Bambu Lab is a company that has taken the 3D printing world by storm. Its latest printer, the Bambu Lab X2D, is a long-awaited follow-up to the company's 2022 debut, and it's causing quite a stir in the 3D printing community.
Here's what all the fuss is about.
The X2D is Bambu Lab's latest printer
Bambu Lab
The Bambu Lab X2D is the third printer to feature in Bambu Lab's X line of printers, positioned as an upper-midrange option. It follows the arrival of the P2S in late 2025, a release which effectively put the X1C to bed and took the crown as the enclosed 3D printer that most people should buy .
Barely six months later, we have the X2D, a dual-nozzle enclosed 3D printer which combines features from the P2S with those from the higher-end H2 series. The D in the name refers to the dual nozzle setup, consisting of a primary direct drive extruder and a more traditional Bowden setup.
On top of this, the X2D has a heated chamber that can reach temperatures of 65ºC and an air filtration system that the company boasts makes it safer for use in your home. The bed temperature hit a respectable 120ºC, which is marginally hotter than the P2S.
The main things separating it from the higher-end H2D are a smaller build volume (which means that the printer itself takes up less space), the same 300ºC nozzle cap as the P2S (the H2D can manage 350ºC), and a handful of extra sensors and cameras.
It's a printer that splits the difference between the midrange and pro-level, and it's got some customers who recently bought themselves a P2S feeling a little salty.
A lot of printer for your money
The main reason that so many people are talking about the X2D is because of its price. Everyone knew that an X2 printer had been on the cards for a while, but most expected it to cost in excess of $1000 (considering the H2D starts at $1549 for the printer alone).
The X2D will set you back $649 for the printer, or $899 in combination with the AMS2 Pro multi-material system, which makes it possible to dry filament and switch between up to four on the fly. However you buy it, the X2D is only $100 more than the less capable P2S.
It's hard not to see this as an aggressive flex by Bambu Lab to use its position as a market-leader to cement its dominance in the space. Things start to look even more interesting when you consider what the competition is offering.
Bambu Lab
The X2D Combo costs less than a pre-assembled Prusa MK4S ($1,100), an unenclosed bed-slinger released in late 2024. It's also cheaper than the company's closest offering, the Prusa Core One. A comparable X2D Combo is less than the Creality K2 Pro Combo ($1,099), though it does have a slightly smaller bed volume.
It's even cheaper than the very attractive-looking Snapmaker U1 (from $899), a printer that is better at waste-free multi-material printing but that lacks features like a heated bed and requires the purchase of an optional hardened steel nozzle to work with more abrasive filaments.
Is this a win for consumers? Probably, but we'll have to wait and see how the industry reacts. It's a win for anyone in the Bambu Lab ecosystem who has been holding out for an upgrade, at least. There are some things you might want to know about Bambu Lab if you're new and want to jump in, though.
You probably don't need an X2D (but you still want one)
It's very tempting to spend a little bit more money in order to own a more capable printer, and I don't blame you if that's the route you choose to go over the P2S.
The X2D undoubtedly has some features that everyone will benefit from, including an advanced filtration system that's completely missing on the P2S, additional sensors, and a toolhead camera for even better monitoring and print failure detection. But many of the other features will mostly only be of benefit to those who print specific filament types.
The direct drive extruder on the X2D's primary nozzle will be far better at handling flexible filaments like TPU. The active chamber heating is also mostly of interest to those working with filaments that are prone to cracking and warping, like ABS/ASA, polycarbonate (PC), nylon, and carbon fiber reinforced filaments.
The dual-nozzle design's "catch" is that one nozzle is referred to by Bambu Lab as an "auxiliary" and is therefore best used for support material. This allows you to use a cheaper material like PLA to support a main print that uses more exotic filaments . Early reports from reviewers suggest that the quality of prints from this nozzle are slightly inferior, which puts a bit of a damper on the multi-color potential of using both nozzles in a single model.
Tim Brookes / How-To Geek
The build volume is also slightly reduced on the X2D when using both nozzles at once, at 235.5x256x256mm compared to 256x256x256mm on the P2S. If this were a real dealbreaker, you could just print with a single nozzle on the X2D for comparable results to a P2S anyway.
Ultimately, for the extra $100, it's hard not to be tempted by the X2D over the P2S and competition. If you're thinking of taking the plunge, consider waiting and seeing what communities like r/BambuLab are saying. Consider that if you go for a P2S, you can spend the extra $100 on filament instead.
Whether the P2S and other Bambu Lab printers will see a price cut given the arrival of the X2D remains to be seen.
