3D Printing InfoPrinter comparison
Anycubic Kobra S1 vs Bambu Lab X1E
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Anycubic Kobra S1 comparisonsMore Bambu Lab X1E comparisons
| Property | Anycubic Kobra S1COREXY | Bambu Lab X1ECOREXY |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Anycubic | Bambu Lab |
| Class | COREXY | COREXY |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Anycubic Kobra S1[1] | Bambu Lab X1E; spec PDF header "Bambu Lab X1E Technical Specification"[2] |
| Release date (announcement and actual shipping) | Listed on the Anycubic store from 2 January 2025 (Shopify publish date)[3] | Not documented |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | $349.00 with a US plug on store.anycubic.com, Aug 2026, against a compare-at price of $549.00 ($401.00 for the EU plug variant)[3] | Not documented |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | The CoreXY line, not to be confused with the gantry/bed-slinger Kobra 3, Kobra 4 and Kobra X. Within the S line the Kobra S1 Max is a much bigger machine: 350 mm cube against 250, a 350 C hardened-steel nozzle against 320 C, 65 C active chamber heating that the S1 does not have at all, and 25.7 kg against 9.37 kg. Multicolour is sold separately on both (ACE Pro / ACE 2 Pro)[1][4] | Enterprise variant of the X1-Carbon, not a trim level. Differences from the X1C, from the two manufacturer spec sheets side by side: active chamber heating to 60 C (X1C has none), 320 C vs 300 C hot end, Smooth PEI plate included vs Cool/Engineering plates, G3+H12+carbon filter stack vs carbon filter only, Ethernet with a network kill switch, removable network module and 802.1X vs Wi-Fi only, 16 kg vs 14.13 kg, and 1400 W at 220 V / 750 W at 110 V vs 1000 W / 350 W[2][5] |
| Market position: superseded? successor announced? | Not documented | Not present in the Bambu Lab US store 3D-printer collection in Aug 2026, which lists A1, A1 mini, A2L, P1S, P2S, X2D, H2S, H2D and H2C. Bambu sells business machines through a separate Business & Institution channel, so absence from the consumer collection is not proof of discontinuation; no live first-party price could be recorded[6] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 250 x 250 x 250 mm[1] | 256 x 256 x 256 mm (manufacturer figure)[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 400 x 410 x 490 mm[1] | 389 x 389 x 457 mm - identical to the X1-Carbon[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 9.37 kg net, 20.2 kg packaged[1] | 16 kg net (against 14.13 kg for the X1-Carbon)[2][5] |
| Frame construction & material | Not documented | Steel chassis with an aluminium and glass shell[2] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Fully enclosed - Anycubic's own wording is "Fully Enclosed CoreXY Construction". There is no active chamber heating on the S1 (that is the S1 Max's addition)[1][4] | Fully enclosed with a door sensor, and the only X1 with active chamber heating; the chamber is controlled to a maximum of 60 C[2] |
| Passive chamber temperature reached (if enclosed; measured values preferred) | Not documented | Actively heated chamber, maximum controlled temperature 60 C (manufacturer figure; not a passive measurement)[2] |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | CoreXY (stated outright in Anycubic's specification table)[1] | CoreXY, two stepper motors with one belt each (X1 series motion system)[7] |
| X-axis guide type (rods / linear rails / V-wheels; size) | Not documented | Carbon X rail as on the X1-Carbon (X1 series toolhead and gantry)[8] |
| Z-axis: leadscrew count & type, sync mechanism, anti-backlash | Not documented | Three leadscrews belt-driven from a single stepper motor, whole bed moving in Z (X1 series)[7] |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | 600 mm/s maximum print speed (manufacturer claim), 300 mm/s recommended[1] | 500 mm/s max toolhead speed (manufacturer claim); no independent measurement found[2] |
| Recommended/typical print speed | 300 mm/s recommended print speed (manufacturer figure)[1] | Not documented |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | 20000 mm/s2 maximum acceleration, 10000 mm/s2 recommended (manufacturer claims)[1] | 20 m/s2 = 20000 mm/s2 max toolhead acceleration (manufacturer claim)[2] |
| Max volumetric flow claimed (mm³/s) | Not documented | 32 mm3/s claimed on a 150x150 mm single-wall model in Bambu ABS at 280 C[2] |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Direct drive ("short distance extrusion")[1] | Direct drive with hardened-steel extruder gears[2] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | Quick-release hotend; 0.4 mm standard nozzle expandable to 0.25, 0.6 and 0.8 mm[1] | All-metal hotend with a hardened-steel nozzle; 0.4 mm included, 0.2/0.6/0.8 mm optional; built-in filament cutter[2] |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | 320 C maximum nozzle temperature[1] | 320 C claimed max hot-end temperature - 20 C above the X1-Carbon[2][5] |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 120 C maximum hotbed temperature on a PEI spring steel build plate - the highest bed ceiling of any Anycubic machine in this file except the S1 Max[1] | 110 C at 220 V, 120 C at 110 V max build-plate temperature[2] |
| Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sided | Not documented | Flexible steel plate, Smooth PEI plate included; High Temperature, Textured PEI and Cool plates optional[2] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | LeviQ 3.0 auto-levelling with Z-offset, plus area levelling[1] | Nozzle-touch probing on the three ceramic heatbed force sensors, plus the Bambu micro-lidar for first-layer inspection[2][9] |
