Review: BeagleCam V2 3D Printer Camera

Manufacturer: Minton

Price: $89

URL: https://www.mintion.net/products/mintion-beagle-v2-3d-printer-camera

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The BeagleCam v2 is Minton’s latest version of their remote 3D printer device. It offers the ability to control your printer remotely, que up jobs, see what is happening in real-time, and record time lapse videos.

Unbox and setup

Inside the box are the camera, instructions, a small tripod, and a couple variations of USB cables. Following the instructions, the setup is pretty painless. You download the app, tell it your wifi information, and hit a button to generate a QR code. Simply showing that code to the actual camera will connect it to your wifi. After that, you can access it using the app on your mobile device or by putting the IP address into your computer browser.

After selecting the type of printer you have in the settings, you’re ready to print. You slice like normal and upload via one of the interfaces, and then hit print.

In use

It really is a painless system if you use it on a machine it is already configured for. The process is extremely simple and being able to keep an eye on the print is very convenient. The timelapse feature is ok, but if you have a bed slinger like the prusa, you’ll find the default method is somewhat lacking visually (the bed moves, so it isn’t super visually pleasing). No big deal. It can still be quite useful for troubleshooting failed prints.

You can adjust the timelapse method though, and with a bit of tinkering you can even get pretty timelapses from a bedslinger.

In the previous model I found the videos and images to be fairly blurry no matter how I positioned it. This model has a much more capable focus and the video quality is much higher.

Conclusion

I really think they’ve done a great job building this device. The interface is fairly simple, setup is smooth, and results are nice. The hardest part for most people will be justifying the expense. At $89, you have to decide if having remote view and control is worth it to you. This device will deliver those features easily and quickly.