Software
Slicers, firmware, and the open-source toolchain — release notes translated into settings you can actually use.
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Software
OrcaSlicer 2.4.1 Lands With Native Windows ARM64 Build and a Skirt-Generation Fix
OrcaSlicer 2.4.1 ships a native Windows ARM64 build for Snapdragon X Elite laptops, fixes a 2.4.0 bug that reprinted skirts during sequential printing, and adds Snapmaker U1 and Elegoo Centauri 2 profiles.
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Bambu Studio 2.6.1 Solves the Spool Guessing Game with RFID-Backed Filament Tracking
The 2.6.1 beta release brings a Filament Manager that tracks remaining spool weight via extrusion calculations, syncs across devices through Bambu Cloud, and adds substantial hardware support for the H2C and H2D Pro machines.
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OrcaSlicer vs. Bambu Studio vs. PrusaSlicer: Which Slicer Actually Wins in 2026?
The slicer landscape in 2026 has fragmented along clear lines: ecosystem loyalty, calibration depth, and hardware compatibility each favor a different tool, and the right answer depends almost entirely on what you are printing on.
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Bambu Studio 2.8.0 Beta Pulls CAD-Style Assembly Guides Into the Slicer
Bambu Studio 2.8.0 Public Beta adds an Assembly Guide tool that turns an imported STEP file into exploded-view, step-by-step build instructions inside the slicer, plus counterbore-hole bridging modes and better time-lapse output.
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3MF: Why the 3D Printing Industry Is Moving Away From STL
STL has been the default 3D printing format for 35 years. The 3MF format does everything STL does and adds color, material, orientation, and multi-part support — here's why the transition is accelerating.
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Bambu Studio Support Painting: Precise Manual Control Over Auto-Generated Supports
Bambu Studio's support painting tool lets you block auto-generated supports, add manual supports to specific faces, and enforce tree vs normal support type per region. Here's how to use it effectively.
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Meshmixer for 3D Printing: Repair, Hollow, and Orient Files the Easy Way
Meshmixer is free, actively maintained, and handles the mesh repair and hollowing workflows that slicers handle poorly. Here's the toolkit every maker should know.
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AI Tools for 3D Printing in 2026: What's Actually Useful and What's Still Hype
AI-generated geometry, AI-optimized support structures, and AI print monitoring are all real now. The question is which tools deliver enough value to integrate into a real workflow.
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Slicer Showdown: Bambu Studio vs OrcaSlicer vs PrusaSlicer — Which Should You Use?
All three major slicers can get plastic on a print bed. Where they diverge is in workflow philosophy, calibration tooling, and how tightly they're coupled to their hardware ecosystems.
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OpenSCAD for 3D Printing: Parametric Design Without a GUI
OpenSCAD lets you write 3D models as code, making designs fully parametric and scriptable. Here's how it works, what it's good at, and how to think in constructive solid geometry.
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Software
Lychee Slicer vs Chitubox: Which Resin Slicer Is Actually Better in 2026?
Lychee and Chitubox dominate resin print preparation, but they've diverged significantly in features, business model, and file support. Here's how they compare for MSLA and DLP users in mid-2026.
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Software
3D Printing File Formats Explained: STL vs 3MF vs STEP
STL, 3MF, and STEP serve different purposes in the 3D printing workflow. This guide explains what each format stores, why 3MF is rapidly becoming the default, and which tools convert between them.