| Filament Handling & Detection | ||
| Filament runout sensor (type, location) | Filament detection with auto resume, filament entanglement detection and power-loss resume[1] | Yes - run-out sensor and door sensor; odometry with AMS[2] |
| Multi-material/multi-color capability or official upgrade path | Multicolour is sold separately - the ACE Pro / ACE 2 Pro units are not included with the bare S1[1] | Not documented |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | Not documented | Part-cooling fan, hot-end fan, control-board fan, chamber temperature regulator fan and auxiliary part-cooling fan, all closed-loop controlled[2] |
| Chamber/exhaust fan & filtration (activated carbon / HEPA) | Not documented | G3 pre-filter, H12 HEPA filter and granulated coconut-shell activated-carbon filter; VOC filtration rated Optimal and particulate filtration present[2] |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Mainboard model & MCU (exact chip markings if teardowns exist) | Not documented | Motion controller dual-core Cortex-M4; application processor quad ARM A7 at 1.2 GHz with a 2 TOPS NPU; 4 GB eMMC[2] |
| Total rated power draw | Not documented | 100-240 VAC 50/60 Hz; 1400 W at 220 V, 750 W at 110 V[2] |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | Kobra OS, with pressure advance and flow calibration supported[1] | Closed-source proprietary firmware - not a Klipper or Marlin derivative, and no printer-firmware source is published. The bambulab GitHub organisation carries 11 repositories (Bambu Studio, wxWidgets/boost/ffmpeg forks, the wiki); none is printer firmware. Updates are delivered over the air via Bambu Studio / Bambu Handy[10] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen[1] | 5-inch 1280x720 touchscreen[2] |
| On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.) | Touchscreen plus slicing software, the Anycubic app and USB (print only); AI spaghetti detection and object-skip supported[1] | Touchscreen plus app and PC application[2] |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Printer UI, slicing software, Anycubic app, USB (print only)[1] | Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n) plus 100 Mbps full-duplex RJ45 Ethernet, a network kill switch covering both Wi-Fi and Ethernet, a removable network module and 802.1X network access control - the feature set that distinguishes the X1E from every other Bambu machine. 4 GB eMMC and a microSD card reader[2] |
| Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps) | Standard HD camera fitted, but only 480p - lower than the 720p units on the S1 Max, Kobra 4 and Kobra X[1][4][11] | Built-in 1920x1080 chamber monitoring camera; micro-lidar also fitted[2] |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | PLA, PETG, TPU, ABS, ASA[1] | Optimal: PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA, BVOH. Superior: ABS, ASA, PC, PA, PET and carbon/glass-fibre reinforced PLA, PETG, PA, PET, PC, ABS, ASA. Ideal: PPA-CF/GF, PPS, PPS-CF/GF[2] |
| Safety | ||
| Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible) | Not documented | Firmware over-temperature protection is documented for the X1 series: HMS_0300-0200-0001-0003 fires when the heater runs at full power without reaching target in time. Thresholds are not published and the firmware is closed-source[12] |
| Noise & Power Consumption | ||
| Noise: claimed dB and independently measured dB (distance/method) | 46 dB or less in standard mode and 44 dB or less in quiet mode - manufacturer figures with no distance or method stated, so not comparable with an independently measured reading[1] | Not documented |
| 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[13] | 2-year limited warranty for consumers in the US, Canada, the EU, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland; 1 year in the rest of the world. Bambu Lab's own policy records the US/Canada term as a 2026 extension from one year to two[14] |
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
- Anycubic Kobra S1 product page (Specifications table) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab X1E Technical Specification (PDF) cdn1.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Anycubic Kobra S1 Shopify product JSON (variant prices and store publish date) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Anycubic Kobra S1 Max product page (Specifications table) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab X1-Carbon - Technical Specifications (PDF) public-cdn.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab US Store - 3D Printers collection listing (base prices, Aug 2026) us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Wiki - X1 introduction wiki.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- PRNewswire - Bambu Lab Launches X1 Series, 23 May 2022 (Kickstarter dates and MSRP table) prnewswire.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab Wiki - Replace the Heatbed Sensor Unit / Heatbed Piezo Interface Board wiki.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- GitHub - bambulab organisation repository list (11 repos, checked Aug 2026) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Anycubic Kobra 4 product page (Specifications table) store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Wiki - HMS_0300-0200-0001-0003: nozzle heater over-temperature (X1 series) wiki.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Anycubic refund and warranty policy store.anycubic.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Warranty Policy bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor