3D Printing InfoPrinter comparison
Bambu Lab A1 mini vs Bambu Lab P1S
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Bambu Lab A1 mini comparisonsMore Bambu Lab P1S comparisons
| Property | Bambu Lab A1 miniBEDSLINGER | Bambu Lab P1SCOREXY |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Bambu Lab | Bambu Lab |
| Class | BEDSLINGER | COREXY |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Bambu Lab A1 mini. Store title: "Bambu Lab A1 mini 3D Printer"[1] | Bambu Lab P1S. Store title: "Bambu Lab P1S 3D Printer"[2] |
| Release date (announcement and actual shipping) | Shipped in the second half of 2023; Tom's Hardware published its A1 mini review on 13 October 2023, ahead of the full-size A1 review of 14 December 2023[3][4] | Not documented |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | From $219.00 (base A1 mini) on the Bambu Lab US store, Aug 2026, during an advertised Back-to-School sale; the product page lists A1 mini and A1 mini Combo variants[5][6] | From $369.00 (base P1S) on the Bambu Lab US store, Aug 2026, against a stated typical price of $399.00; with the P1S AMS 2 Pro Combo variant selected the same page shows $539.00 against a typical $579.00[5][2] |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | Two SKUs: A1 mini and A1 mini Combo (adds the AMS lite). Distinguish from the full-size A1 by build volume (180 vs 256 mm cube), bed ceiling (80 vs 100 C), screen (2.4 vs 3.5 inch), Z drive (single leadscrew with a coupling vs dual leadscrews belt-synced) and weight (5.5 vs 8.3 kg)[1][7][8][9] | Enclosed version of the P1P and mechanically the same motion platform. Three SKUs on one product page: P1S, P1S AMS Combo and P1S AMS 2 Pro Combo (the AMS 2 Pro adds active filament drying). Sibling figures that get mixed up: net weight 12.95 kg (P1S) vs 9.65 kg (P1P); depth 389 mm vs 386 mm; ABS/ASA Ideal (P1S) vs Capable (P1P). Also distinct from the 2026 P2S, which is a different machine (600 mm/s, 110 C bed, 5-inch touchscreen, 14.9 kg)[2][10] |
| Market position: superseded? successor announced? | Still the entry model in the Bambu Lab US store line-up in Aug 2026 and the cheapest machine listed[5] | Still sold in Aug 2026, but Bambu now markets the P2S as "The Classic Evolves" above it in the same enclosed-CoreXY slot[5][11] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 180 x 180 x 180 mm (manufacturer figure)[1] | 256 x 256 x 256 mm advertised. Bambu's own footnote sets the default printable height in Bambu Studio to 250 mm to prevent heatbed collisions, and notes the collapsible filament-cutter stopper occupies part of the print area when popped out[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 347 x 315 x 365 mm (Bambu tech specs; Tom's Hardware prints 347 x 314 x 365 mm)[1][3] | 389 x 389 x 458 mm; package 485 x 480 x 530 mm[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 5.5 kg net[1] | 12.95 kg net, 17.60 kg gross; the AMS Combo ships at 21.60 kg gross and the AMS 2 Pro Combo at 21 kg gross[2] |
| Frame construction & material | Steel plus extruded aluminium chassis[1] | Steel chassis (shared with the P1P) inside plastic and glass panels[2] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Open frame, no enclosure[1] | Fully enclosed - plastic and glass panels with a glass front door and lid, plus an activated-carbon air filter. No active chamber heater; the chamber temperature regulator fan is closed-loop controlled[2] |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | Cartesian bed-slinger: toolhead on an X guide rail and crossbeam, print platform moving in Y on a guide rail, toolhead carried in Z[8] | CoreXY driven by two stepper motors, each with an independent belt to the printhead; the P1P and P1S share the same motion system[12] |
| X-axis guide type (rods / linear rails / V-wheels; size) | Horizontal linear guide rail with the printhead on a sliding block; rail size not published[8] | Not documented |
| Y-axis guide type | Horizontal linear guide rail carrying the print platform, belt-driven in Y[8] | Not documented |
| Z-axis: leadscrew count & type, sync mechanism, anti-backlash | Single leadscrew with nut, coupling and stepper motor - the motor drives the leadscrew directly through the coupling. This is the clearest hardware difference from the A1, which uses two leadscrews synchronised by a belt[8][9] | Three leadscrews belt-driven from a single stepper motor, whole bed moving in Z; manual tramming by three knobs under the bed, no motorised Z-tilt[12] |
| Belts (type, width, e.g. Gates?) | Not documented | Rear adjustable belt tensioners with a Belt Tension Monitor[12] |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | 500 mm/s max toolhead speed (manufacturer claim); no independent measurement found[1] | 500 mm/s max toolhead speed (manufacturer claim); no independent measurement found[2] |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | 10000 mm/s2 max toolhead acceleration (manufacturer claim)[1] | 20 m/s2 = 20000 mm/s2 max toolhead acceleration (manufacturer claim)[2] |
| Max volumetric flow claimed (mm³/s) | 28 mm3/s claimed on a 150x150 mm single-wall model in Bambu ABS at 280 C - note this is the ABS figure quoted for a machine whose own spec sheet lists ABS as not recommended[1] | Not documented |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Direct drive with hardened-steel extruder gears; toolhead also holds the cutter unit, filament hub and filament sensor[1][8] | Direct drive; the service part is the "Stainless Steel Extruder Unit (P1 series)"[12] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | All-metal integrated hotend (nozzle plus heatsink in one unit), quick-swap; stainless-steel nozzle, 0.4 mm included, 0.2/0.6/0.8 mm optional[1][8] | All-metal all-in-one hotend with the nozzle integrated into the heatblock, replaced as a unit; 0.4 mm stainless-steel nozzle included, 0.2/0.6/0.8 mm optional[2][12] |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | 300 C claimed max hot-end temperature[1] | 300 C claimed max hot-end temperature[2] |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 80 C max build-plate temperature - the lowest of the current Bambu range, and the reason ABS/ASA are listed as not recommended[1][8] | 100 C max build-plate temperature[2] |
| Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sided | Textured PEI plate; Smooth PEI and Dual-Texture PEI plates also compatible[1] | Textured PEI plate; Cool Plate, Engineering Plate and High Temperature Plate compatible[2] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Nozzle-touch automatic bed levelling and automatic Z-offset; Tom's Hardware confirms the nozzle itself is the probe[3][8] | Nozzle-touch probing using three ceramic force (piezo) sensors mounted under the heatbed - Z homing is done by detecting the force of the nozzle contacting the bed[13][12] |
| Filament Handling & Detection | ||
| Filament runout sensor (type, location) | Yes - run-out sensor, filament odometry and filament-tangle sensor[1] | Yes - filament run-out sensor[2] |
| Multi-material/multi-color capability or official upgrade path | Optional AMS lite (A1 mini Combo); AMS / AMS 2 Pro / AMS HT need an AMS HUB (SA013) accessory[6] | AMS-compatible; sold as P1S AMS Combo and P1S AMS 2 Pro Combo, up to 16 colours with four AMS units[2] |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | One custom 5015 centrifugal part-cooling fan with two opposing outlets; closed-loop control. A separate MC board cooling fan is also fitted[1][8] | Part-cooling fan plus auxiliary part-cooling fan, control-board fan and chamber temperature regulator fan, all closed-loop controlled (all four are merely Optional on the P1P)[2] |
| Chamber/exhaust fan & filtration (activated carbon / HEPA) | Not documented | Chamber temperature regulator fan with an activated-carbon air filter[2] |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Mainboard model & MCU (exact chip markings if teardowns exist) | Bambu names the motion controller as a dual-core Cortex-M4; no board model or chip markings published[1] | Not documented |
| Total rated power draw | 100-240 VAC 50/60 Hz; max power 150 W for the whole machine. Bed heater wattage is not published separately[1] | 100-240 VAC 50/60 Hz; 1000 W at 220 V, 350 W at 110 V[2] |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | 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[14] | 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[14] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 2.4-inch 320x240 IPS touchscreen[1] | 2.7-inch 192x64 monochrome screen, not a touchscreen; control by button, app or PC application (P1 series)[12] |
| On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.) | Touchscreen plus Bambu Handy app and Bambu Studio PC application[1] | Button-driven monochrome on-device UI; job setup happens in Bambu Studio or Bambu Handy[12] |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz only (802.11 b/g/n), Bambu-Bus, microSD card. No Ethernet, no USB host[1] | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Bambu-Bus, microSD card storage, 5 V/1.5 A USB output power (P1 series)[12] |
| Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps) | Built-in low-rate camera, up to 1080p, timelapse supported[1] | Low-rate chamber monitoring camera, 1280x720 at 0.5 fps, timelapse supported[2] |
| Calibration Routines & QoL | ||
| Assembly level & time from unbox to first print | Arrives mostly pre-assembled - only the filament wiper, spool holder and Bowden tubes to fit[3] | Not documented |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | Ideal: PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA. Not recommended: ABS, ASA, PC, PA, PET and fibre-reinforced polymers[1] | Ideal: PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA, PET, ABS, ASA. Capable: PA, PC[2] |
| Noise & Power Consumption | ||
| Noise: claimed dB and independently measured dB (distance/method) | Manufacturer claim only: the US store page claims "49dB Whisper-Quiet Operation" - the identical sentence appears on the A1 page, so treat it as line-level marketing copy rather than a per-model measurement. No independent dB measurement with a stated distance was found[6][15] | Not documented |
| Reliability, Support & Ecosystem | ||
| Warranty length & support reputation (evidence, not vibes) | 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[16] | 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[16] |
| Independently Measured Performance | ||
| Review scores from major outlets (list outlet + score + date) | Tom's Hardware: Editor's Choice, rating 4.5 out of 5 in the page's structured data (13 October 2023)[3] | Not documented |
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
- Bambu Lab A1 mini - Technical Specifications bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab P1S store page - 'Parameters Comparison' table giving P1P and P1S in separate columns us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Tom's Hardware - Bambu Lab A1 Mini Review, 13 October 2023 tomshardware.com · 2026-08 · review
- Tom's Hardware - Bambu Lab A1 Review, Denise Bertacchi, 14 December 2023 tomshardware.com · 2026-08 · review
- Bambu Lab US Store - 3D Printers collection listing (base prices, Aug 2026) us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab A1 mini store page (A1 mini / A1 mini Combo variants) us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab A1 - Technical Specifications bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Wiki - A1 mini introduction wiki.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab Wiki - A1 introduction wiki.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab P2S Spec Sheet (PDF) store.bblcdn.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab P2S store page us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Wiki - Introduction to P1 series wiki.bambulab.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
- Bambu Lab A1 store page (A1 / A1 Combo variants) us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab Warranty Policy bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor