The Bambu Lab P1S and Snapmaker U1 are both prosumer-tier printers, but the U1 costs 1.6× as much — so the question is what the extra money buys. Note that the P1S has been replaced by the P2S and is no longer sold new. Both are CoreXY printers with 4-slot multicolor, a 500 mm/s rated top speed and automatic calibration. The U1 costs $350 more and gets you an open-source design and 17% more build volume; the P1S answers with an enclosed chamber (with ABS, ASA, PA, PA-CF and PC on its materials list).
This printer is no longer sold new. It has been replaced by the Bambu Lab P2S.
Best for: Makers who need an enclosed printer for ABS, ASA, PA, and PC at prosumer price — now available at clearance pricing after P2S launch.
Full details →First-generation product — recently released, still early days
Best for: Multicolor and multi-material hobbyists who want a true tool changer (four separate hotends, soluble supports, TPU and PLA in one print) for well under $1,000, and tinkerers who value Klipper-based firmware they can inspect and modify.
Full details →| Bambu Lab P1S | Snapmaker U1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Starting Price | ★ $549 | $899 |
| Print Specs | ||
| Tier | Prosumer | Prosumer |
| Motion | CoreXY | CoreXY |
| Build Volume | 256 × 256 × 256 mm | ★ 270 × 270 × 270 mm |
| Max Speed | 500 mm/s | 500 mm/s |
| Multicolor | ✅ 4 slots | ✅ 4 slots |
| Enclosure | ★ ✅ | ❌ |
| Auto Calibration | ✅ | ✅ |
| Open Source | ❌ | ★ ✅ |
| Upgrade Kit | — | — |
| Buy Timing | ||
| Released | Jul 5, 2023 | Apr 10, 2026 |
| Cycle length | ~335 days | — |
| Cycle advice | Superseded | Buy |
| Deals advice | Clearance | Buy |
| Next model | — | — |
The P1S has been replaced by the P2S and is no longer sold new, so there is no release cycle left to time — any unit you find now is leftover or second-hand stock.
The U1 was released on Apr 10, 2026, 216 days ago. It is a first-generation product, so there is no earlier cycle to predict its successor from.
On timing alone, the U1 is the safer buy right now — it launched only 216 days ago, while the P1S has already been replaced by the P2S.
Cycle and deal status as of November 12, 2026. See the launch calendar →
The P1S lists at $549 and the U1 at $899 — $350 apart, so the U1 costs 64% more.
Per litre of build volume, that works out to $33 for the P1S versus $46 for the U1 — the P1S is the better value per litre as well.
Buy the U1. The P1S has already been replaced by the P2S and is no longer sold new, so it is only worth considering at a clearance price. If the P1S appealed to you, the fair comparison today is the U1 against the P2S.
Compare Bambu Lab P2S vs Snapmaker U1 →
How we judge timing and deals: read our methodology →
Active chamber temperature control enables reliable ABS, ASA, PA, and PC printing without warping.
500 mm/s print speed with Bambu's vibration compensation delivers fast, accurate prints.
With the P2S released, P1S prices are at their lowest — an opportunity for budget-conscious buyers.
Each filament has its own preheated hotend, and swaps take about 5 seconds. Multicolor prints skip the purge tower and filament waste of single-nozzle switching systems.
Separate hotends mean PLA with PVA or breakaway supports, or rigid PLA with TPU, in one print. Single-nozzle multicolor systems handle these combinations poorly.
Snapmaker has published its Klipper, Moonraker and Fluidd forks on GitHub, and Snapmaker Orca is built on Orca Slicer. There is already an active community firmware project. RFID filament recognition stays proprietary.