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Formlabs lists Form Studio 1 Founders Edition resin printer at $699

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Formlabs has a product page for the Form Studio 1 Founders Edition (SKU FST1-BASIC-US), a resin 3D printer listed at $699 excluding sales tax. The order box reads "Ready to order: Form Studio 1 Base" at the same price. Formlabs's own pitch is that Form Studio 1 is the first affordable, professional-grade resin 3D printer that combines a long-lasting print engine with an open platform. It claims most parts print in under two hours, with sharp detail, mess-free resin handling and a UL GREENGUARD Gold certified workflow when using Alpha Resins and the VOC Extractor.

The page sets the new printer beside the Form 4, which Formlabs describes as a fast masked SLA printer with an industry-leading materials library. Read in page order, with the first column tied to the Studio 1 light processing unit (LPU S1) and the second to the Form 4's LPU 4, the specs differ as follows. The Studio 1 backlight unit has 28 LEDs against 60 in the Form 4. Both use a 405 nm wavelength. Optical power at the cure plane is 6 mW/cm² against 16 mW/cm². Pixel size is 35 µm against 50 µm. Maximum print speed is listed as up to 130 mm/hour against 100 mm/hour; the 130 figure carries a footnote marker whose text is not on the page.

The Studio 1 column lists 9 Formlabs or third-party materials (third-party ones via Open Material Mode, included), while the Form 4 column lists 23. Formlabs says more materials are in development. Build volume is 20.0 x 12.5 x 23.5 cm (5.9 liters) against 20.0 x 12.5 x 21.0 cm (5.25 liters). Layer thickness runs from 25 to 250 µm against 25 to 200 µm. Both columns show a 250 cm² footprint figure.

On reliability, the Form 4 figure is 98.7%, measured by an independent third-party lab in a series of performance tests. For the Studio 1 the page says only "Testing in progress, expected to match the 98.7% reliability of Form 4". Safety features listed for both include low-odor resins, safety data sheets for all resins, spill-resistant resin tanks, an enclosed print chamber and an optional VOC Extractor with a chamber vent port for air filtration. The UL GREENGUARD Gold certification applies only when the printer is used with the VOC Extractor and Alpha Resins.

The page also carries a price list for post-processing equipment, service plans, accessories, materials and extra tanks, but the crawled text does not label those lines, so it does not say which price belongs to which item.

Key facts

  • Formlabs lists the Form Studio 1 Founders Edition (SKU FST1-BASIC-US) at $699 excluding sales tax.
  • Formlabs calls it the first affordable, professional-grade resin 3D printer combining a long-lasting print engine with an open platform, and claims most parts print in under two hours.
  • Against the Form 4 on the same page, the Studio 1 column shows 28 LEDs vs 60, 6 vs 16 mW/cm² at the cure plane, 35 vs 50 µm pixels, up to 130 vs 100 mm/hour and 9 vs 23 materials.
  • Studio 1 has a slightly larger build volume (5.9 liters vs 5.25 liters) and a wider layer range (25 to 250 µm vs 25 to 200 µm).
  • Studio 1 reliability is still in testing, expected to match the Form 4's 98.7%, which an independent third-party lab measured.

Why it matters

The page is Formlabs's pitch for a lower-priced entry into professional resin printing: a $699 base printer positioned beside its Form 4. Formlabs describes it as the first affordable, professional-grade resin printer with an open platform, which is a marketing claim rather than an independently checked one. The trade-offs are visible in the spec table: a lower-power backlight with fewer LEDs, a smaller materials list, but finer pixels and a slightly larger build volume than the Form 4.

Who it affects

Anyone weighing a resin 3D printer for professional or small-shop work, and existing Formlabs users comparing the Studio 1 with the Form 4. The Open Material Mode wording also matters to people who want to use third-party resins, which the Studio 1 column includes among its 9 listed materials.

How to use it

The order box offers the Form Studio 1 Base at $699 excluding sales tax. The VOC Extractor is optional, and the UL GREENGUARD Gold certification applies only when it is used with Alpha Resins. Service plans, accessories, materials and extra tanks appear as separate priced lines on the page. The page does not say what the $699 includes versus the other price tiers ($749, $999, $199 and so on), so check the live listing before ordering.

How solid is it

This is the maker's own product page, so every figure is Formlabs's claim, not a review. The spec columns are unlabeled in the crawled text; assigning the first column to Studio 1 and the second to Form 4 is inferred from their order and from the LPU S1 and LPU 4 labels. The accuracy figures are not labeled by printer in the text, so they are not attributed here. No independent test or review results for the Studio 1 are given, and its reliability is stated as testing in progress. The 98.7% figure belongs to the Form 4.

Risks and caveats

The text does not explain what "Founders Edition" means or whether it is limited in quantity or time, and gives no shipping, availability or launch date. The "under two hours" and "up to 130 mm/hour" figures are marketing claims, and the 130 mm/hour footnote is missing from the text. The GREENGUARD Gold certification depends on buying the optional extractor and using Alpha Resins. Formlabs also says more materials are still in development, so the 9-material list is not final.

“Form Studio 1 is the first affordable, professional-grade resin 3D printer that combines a long-lasting print engine with an open platform.”

— Formlabs, Form Studio 1 product page