Quote Originally Posted by claudiaok1997 View Post
I always recommend speaking with a reputable dealer that sells multiple brands of 3D printers over asking for recommendations on a forum. They can give you the good, the bad, and the ugly of different printers and brands and help you choose one that will suit your needs. A good retailer is also a great resource while you are learning as well.
Wait. Did you just imply there are 3d printer brick and mortar stores where all these makes of printers sit on shelves to be sold? Buddy, that simply is not how this industry works. And brick and mortar stores are going away as a whole anyway. Even the online stores that sell multiple brands of 3d printers do not carry inventory nor have shelves of these different printers on display like some sort of tv display at wall mart. That is not even plausible for these printers that are so cheap and all come completely unassembled. They use drop shipping and never see the box of the things they sell. And so even the 'stores' of which you speak will refer to reviews and forums for their own information on which printer is better. At best they could tell you which sells better from first hand experience but that only implies which is the cheaper to buy. Unfortunately that is the sad reality in todays world. But you know, don't get me wrong, I popped a little woody for a minute when I thought about a store we could walk into and see all of the printers of the day built and working for comparison. But then it fell flaccid and I began to chuckle.