I agree with that, which is why I’m considering other resin offering, like Peopoly’s Moai (Laser SLA, 130x130x180 with FEP vats and open source design, ~1300 bucks) or Anicubic Photon (LCD, 115x65x155, 500 bucks) or the upcoming LCD resin printer from Prusa, the SL1 (120×68×150, sensors and auto calibration à la Form 2, about 1000€ for the printer or 1600€ for printer + washing/curing machine).
I’m reluctant to buy an FDM machine, I consider SLA resin to be pretty functional if chosen and used wisely (speaking about Tough, Durable and Rigid offerings from Formlabs, but there are other equivalents) and value the isotropic mechanical properties way more than being able to use “real” plastics to create laminated, highly anisotropic parts.
I imagine none of these printers were available when you bought Formlabs hardware, given that you have been active here since 2015… still, have you kept up to date with the latest releases ? I’m pretty impressed by the community over on Peopoly’s forums (Moai maker) and the openness of the printer hardware and software-wise is tempting for experimenting with exotic stuff…
@Walter_Gillespie thanks for the input ! This does confirm my thoughts, and at this point I would only consider an FDM machine if I had no other choice price-wise I think.