Once you’ve got the machine out of the box, a little construction is needed.
The instructions are comprehensive and contain short videos to accompany the steps.
You really can’t go wrong.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
This involves pushing in a delicate ribbon cable, but that’s about as complicated as it gets.
The Glowforge requires Wi-Fi to operate; it cannot work over Ethernet or USB.
Subscription Required?
The Glowforge Pro is an incredibly capable piece of hardware that offers unlimited creative possibilities, especially when paired with their tried and tested barcoded materials for perfect cut and engrave settings. However, it’s hampered by a limited web-only software package and almost mandatory subscription, making it hard to justify the premium price.
Your Glowforge will still work for your own designs with no limitations.
Well, sort of.
We’ll talk more about the free tier throughout this review.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
I was able to easily do this through the online account management without any pesky telephone calls required.
A single preview camera sits in the middle of the glass lid and updates automatically when you close it.
By contrast, theXtool P2 required two of theseside by side to sit safely.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
One final consideration is temperature.
Unlike 3D printers, which heat themselves, CO2 lasers are quite sensitive to ambient temperatures.
Midway through this review, winter drew into my garage workshop, and temperatures plummeted to near zero.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
That said, I found two small annoyances with the Proofgrade Materials.
However, for my second test, I wanted to try the accuracy of the camera.
So, at this point, I turned to the camera calibration step.
After calibrating the camera, the alignment was great, but not perfect.
I knocked out this little Christmas ornament in less than 10 minutes, then added some text later.
I also made some keychains from the supplied Proofgrade leather.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
Both the cut and text engraving worked perfectly the first time.
Slate isn’t officially in the materials database, but I found some controls that gave great results anyway.
This bottle holder from Etsywas my most complex creation, mostly using Proofgrade plywood.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
But the Glowforge Pro has one neat trick up its sleeve, which it calls Pro Passthrough mode.
Unfortunately, its still somewhat limiting.
So, I first had to cut a larger sheet down to size.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
The first time I tried this, I messed up the process.
There is no local software available.
You shouldn’t ever be lost, and Glowforge projects will walk you through every step.
But I do have some concerns.
That means that free users might have to wait a lot longer for theirs to process in the cloud.
Your machine will be functionally dead until it’s fixed (or isn’t).
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
Living in a rural area, I have a sketchy internet connection at the best of times.
There’s little in the way of design toolsthings like inserting a simple line are difficult.
The biggest issue I found is that it tends to grind painfully slow when adjusting a complex file.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
But this extreme slowdown can seriously hinder a workflow, and its not because Im using an underpowered machine.
Its because its a web app.
A similar fate awaits the basic mirror object functionality.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
Premium services should add advanced features, not take basic ones away.
Youll find a lot of value in the library of premium design templates that can be customized and sold.
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
James Bruce / MakeUseOf
