Manufacturer: xTool

Price as tested: $3,699

Link: https://www.xtool.com/products/xtool-f1-ultra-20w-fiber-diode-dual-laser-engraver

Previously we looked at the xTool F1; this time we bring you the F1 Ultra, a machine that is more of a big cousin than a big brother to the F1. If you are willing to give up the extreme portability for more power, the F1 Ultra is here for you.

Unboxing the F1 Ultra is a surprise — it’s big. It has a 220mm×220mm cutting area, not huge for a diode laser but the Ultra isn’t just a diode. Like the F1, the Ultra boats dual lasers. xTool increased the power of the blue diode to 20W from 10W and swapped the IR diode for a far more powerful 20W fiber laser. This makes etching metals a quick affair, including those cool 3D etches that laser cutting folks like to show off.

The Ultra has a number of new accessories: a large conveyor for automating jobs and etching larger objects, a button and foot pedal for quickly kicking off repeating jobs, and a built-in screen to ease running the machine without needing a computer.

The Ultra also has a built-in camera, making aligning jobs on any material easy. There’s even a new AI feature in xTool Creative Space that will auto-align your designs on multiple objects placed randomly on the bed.

While I really like the F1 Ultra, I am disappointed by a few things. Aligning the lasers (something you should only have to do on initial setup) isn’t the easiest, requiring access to a screw you can hardly see. I also wish they had kept the removable bottom plate. The Ultra features a solid plate on the bottom but it makes it harder to make jigs. 

The F1 Ultra may no longer be a portable workhorse for the crafting community, but the added power is well worth the added bench space it will need to reside in your workshop.

This review appeared in Make: Vol 93.

Manufacturer: xTool

Price as tested: $1,999

Link: https://www.xtool.com/products/xtool-f1

The phrase “small but mighty” might have been created to describe the xTool F1. Fully enclosed, it will only take up a small corner of your desk while still giving you dual blue and IR diode lasers. If you’re a craft person looking to take a laser to events to personalize items during the event, keep reading, because you’ve found your laser.

While the cutting area of the F1 isn’t large, it’s capable of cutting to the majority of its footprint thanks to its mirror-based galvanometer laser instead of traditional XY gantry-based lasers. Galvos use two mirrors that rotate back and forth to bounce the laser beam between them, drawing shapes quickly. This is the same kind of system used for laser light shows but the F1 employs it with its dual diodes to engrave a wide range of materials.

The working area is enclosed by green laser-blocking acrylic, and a fan in the back of the unit provides ventilation to the provided hose. Want to engrave something too large to fit in the machine? No problem, simply remove the base plate from the F1 and set the whole unit on top of the item you wish to engrave. The F1 adjusts the head of the unit up and down with a motor allowing you to tune in focus to nearly any thickness of material.

Optional accessories include a rotary attachment for engraving on round items such as glasses and tumblers, along with a slide platform for batch production of items.

The F1 uses the intuitive xTool Creative Space for software, but since this machine is G-code based, other software options are available too. You can control the F1 via USB or connect over Wi-Fi, allowing you to run the machine from your phone or tablet, which combined with the built-in top handle makes the F1 perfect for operation on the go.