped its game up for the M3 series.
There’s more to pick at with the Photon M3 Plus. The render we’ve seen shows a different UI from the one we’ve seen throughout the generations of Anycubic resin printers. Will all of the new printers have this new UI? Only the M3 Plus? Who knows? We don’t.
More New Stuff
Connectivity-wise, the M3 Plus appears to feature USB and Ethernet connections, and We’ll hazard the guess that Anycubic’s proprietary Photon Workshop slicing software comes on the USB bundled in the box.
We’ve not spotted any third-party slicer profiles for the likes of Lychee Slicer yet, but we suspect those will emerge closer to the machines’ release.
In other news: the M3 Plus is also stated to feature the checkerboard-style, laser-edged print plate surface. And with a new maximum print speed of 100 mm/h, the M3 Plus will be faster than both Mono X machines.
The Photon M3 Plus will set you back $699. For its size and plethora of new features, we deem it a reasonable asking price over less specced-out competitors such as the Elegoo Saturn S or Phrozen’s Mighty 4K. Once we put it through the wringer, we will know for sure.
Photon M3 Max
Now here is a class of 3D printer Anycubic hasn’t dabbled with before. While the M3 and M3 Plus cover the standard and medium-format build volumes, the largest of the new trio, the Photon M3 Max, is big. Very big.
Max-Sized
With a total build volume of 298 x 165 x 300 mm, the M3 Max lives up to its name. To illustrate this bigness, the Photon M3 Max gives considerably more room to print with than even the humongous Elegoo Jupiter.
The Photon M3 Max’s 13.6-inch, 7K mono screen houses 6480 x 2600 pixels, giving it a finer resolution of 46 microns – trivially finer than the Jupiter’s 50 microns. Unlike the Jupiter, or Phrozen Sonic Mega 8K, the M3 Max does not have a solid enclosure with a door. Instead, it has a bucket lid. At 400 x 320 x 595 mm, you’ll need quite the space to lift the cover off the printer. Sounds impractical.
Like the Photon M3 Plus, the Photon M3 Max also features an automatic resin feeding system. With such a large build volume, we can see the benefit of such a system.
Rows of Light
To print quickly and evenly across its massive LCD, Anycubic throws in a large parallel light matrix with 84 LEDs that it claims will give a uniform distribution of light across the whole of the LCD. Print speed is taxed at 60 mm/h, slower than the M3 Plus. We assume this is less about the printer’s power and more a precaution against the physics of such large “bottom-up” 3D printers. It’s a different kind of game, moving more mass upside down. Handily, Anycubic’s new laser-etched build surface also makes a showing on the Max. It “dramatically” improves adhesion – you know the deal by now.
Connectivity-wise, we can make out a USB connection, but there is no mention of whether the Max will also feature Wi-Fi and Cloud compatibility. We would assume so. Why Anycubic didn’t stick with the large 5-inch touchscreen of the Photon M3 Plus for the Photon M3 Max is beyond us. Instead, you get a 4.3-inch model to jab at. Odd.
Pre-sale
Unlike its two smaller brethren, the M3 Max is currently available for pre-sale only. Priced at $1,099, it is about $200 cheaper than Elegoo’s Jupiter at an even larger build volume, although it lacks some of its competitor’s professional attire. If you care about printing big without frills, the M3 Max could be a viable alternative once it hits the market. We have a unit en route to us already and will be testing it soon. Stay tuned.
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