Geeetech e180 mini 3d printer review


Geeetech E180 3D Printer Review: A Mini Budget 3D Printer

In addition to the fully-assembled E180 printer, you get:

  • A spool holder
  • A USB cable
  • An AC adapter
  • A MicroSD card
  • A small amount of starter filament
  • An extra hotend for future replacement
  • Build plate tape
  • A few tools

Fully assembled means no assembly required! This is a huge plus since assembling a budget 3D printer usually means 10 hours of assembly plus further adjustments. You can buy large fully-assembled printers, but these are generally far more expensive.

The trade-off here is that the build volume is smaller, but this isn't a huge deal for me since most of my 3D prints are for smaller parts.

You do have to assemble the spool holder, but this consists of attaching 4 screws and only takes a minute.

Standing at just under 3 cans of La Croix tall, the Geeetech E180 is a very compact printer -- it has a desktop footprint of just 8. 5" x 11", including the bed, and is about 12.5" tall. The spool holder is housed separately, but more on that later.

The E180 appears to be well-manufactured and sturdy. The core of the machine is metal with ABS plastic panels. It has a standard aluminum build plate. Plastic panel fitment is good.

Nothing about the unit feels particularly cheap, which is nice, but the power button on the front is so recessed that it's hard to push with big fingers. I've been using my nail or pinky.

One thing that will appear to beginners is that the E180 appears physically familiar and approachable -- it sort of resembles a small sewing machine. I actually had a few friends comment that they could get into 3D printing with a machine like this since it doesn't seem as complex and daunting.

The built-in touchscreen is a nice touch (pun intended) that makes controlling the unit a breeze. It's a full color LCD display that measures approximately 3.25".

There's no immediately obvious pixelation; resolution is nominal.