3D Printing Info

Printer comparison

Anycubic Kobra 2 Max vs Original Prusa MK4

Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.

2 selected · all documented properties

Anycubic Kobra 2 Max vs Original Prusa MK4 — documented properties and sources
PropertyAnycubic Kobra 2 MaxBEDSLINGEROriginal Prusa MK4BEDSLINGER
Identity
BrandAnycubicPrusa Research
ClassBEDSLINGERBEDSLINGER
Identity & Market
Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first)Anycubic Kobra 2 Max[1]Original Prusa MK4[2]
Release date (announcement and actual shipping)Listed on the Anycubic store from 31 August 2023 (Shopify publish date)[1]Announced 29 March 2023 with assembled printers shipping immediately from stock; kits opened for ordering about two weeks later[2]
Launch MSRP (USD)Not documented1099 USD assembled, 799 USD as a kit, VAT included, at launch[2]
Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry)$639.00 on store.anycubic.com, Aug 2026[1]Not documented
Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk)Largest Kobra 2. Shares the Plus's 90 C bed ceiling and 500/300 mm/s figures but scales to 420 x 420 x 500 mm and 21 kg. Anycubic's on-page comparison is against the older Kobra Max (450 x 400 x 400 mm, Bowden, 180 mm/s), not against the Kobra 2 Plus. Note the newer Kobra 3 Max has the same 420 x 420 x 500 mm volume - build volume alone will not distinguish them[1][3][4]Superseded by the MK4S, which is the same machine plus a 360-degree turbine part-cooling fan, a high-flow CHT nozzle and firmware/profile work; Prusa sold a 99 USD MK4-to-MK4S upgrade kit and automatically converted unshipped MK4 orders to the S version. The MK3.5 and MK3.9 upgrades convert an MK3S+ to part of the MK4 electronics stack but are not an MK4[5][2]
Market position: superseded? successor announced?Not documentedDiscontinued. No MK4 appears in Prusa's Aug 2026 3D-printer listing, and the MK4 product-page slugs redirect to the MK4S page, so no live first-party price could be recorded[6][5]
Physical & Frame
Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable500 x 420 x 420 mm stated HWD, i.e. 420 x 420 x 500 mm; Anycubic quotes 88.2 L[1]250 x 210 x 220 mm (manufacturer figure)[2]
Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang)740 x 735 x 640 mm stated HWD - footprint about 735 x 640 mm; this is a floor- or bench-dominating machine[1]Not documented
Net weight (kg)21 kg[1]Not documented
Frame construction & materialNot documentedDie-cast aluminium frame - Prusa replaced the MK3S+'s cut-aluminium frame for the MK4, keeping only the Y-axis profiles, some bearings, the heatbed and the power supply[2]
Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lidOpen frame, no enclosure[1]Open frame; the Original Prusa Enclosure is an optional add-on[2]
Kinematics & Motion Hardware
Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other)Cartesian bed-slinger with double metal spindles on X and Y and included belt tensioners[1]Cartesian bed-slinger of the Prusa i3 family - Prusa's MK4 announcement records that the MK3S+ Y-axis profiles and heatbed were carried over[2]
Z-axis: leadscrew count & type, sync mechanism, anti-backlashDual-motor dual Z axis[1]Not documented
Stepper motors (frame size, step angle, brand if known)Not documented400-step (0.9 degree) stepper motors, stated by Prusa to prevent vertical fine artefacts[2]
Stepper drivers (exact model e.g. TMC2209; UART/SPI; sensorless homing?)Not documentedTrinamic TMC2130-LA silent stepper drivers on the xBuddy board[2]
Speed & Acceleration
Max print speed (claimed, mm/s)500 mm/s maximum print speed (Anycubic Lab figure)[1]Not documented
Recommended/typical print speed300 mm/s typical print speed (manufacturer figure)[1]Not documented
Vibration Compensation / Input Shaping
Input shaping supported? Implementation (Klipper IS / Marlin ZV / proprietary)One-click vibration compensation on X/Y plus flow control[1]Not documented
Extruder
Type (direct drive / bowden) & design nameDirect extruder with double gears[1]Nextruder direct drive with a planetary gear system, 1:10 gearbox ratio; aluminium heatsink, all-metal hotend, no PTFE tube in the filament path[2]
Gear ratio & drive gear materialNot documented1:10 planetary gearbox[2]
Hotend & Nozzle
Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?)Not documentedQuick-swap nozzle system, 0.4 mm default, other diameters supported[2]
Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values)260 C nozzle temperature ceiling; 0.4 mm replaceable nozzle[1]300 C claimed max hotend temperature in Prusa's MK4 announcement table - note the MK4S product page publishes 290 C for the same hotend family[2][7]
Heated Bed & Surface
Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit90 C hotbed temperature ceiling[1]120 C max heatbed temperature[2]
Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sidedPEI magnetic spring steel plate, 420 x 420 mm[1]Magnetic heatbed with removable PEI spring-steel sheets; compatible with the MK3 sheets (smooth PEI, satin, textured PEI, PA nylon)[2]
