Printer comparison
Bambu Lab H2C vs Original Prusa i3 MK3S+
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Bambu Lab H2C comparisonsMore Original Prusa i3 MK3S+ comparisons
| Property | Bambu Lab H2CCOREXY | Original Prusa i3 MK3S+BEDSLINGER |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Bambu Lab | Prusa Research |
| Class | COREXY | BEDSLINGER |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Bambu Lab H2C; spec sheet header "H2C Spec Sheet"[1] | Original Prusa i3 MK3S+. The only version still listed in Aug 2026 is the "Original Prusa i3 MK3S+ 10th Anniversary Edition"[2] |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | From $2,199.00 on the Bambu Lab US store, Aug 2026, against a stated typical price of $2,399.00; the compare page shows $2,399[3] | $1,199.00 assembled, $899.00 as a kit, for the 10th Anniversary Edition on prusa3d.com, Aug 2026. This is above the price the standard MK3S+ sold at, so do not read it as the MK3S+ street price[2] |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | Dual-nozzle top model in the H2 family, in the same 492x514x626 mm body as the H2D and H2S. Distinguishing figures: 32.5 kg (vs 31 kg H2D, 30 kg H2S); single-nozzle volume 305x320x325 mm (vs 325x320x325 mm on the H2D); BirdsEye camera fitted as standard rather than only on a Laser Edition; laser safety window listed as equipped with the Laser Edition[1][4][5][6] | Only the 10th Anniversary Edition remains on sale; the standard MK3S+ is gone from Prusa's printer listing. Two official upgrade paths change the machine substantially and are frequently confused with it: MK3.5 (xBuddy board and new LCD, keeps the MK3 extruder) and MK3.9 (adds the Nextruder). A caution on Prusa's own pages: the "Awards & Press Reviews" paragraph about the MK3S is reproduced verbatim on the MINI+ product page, so award text found on a Prusa page does not necessarily belong to the printer on that page[2][7][8][9] |
| Market position: superseded? successor announced? | Not documented | Superseded by the MK4/MK4S line. Prusa cut MK3S+ prices at the MK4 launch in March 2023 and said it would keep selling the MK3S+ at a lower price and hold spare parts in stock[8][9] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | Single-nozzle printing 305 x 320 x 325 mm; dual-nozzle printing 300 x 320 x 325 mm; total volume for two nozzles 330 x 320 x 325 mm. The sortable figure is the single-nozzle volume[1] | 25 x 21 x 21 cm = 250 x 210 x 210 mm (manufacturer figure)[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 492 x 514 x 626 mm[1] | 500 x 550 x 400 mm (X x Y x Z), without the spool holder[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 32.5 kg net[1] | 7 kg (without spool)[2] |
| Frame construction & material | Aluminium and steel chassis with a plastic and glass outer frame[1] | Cut aluminium frame - Prusa's MK4 announcement contrasts "the cut aluminum frame we used so far" with the MK4's new die-cast frame[8] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Fully enclosed with a door sensor; active chamber heating to 65 C, chamber exhaust and heat-circulation fans, G3 + H12 + granulated coconut-shell carbon filtration with VOC filtration rated Superior[1] | Open frame; the Original Prusa Enclosure is an optional separate product[8] |
| Passive chamber temperature reached (if enclosed; measured values preferred) | Active chamber heating, maximum 65 C (manufacturer figure)[1] | Not documented |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | CoreXY - not named in the spec sheet; grouped by Bambu with the H2 enclosed CoreXY machines at 20000 mm/s2[1] | Cartesian i3 bed-slinger. Prusa's MK4 announcement notes the MK3S+ Y-axis profiles and heatbed were among the few parts carried into the MK4[8] |
| Stepper drivers (exact model e.g. TMC2209; UART/SPI; sensorless homing?) | Not documented | Trinamic 2130 drivers at 256 microstepping on the EINSY RAMBo 8-bit board, co-developed with UltiMachine; sensorless homing on X and Y[2] |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | 1000 mm/s max toolhead speed (manufacturer claim); no independent measurement found[1] | Not documented |
| Max travel speed | Not documented | "200+ mm/s" max travel speed (manufacturer figure, no measurement basis given)[2] |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | 20000 mm/s2 max toolhead acceleration (manufacturer claim)[1] | Not documented |
| Max volumetric flow claimed (mm³/s) | 40 mm3/s, measured by Bambu on a 250 mm round single-wall model in Bambu ABS at 280 C[1] | Not documented |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Dual direct-drive extruders, hardened-steel gears, Bambu high-precision permanent-magnet synchronous motors[1] | Direct drive with Bondtech gears and an E3D V6 hotend[2] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | Hardened-steel nozzles, 0.2/0.4/0.6/0.8 mm supported; built-in filament cutter[1] | Not documented |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | 350 C claimed max nozzle temperature[1] | 300 C claimed max nozzle temperature[2] |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 120 C max heatbed temperature[1] | 120 C max heatbed temperature[2] |
| Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sided | Flexible steel plate with Textured PEI included; Engineering Plate also supported[1] | Removable magnetic spring-steel sheets in several finishes; heatbed with cold-corner compensation[2] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Not documented | SuperPINDA inductive probe (Prusa's temperature-drift-free replacement for the original PINDA), driving automatic mesh bed levelling and a self-test routine[2] |
| Filament Handling & Detection | ||
| Filament runout sensor (type, location) | Yes - run-out sensor and door sensor[1] | IR filament sensor built in, supporting filament auto-loading; the print pauses when filament runs out[2] |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | Part-cooling fan, hotend cooling fan, chamber exhaust fan and chamber heat-circulation fan, all closed-loop controlled[1] | Not documented |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Mainboard model & MCU (exact chip markings if teardowns exist) | Not documented | EINSY RAMBo 8-bit board, co-developed with UltiMachine[2] |
| Input voltage (110/220 V, switch or auto) | Not documented | Custom Delta PSU with hardware-based power panic[2] |
| Total rated power draw | 100-120 VAC / 200-240 VAC 50/60 Hz; 1800 W at 220 V, 1250 W at 110 V[1] | Power consumption 80 W on PLA settings, 120 W on ABS settings[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[10] | prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware on GitHub, GPL-3.0, whose README states it is "proudly based on Marlin 1.0.x" and covers the MK3S/MK3/MK2.5S/MK2.5 line; last pushed August 2025. Updated over USB from a PC[11] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 5-inch 720x1280 touchscreen[1] | Not documented |
| On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.) | Touchscreen plus mobile app and PC app[1] | Not documented |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Wi-Fi; built-in 8 GB eMMC and a USB port. Ethernet not available[1] | SD card (16 GB card included); Ethernet and Wi-Fi only via an optional Raspberry Pi[2] |
| Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps) | Four cameras as standard: live view 1920x1080, nozzle camera 1920x1080, toolhead camera 1920x1080 and BirdsEye 3264x2448[1] | Not documented |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA, BVOH, ABS, ASA, PC, PA, PET, PPS, plus carbon/glass-fibre reinforced PLA, PETG, PA, PET, PC, ABS, ASA, PPA and PPS[1] | PLA, PETG, ASA, ABS, PC, CPE, PVA/BVOH, PVB, HIPS, PP, Flex, nGen, Nylon, carbon-filled, woodfill and other filled materials[2] |
| Safety | ||
| Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible) | Not documented | Prusa shipped Thermal Model protection to the MK3 line as a firmware update shortly before the MK4 launch; the firmware is open-source and auditable[8][11] |
| 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[12] | 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[13][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
- Bambu Lab H2C Spec Sheet (PDF) store.bblcdn.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Original Prusa i3 MK3S+ 10th Anniversary Edition product page (Technical Parameters + Full Features List) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab US Store - 3D Printers collection listing (base prices, Aug 2026) us.store.bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab H2D - Technical Specifications bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Bambu Lab H2S & H2S Laser Edition Spec Sheet (PDF) store.bblcdn.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab - Compare all 3D printers (A2L / X2D / H2C columns) bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Original Prusa MINI+ Semi-assembled 3D Printer product page (Technical Parameters + Full Features List, January 2025 Edition) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- 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
- Prusa 3D printers category listing with live e-shop prices, Aug 2026 prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- GitHub - bambulab organisation repository list (11 repos, checked Aug 2026) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- GitHub - prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware (MK3 line, GPL-3.0, based on Marlin 1.0.x) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Lab Warranty Policy bambulab.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Prusa Knowledge Base - Warranty help.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Original Prusa MK4S 3D Printer product page (Technical Parameters + CORE One+/MK4S/XL comparison table) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor