QIDI PLUS4 3D Printer, Max 600mm/s High-Speed Printing, 65℃ Chamber Heat, Fully Auto Leveling, 370°C Direct Extruder with Integrated Nozzle, Support PPS-CF Filaments, Large Print Size 12"x12"x11"

Given the generally very positive reviews, I was expecting minor difficulties. As it is, I can't even make it to the input shaping and calibration step, since loading filament is impossible. It appears the hotend came factory-jammed, which is super. I'm getting ready to disassemble it, but it's sad that that's the first impression this device is giving. I'm sure it's all up from here, and I'll update this review when I have more information. At the moment, the printer is a paperweight, and an excellent one at that!FWIW, it's very pretty, well-lit, and quiet (especially in the "off" position, since it can't print).Update: I took the extruder apart, and there was something partially blocking the area above the gears. Weird, but no big deal. I learned a bit taking it apart, and while irritating, I feel like I can do more of my own maintenance at this point. Next problem: after running calibration and bed leveling, I tried updating the software. No dice. It recognizes the new software update, downloads some of it, then either fails or hangs. My Wifi is dicey, but still - it should work, and my other printers never had any problems. I guess I'll order an ethernet cable (they give one, but given where I have my printer, it's much, much too short).Third problem: even though the printer shows it's online, I can't detect it with Qidi Studio. Whereas prior printers would populate nicely and quickly, no luck here either. Again, my Wifi is terrible, but it still works well enough for cell phones and other devices to pull HD streams, etc. In any case, I think the physical cable will solve the problem.I'll report back for another update when I can!Next update: OK, turns out the Wifi had nothing to do with it. Even wired, the printer doesn't get past 33% installing the update and just hangs. I'll try an offline update, but yeesh. Even wired, the printer is undetectable in Qidi Studio. The link the printer provides via QR code doesn't do anything in the Qidi android app, just bounces back to the "add a device" screen.So apart from a passable and very quick bench, the experience so far has been pretty bad. I'll try plugging a gcode file in via usb and we'll see what happens. One problem at a time, right?Third (and final?) update:The "automatic" connection never really worked, but manually connecting to the machine's IP worked perfectly. Now that I know it's not just plug-and-play like other premium printers, we're good. I'm printing wirelessly, monitoring the print, etc. Print quality is near-Bambu so far.So for ease-of-use, I'm NOT going to recommend this to a new printing enthusiast - just get an A1 mini or A1 IMO. For someone willing and able to take bits apart just to get up and running, yeah, so far so good! In terms of value for the size and speed, it's pretty impressive.4th Update: Almost a month in, and this printer has been a pain in my butt. I've had it jam and had to disassemble the hotend (good practice, but it NEVER happened on my Bambu). That's forgivable, but the firmware isn't.As-shipped, the printer can't perform OTA updates. In other words, you have to download the file, put it on a thumb-drive, and manually update it. No problem, right? Shouldn't be, but following the instructions on their Wiki doesn't work, and while the USB drive is detectable, no update files are detected (even when appropriately placed and renamed after downloading). This is pretty terrible, and a very, very bad user experience. Even if I get this working EVENTUALLY, I'm increasingly annoyed and displeased with this purchase.Why update the firmware? Oh, no reason, just without doing so, you can't resume a print that fails due to power outages, etc. I mean, the printer will offer to do so, but it'll demand re-homing before beginning, meaning that it'll crush the print and/or damage itself when it raises the bed to home it out. So... yeah. Basic functionality was missing when shipped, and that's not good, and the ability to patch away the problems... also doesn't exist, at least for me, and at least at the moment. I'll update if this changes.In addition, errors others have noted regarding how a bearing was glued in place and can come loose, and heating issues if you're trying to use the entire build volume, so putting everything together, I'm going to say that unless you're comfortable monkeying with a printer, don't get a Qidi Plus4 at the moment. Maybe a future production run will have updated firmware from the factory, better QC, etc. - but at the moment, I don't recommend this.Just wait for a bigger Bambu, IMO.Fifth update:I finally managed to sort out the update issue half by working with tech support and half by accident. It turns out one of the methods they suggest to use to update the device doesn't appear to work, at least for me but the other did. In the end, in theory now the +4 should be over the air updatable so I don't need to mess around with that again. And now we should have the ability to resume a failed print without destroying the remains of your failed print after a power outage.The main thing of note for this update is apparently the device doesn't have a filament runout sensor which is bizarre. If one is included, then it didn't work, at least for me, and I woke up to a half printed "Successful" print after my filament had run out.In general, the print quality is excellent. The speed and volume are excellent. The value is excellent. The quality control is ? And the features are all over the place. It wasn't TurnKey for me, but it's still a pretty good printer that I'm not sure I would recommend.6-ish month update:I've been using this printer for Christmas decoration, parts to mount lights at home, and cosplay helmets, etc. All the results have been fantastic. Once this printer is up and running, it's been amazing - great quality, great speed, and honestly, the customer service has been really good - they've followed through to make sure everything was working, and that any replacement parts I needed (for a power board issue affecting 120v power users) were sent. I don't think there's a better value out there for quality and volume at the moment, and if I were in need of a large-format printer around 300mm^3, I'd get this again.