Leveling & Z-Offset
Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe)Anycubic LeviQ 2.0 automatic levelling, 49-point, with smart Z-offset[1]Load-cell sensor: fully automatic first-layer calibration with the nozzle as the probe, plus automatic mesh bed levelling over the print area[2]
Filament Handling & Detection
Filament runout sensor (type, location)Filament detection fitted as default[1]Built-in Hall-effect filament sensor supporting automatic filament loading[2]
Electronics & Power
Mainboard model & MCU (exact chip markings if teardowns exist)Not documentedCustom 32-bit xBuddy board with STM32, designed and built in-house, with a separate extruder breakout board[2]
Host computer (SoC, RAM, storage) if firmware runs on embedded LinuxCortex-A7 1.2 GHz processor; 8 GB built-in storage[1]Not documented
PSU (brand, wattage, rail voltage)Not documented240 W Delta PSU with hardware power panic[2]
Firmware & Openness
Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary)Not documentedOpen-source Prusa Buddy firmware. The source tree (prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware-Buddy on GitHub) explicitly covers the Original Prusa MINI/MINI+, MK4, XL and CORE One and was last pushed to in August 2026. Updates are applied from a USB drive, through Prusa Connect or through the Prusa mobile app[8][7]
Connectivity, UI & Camera
Display: size, type, touch?Not documented3.5-inch 65k-colour graphic screen[2]
On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.)Not documentedOn-device colour UI with one-click printing and status LEDs; Prusa Link is integrated and Prusa Connect adds remote printing[2]
WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-driveNot documentedEthernet built in, optional ESP Wi-Fi module delivered with the printer, USB drive; print files can also arrive over LAN or the internet via Prusa Connect[2]
Materials Support
Officially supported filament listPLA, ABS, PETG, TPU (Kobra 2 family list)[9]Prusa's launch table says "any thermoplastic including Nylon and Polycarbonate"; the enclosure is still needed in practice for ABS/ASA-class materials[2]
Safety
Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible)Not documentedxBuddy hardware overcurrent protection disconnects heater and heatbed power when total current exceeds 15 A; firmware is open-source and auditable[2][8]
Reliability, Support & Ecosystem
Warranty length & support reputation (evidence, not vibes)One year on the complete machine (excluding gifted and second-hand machines), with component warranty periods that vary by part; the period starts on the delivery date and is suspended while a replacement is in transit. Anycubic states it will follow longer local statutory periods where they apply[10]2-year warranty for consumers in the EU, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland; 1 year for EU enterprises and 1 year for the rest of the world, which includes the United States. A printer bought from a reseller or privately carries 1 year from the original delivery date and is handled by the reseller. Prusa advertises 24/7 chat and e-mail support in seven languages[11][7]

Manufacturer claims, independent measurements, packages and test conditions retain their source wording. FDM linear speed and resin vertical speed use different units and are not directly comparable. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.

Sources for this comparison

  1. Anycubic Kobra 2 Max store page and Shopify product JSON (Tech Specs block, price, store publish date) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  2. Prusa blog - Original Prusa MK4 is here (published 29 March 2023), including the MK4 specification table and launch prices blog.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc
  3. Anycubic Kobra 2 Plus store page and Shopify product JSON (Tech Specs block, price, store publish date) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  4. Anycubic Kobra 3 Max product page (Specifications table) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Prusa blog - The Original Prusa MK4S is Here! (published 12 August 2024) blog.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc
  6. Prusa 3D printers category listing with live e-shop prices, Aug 2026 prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. Original Prusa MK4S 3D Printer product page (Technical Parameters + CORE One+/MK4S/XL comparison table) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. GitHub - prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware-Buddy (firmware for MINI, MK4, XL and CORE One) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
  9. Anycubic Kobra 2 store page and Shopify product JSON (Tech Specs block, price, store publish date) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  10. Anycubic refund and warranty policy store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  11. Prusa Knowledge Base - Warranty help.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc