You read online about affordable 3D printers made by Anet. Anet is a Chinese 3D printing company which manufacturers 3D printers and 3D filaments. You decided to buy an Anet printer, but that’s when the real challenge begins. There are quite a few of them and all are labeled differently, so I thought it was fitting to do an Anet 3d printer comparison.
Worry no more.
Frustrated with the lack of information and good side by side comparison table, I spent a few hours researching the differences between Anet printers – A8, A6, A3 and A2. In this brief article, I will do a comparison to show you what’s the difference between all Anet 3d printers.
Before we begin, please understand that the information gathered here is based on an online research. I had help from Anet Support Groups on Facebook, Anet printer owners as well as help from the Anet support team.
Just to clear things up, I do not own all of these printers, hence I will not be able to compare the printing quality and other similar things, though I firmly believe that because of the similarity in hardware and software all of these can print equality. You will notice that most of the differences are of functional, cosmetics and design nature.
One more thing which confuses people quite a lot are the printers name, which quite honestly make no sense. Printers were released in this order :
- Anet A8
- Anet A6
- Anet A3
- Anet A2
Most of the people, logically assume, that the higher number in the name means newer model. Obviously it’s not. It works quite the opposite. Furthermore, some of the models have additional variations. I will clarify those as well.
Anet A8 vs A6 vs A3 vs A2 comparison table
The best way to compare these printers is in a table. So I made one.
[go_pricing id=”all_anet_printers”]
Anet A8
Anet A8
is the first and the best selling printer released by Anet. It has the largest community behind it. It’s the model with highest number of modifications available. This is the printer I own, and despite plenty of modifications and huge learning curve, I am satisfied with it.
You can read more about A8 model :
Lately, I’ve noticed that some sellers are labeling A8-B, which is not an upgrade or anything, it just means that the acrylic frame color is black.
Anet A6 vs A8
A6
has been developed on the basis of A8. It carries a larger LCD display 12864 and has a rotary button for easier navigation. Furthermore compared to A8, Anet A6 can be reset from the printer menu (on the screen). A8 can be reset only by pressing a tiny reset button on the motherboard itself.
One more difference between the two is that the extruder is mounted differently. A8 has a vertical mount, whereas A6( and A2 and A3) has parallel MK8 extruder. Extruder, motherboard and all other parts are the same in both printers. A6 arrives with 16GB microSD card, where as A8 comes with half the size – 8GB.
On the internet there is a table which compares A6 vs A8, but contains some errors. Understand that all of the printers use the same Anet V1.0 motherboard.
[amazon box=”B01N5D2ZIB,B07DDC3VLN” template=”table”]
Below is a video which compares A6 and A8 quite well.
Update 5/1/2017 – You can now read full review that we did on Anet A6 on this link.
Anet A3
Out of all Anet printers, A3 is the only one which arrives fully assembled and can print right away. Its price is the highest. A3 is also the only model which has an enclosure. Design-wise A3 is the prettiest. It’s important to note that A3 has the smallest print size, as it’s maximum printing output is 150 x 150 x 150 mm. It is heaviest of all printers with an approximate weight of 10 kilograms.
Pricing for this model varies. Check the price of Anet A3 in these stores|Amazon|
[amazon box=”B075DBJV6S”]
Anet A2
Anet A2 is the only printer with a solid aluminum frame. At the same time it’s the most light-weighty of all. A2 is the most customizable one, since manufacturer and retailers sell various options for it, like LCD or extended heated-bed upgrade.
There are plenty of variations of A2.
First we have color variations, with 220m heated and different LCD displays.
- A2 Black 2004– Black aluminum frame , 220mm heat bed, LCD 2004 (optional auto-level supported)
- A2 Silver 2004– Silver aluminum frame, 220mm heat bed, LCD 2004 (optional auto-level supported)
- A2 Black 12864- Black aluminum frame , 220mm heat bed, LCD 12864 (optional auto-level not supported)
- A2 Silver 12864- Silver aluminum frame , 220mm heat bed, LCD 12864 (optional auto-level not supported)
Second we have color variations, with an extended 270m heated and different LCD displays.
- A2 Plus Black 2004 (Extended) – Black aluminum frame, 270mm heat bed, LCD 2004 (optional auto-level supported)
- A2 Plus Silver 2004 (Extended) – Silver aluminum frame, 270mm heat bed, LCD 2004 (optional auto-level supported)
- A2 Plus Black 12864 (Extended) – Black aluminum frame, 270mm heat bed, LCD 12864 (optional auto-level not supported)
- A2 Plus Silver 12864 (Extended) – Silver aluminum frame, 270mm heat bed, LCD 12864 (optional auto-level not supported)
Be aware, if you’d like to install an auto-leveling sensor on your A2, do not buy 12864 LCD option, since it’s not compatible with auto-leveling.
[amazon box=”B01N1WD9Y6″]
Learn more about Anet 3D printers
Anet A8: Final review in comparison to the Anet A6, Anet A3, & Anet A2
There you have it. I hope this article helped you understand the differences between different Anet D printer models and made your choice easier.
If there’s something I missed or you noticed an error, feel free to leave a comment below, and I’ll update both table and article.
I do not wish to pick up all the credits for the table and information in this article. Lots of people helped me improve it and make it as accurate as possible. Special thanks goes to these guys :
- Tiffany T. (Anet sales representative)
- Steve W. , Atli M.E. , Jim M. ,Peter M.R. (Anet A-series 3D Printer Help & Discussion Facebook group)
- Cody S. , Stephen T.E. (Official Anet 3D printer Support Group on Facebook)