3D printing has radically changed the world of manufacturing, design, and DIY. It has allowed tinkerers, hobbyists, and organizations to push the boundaries of prototyping, model creation, and custom part fabrication.
As more people and organizations enter the domain, 3D printing continues to evolve, bringing in new possibilities for customizability, efficiency, and usability.
Bambu Lab, a popular name in the space for offering open source slicing software, recently landed in hot waters with a controversial move. Let’s take a closer look at what happened.
Bambu Lab: What Went Wrong?
Just a stand-in image of the Bambu Lab X1 Series webpage.
Still in beta, this update makes it mandatory for devices to receive official authorization for crucial printer operations, blocking access to any unauthorized third-party software—even in offline LAN mode.
What makes the issue more troubling is Bambu Lab's Terms Of Use, which state that their 3D printer products will automatically download new update packages and might block new printing jobs before the updates are installed.
All of this has caused a massive backlash from the community, with many being worried that Bambu Lab was heading down the enshittification path. The users fear that their devices might lose functionality if they upgrade, or bricked if they choose not to update.
Since then, Bambu Lab has had to carry out a good deal of damage control, like updating the initial announcement with a FAQ section and putting out a new announcement clarifying some of the allegations.
Nevertheless, the damage is done, and the 3D printing community is now split into two main camps. One feels Bambu Lab has lost their trust by pulling off such an unsavory move, and the other that this is fine with all this, as it doesn't really affect the majority of the people.
In the end, I get why people are so outraged over this. We've seen big corporations pull off such shady schemes before, with HP being one of the most notorious for their obsession with printer cartridges.
The only thing that helps in situations like these is clear, transparent communication about any current or future changes.
Sourav Rudra