Qidi Plus4 is the best printer in its price range! Wow - guided and easy 5 min set up (excluding updates and calibration). Ok, it probably took me 15 min or a little longer from opening the box to starting the print, but I had to spend a few minutes on finding one of the screws that I have dropped :)Seriously, the printer is great even when compared to my old X1C, actually better than X1C, whether it is printing or because of all the drama with BBL firmware updates. Many people have stated that they will leave BBL as a result, and Plus4 is a very good printer to get instead of BBL.X1C comparison:Finish and Looks - different but it holds on its own. Although it is plastic around the front, in my room lighting I could not tell the difference. I do not fuss about minor stuff, like why "this" is "here" and not "there" or why did they do "this" instead of "that." Often, this is just personal/design preference rather than a work stoppage. I can find minor stuff in every printer.Build - feels strong, Z-axis has two drive screws and 4 columns to stabilize the bed - so this makes it stronger than BBL. Thick bed is very flat, but it does feel that it takes a little longer to warm up or cool down. Qidi belts undoubtedly make a big difference. Plus4 is obviously larger than X1C with significant expansion of the printable area, while the size of the printer overall does not feel overwhelming.Ease of use - I find it very intuitive and very easy to use. Since it has Klipper, you can monitor and adjust pretty much everything, while with BBL you can only do what you are allowed, which is almost nothing. Even X1Plus cannot open the printer to the same extent as Klipper on Qidi. Please note that X1Plus is only available for the X1C and not for P1/A1 printers. BBL did not mention that they are going to block X1Plus installations, but new printer models, will probably not be compatible anyway. Moreover, from what we know today, even Orca slicer may not work (or users may have to take extra steps) with BBL printers in the future.Networking - Both WiFi and wired Ethernet are provided. Although switching between the two is not automatic, but it was very easy as and intuitive.Security/Privacy - BBL has little to no security/privacy at the moment, and requires all data to go through their cloud, with LAN-only mode is being crippled or difficult to use now and certainly in the future. I cannot say anything about Qidi cloud security, but Plus4 has excellent support for the LAN mode and other ways to secure communications with the printer.Print quality/capabilities - Qidi seems to have an edge over X1C print quality with no visible VFA. Besides Benchy, I have printed Poop chute using Orca, which also came out flawless. Unfortunately, no multicolor capabilities, but hopefully we will have it soon. On the other hand, if possible, I try to avoid multicolor prints anyway because of time and filament waste. IDEX or something like that would be ideal for multicolor printing. Print speed is comparable, some settings in Qidi profiles looked very conservative, but I did not have time to look into it. One great thing going for Qidi is high-temp/heated chamber capabilities. It is possible to insulate X1C and install chamber heater, but it is not possible to increase the nozzle temp on X1C, and aftermarket chamber heater will not be integrated into print settings, not easily anyway. Qidi routine before printing seems to be slightly more optimized than X1C. I would also say Qidi is somewhat quieter, but this is subjective, I have not done any tests.Issues - When you watch older Qidi reviews, they find some issues with Plus4, but it seems that new updates have addressed those issues (I have not checked the SSR issue yet, but I believe it was taken care of). My printer came with 1.4.x firmware, with an easy OTA upgrade to 1.6.0. That said, BBL printers also had some issues at launch, which later have been addressed.Even if BBL comes out with IDEX, or anything else, I will not be going back to BBL because of their disrespect of others, issues with security/privacy, and other policies, which limit my use of my printer. This is also a word of caution for all manufacturers, please be nice to your customers and to 3D printing legacy. Thank you Qidi.Just get the Plus4, and you will not be disappointed. I am not sponsored by Qidi or received anything from them.