How to Read 3D Printer Specs (Without Marketing Hype)

Advertised "500mm/s" is a motion-system limit, not a printing speed. Real-world quality prints run at 40–60% of that on fast machines, and volumetric flow (mm³/s) is the true bottleneck — a hotend that melts 10mm³/s can’t feed 600mm/s at 0.42mm line width.

"Resolution" in FDM mostly means minimum layer height (0.1–0.2mm typical). In resin, XY resolution (µm) is the sharpness number that matters — 20–35µm LCD vs 25µm laser.

Numbers that actually predict satisfaction: acceleration (mm/s²), enclosure (for ABS/ASA), auto bed leveling reliability, and the community size for troubleshooting.