Monoprice Mini Delta: The Best of Many Worlds

Nothing thrills me more than this vocation of telling everyone who lends me their ear about the maker culture. Additive manufacturing or 3D printing is more common today than it was a decade or two ago. There are more 3D printer technologies and manufacturers available. You’d also expect that the range of available printers will also have expanded, and rightly so. Every manufacturer offers their unique spin on the technology, printers, and accessories. Sometimes the community loves the innovation, while other times, it flat out rejects it.

The community is so vibrant that there’s now open-source 3D printing technology – software and hardware. Any individual or company can access these technologies and extend them any way they wish. Companies such as Prusa Research, Shenzhen, Monoprice, and Creality, are highly active in the 3D printing space, rapidly innovating and churning out exciting 3D printing products. Speaking of exciting, you probably haven’t heard of the Monoprice Mini Delta. If you have, everything you know is likely a whisper of this portable beauty.

Is the Monoprice Mini Delta the Monoprice Delta Pro?

Many would-be makers begin with the mindset of exploring possibilities. How far can one go with this? Would it cost too much? Vital questions, in my opinion. It’s wisdom to be judicious when trying out something new.

The Monoprice Mini Delta is an excellent option for a first 3D printer. It’s the definition of a true entry-level 3D printer: easy to use, versatile, durable, and highly affordable. There are a plethora of 3D printers that tick some of these boxes, but not many. Yet, there’s also the one percent of printers that manage to do so with excellent poise. These are the models that once you lay your hands on, serve to keep you from the ones that’ll keep you from creating and recreating excellence.

By the way, Monoprice lays claim to the title of the world’s best-selling printer brand. The Monoprice Delta Pro remains a big win with veteran makers like myself. But, pricey it is! That’s why the Mini Delta easily earns massive approval points with the community.

Monoprice Mini Delta Specs

• Weight: 4 lbs
• Assembly: Fully-assembled
• Mechanical Arrangement: Delta
• Frame: Aluminum
• Print Chamber: Open, not enclosed
• Layer Resolution: 50 – 200 microns
• Layer Thickness: 0.1 – 0.3 mm
• Print Volume: 4.3 x 4.7 in
• Build Area: Ø100 x 120 mm
• Interface: Color LCD Screen
• Built-in Camera for Monitoring: No
• Print Bed Leveling: Automatic
• Print Chamber: Open, not enclosed
• Modeling Technology: FFF
• Extruder Type: Single
• Feeder System: Bowden
• Maximum Extruder Temperature: 260 °C
• Maximum Build Plate Temperature: 60 °C
• Print Surface: Heated Build Plate
• Print Speed: ≤150 mm/s
• Printing Accuracy: 0.1 – 0.2 mm
• Nozzle Diameter: 0.4 mm
• Nozzle Quantity: Single
• X-Y Position Accuracy: 0.012 mm
• Z-Axis Position Accuracy: 0.004 mm
• Connectivity: USB-C, SD Card, Wi-Fi
• Average Operating Noise: -49 dBA
• Warranty: 1-year repair warranty for any manufacture defects

Materials

• Filament Diameter: 1.75mm
• Third-party Filaments: Yes
• Filament Materials: ABS, PETG, PLA, Wood Fill, Copper Fill, Steel Fill, Bronze Fill
• Third-party Filament: Yes

Software

• OS: Windows^® XP and later (32- and 64-bit), Mac^® OS X^® (10.6+ 64-bit), and Linux
• File Format: AMF, DAE, OBJ, STL
• Recommended Slicer: Cura, Repetier-Host

Monoprice Mini Delta Features

So, I’ll lay it all out quickly. Removing the Monoprice Mini Delta from its box reveals one of the most elegant 3D printers ever. But, you’ll have to get past this fact quickly: it’s a tiny contraption. The printing area is a mere 4.3-inch diameter that’s 4.7 inches tall (that’s 110 mm x 120 mm), greatly limiting what you can print. After all, it’s only a Mini Delta. Yet, there are more features you’d like.

Now, I’ll tell you of a couple of the Mini Delta’s nifty features. But first, I must tell you that you won’t endure the hassle of putting together an assembly kit from scratch. You get your printer fully assembled. Plus, there’s no power button to contend with; it’s plug-and-print.

Elegant Machine; Doesn’t Hold Your Hand

I recall picking the Monoprice out of the box through what now seems like tweetable moments. Then, another phase of reality promptly set in. The Mini Delta offered no onboard setup wizard. I had to figure out how to load filament and create my first print. No, it wasn’t the exception. That’s precisely what obtained with the Monoprice Mini Delta. It made a confusing introduction for every newbie I met who bought one.

Loading the printer with plastic meant you set the hot-end temperature manually. Do this before feeding filament through the extruder until it starts to emerge through the nozzle. Only when this happened could you get printing with your new Monoprice Mini Delta.

However, the newbies I’m mentoring in the maker way easily point to alternative printers as better options for beginners back then. Experienced 3D printer users with knowledge of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) got things right after a few tries.

Monoprice had to do something with such feedback. And they did. They put up a comprehensive online user manual that details how to set up the printer and load filament.

Need for Speed: Cheetah Among Printers, One Small Leap at a Time

The delta chassis of the Monoprice Mini Delta is both unmissable and unmistakable. Other cheap 3D printers belong to the Cartesian branch of 3D printers. Delta printers sport a characteristic circular print bed. Three triangular arms suspend the extruder above the print bed. It’s how the Delta name came about, and the Monoprice Mini Delta is just great at many things you won’t normally expect a 3D printer its size to do.

Delta printers are wired for speed, but their structure puts a lid on their printing capacity. The Mini Delta is no exception.

Elegance is Portable

Few 3D printers or machines, in general, look as cool as the Monoprice Mini Delta. If you’re a beginner, you will enjoy carrying it around to continue your printing experiments. “Where there’s a socket, there’s a print” becomes your new mantra. This mindset is the actual goal of the Mini Delta’s manufacturer, Monoprice.

The printer is sturdy, enabling it to withstand being moved about. It comes with a full metal case with a carrying handle to make travel more convenient.

Resolution is Everything: The Mini Delta Delivers

I’ve mentioned how delta printers guarantee fast printing. The maximum speed, Monoprice claims, is 150 mm per second. Speed is not proportional to quality, however. The Monoprice Mini Delta also sports a 50-micron layer resolution, so you’ll always have decent prints at worst.

Pros and Cons of the Monoprice Mini Delta

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Pros

• Great price plus great features
• Solid construction
• Instant and reliable prints out-of-the-box
• High-quality prints
• Easy to carry around

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Cons

• Automatic bed leveling needs improvement
• Intermediate users may not appreciate its simplicity
• Small build envelope

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Conclusions

For its price, not too many competitors will stand in the ring with the Monoprice Mini Delta. It’s a great little 3D printer that features the best of most worlds: printing speed, price, portability, and so forth. It’s got a few drawbacks, to be fair.

The final great thing I’ll tell you is if you ever run into any issues while using the Monoprice Mini Delta, just relax. There are several ways to reach technical support at Monoprice – phone, email, live chat, and even snail mail. The response is equally excellent. Your full-year warranty is alongside a 30-day money-back guarantee. Trust me; I’m yet to hear of anyone demanding their money back after buying the Mini Delta. You can also request a return, though you need to register first.

That said, this is certainly a printer I’ll urge you to invest in.