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Prusa Research is celebrating a year since it released the MK4, the company’s “fastest-selling machine ever”, with an expansive update. Firmware version 6.0.0, stable, adds long-awaited touchscreen and multi-material support to the popular machine, alongside a handful of other features to it, recent MK3 upgrade variants, and the Mini.

The MK4 can finally print with a material changer, as Prusa has added support for the MMU3 in firmware version 6.0.0 and is now shipping the MK4 MMU3 variant. The MK3 version of the MMU3 has been shipping since July, but the MK4’s version suffered repeated delays due to excessive stringing.

When used with the MK4, the MMU3 can also now automatically update, circumventing the previous need to connect to the device directly via USB and update via PrusaSlicer.

MK4 users now have a touchscreen. Though the MK4 has shipped with a touchscreen (something we point out in our review) from the beginning, Prusa says it “wanted to make the touch controls a worthy and useful addition to the current control scheme” and so took its time to “do it right.” Users must enable the touchscreen option from the user interface menu. Though Prusa says not to expect a “smartphone-like experience”, we’re already quite pleased with the performance, particularly the simple gesture controls.

Firmware 6.0.0 also improves the Nextruder’s functionality with the MK4 through clog detection. By using the direct extruder’s load cell, Nextruder-equipped 3D printers can now detect filament stuck in the nozzle and pause prints so users can clear it. This feature was first revealed in Prusa’s 2021 XL first-look blog article and was mentioned in our Nextruder deep dive. We’re not sure why this feature took a year to roll out on the MK4, but would hazard a guess that it’s to do with the MK4 Nextruder’s simpler “LoveBoard” breakout board compared to the XL Nextruder’s dedicated “Dwarf” control board fit with its own processor.

A lot of smaller features and fixes – some new, some familiar – were also added in this update. Notable among them is an all-new “cold pull wizard” that walks users through the process of unblocking a nozzle, the return of “stealth mode,” a now-toggleable mode that sacrifices print time for quieter operation (the feature was standard on the MK3), and enhanced time zone settings.

Aside from updates, Prusa Research is celebrating with a new limited edition Original Prusa MK4 bundle that offers customers a free iFixit Mako Driver Kit and a limited edition PEI steel sheet (in addition to the default plate) featuring the MK4’s design. The promotion ends on April 30, 2024, a minute before noon PST, but Prusa also mentions the PEI sheets are limited to 2,000 in number.

For more details, check out Prusa’s MK4 birthday blog, where the company covers all the new features introduced to the MK4 this past year (advertised or not).

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License: The text of "Prusa MK4 Gets Touchscreen, Multi-Material Support in Expansive 6.0.0 Update" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.