Bambu Lab H3C swaps between nine print tools, from €2,499

Bambu Lab has announced the H3C, which it calls its first third-generation 3D printer. The pitch is multi-material printing without the usual penalty in time and wasted filament. The maker prices the base kit at €2,499 including tax in the EU and £2,199 including tax in the UK.

Nine tools instead of one swapping nozzle

The central part is a system Bambu Lab calls Swaptek: nine print tools, each with its own filament path and its own heating. Because every filament stays loaded and can be pre-heated, the printer does not have to retract one material before feeding the next. Bambu Lab says this cuts the switch between materials to under 6 seconds, with low priming. The maker also says it makes mixed nozzle sizes within a single print practical, along with tools for cutting, drawing and debossing.

The companion AMS 3H is a filament system built into the printer. Bambu Lab says it reads RFID tags on the spools, keeps them in sealed chambers, and has two slots that dry filament at up to 85°C, also while printing. Connect an older-generation AMS through print tool number 1 and the maker says the system reaches 24 materials in a single print.

For soft plastics there is the FlexFeed Extruder. It takes 1.75 mm and 2.85 mm filament and switches between them. Bambu Lab says that with dedicated 2.85 mm TPU, filament as soft as 75A prints at up to 3 times the flow rate of a classic printer.

Speed and specifications

The maker says the toolhead and X-axis assembly are 40% lighter, with acceleration of up to 25,000 mm/s² and movement at up to 1,400 mm/s. It claims prints finish on average more than 10% faster than on the previous flagship. Each tool reaches 350°C, and the chamber heats actively to 65°C. The build volume is 330 × 320 × 325 mm and the weight is 36.28 kg including the AMS 3H. Bambu Lab says an optional Vision Encoder keeps accuracy under 50 µm across the build volume.

Prices in Europe

Bambu Lab lists these prices for the EU and the UK, tax included:

• H3C with AMS H3: €2,499 and £2,199.
• H3C, AMS H3 and a filament bundle (PLA Palette and TPU): €2,579 and £2,269.
• Station bundle (H3C, AMS H3, PLA Palette, TPU and the open Bambu Station): €2,789 and £2,469.
• Station bundle (H3C, AMS H3, PLA Palette, TPU, the enclosed Bambu Station and the E1 air purifier): €3,039 and £2,699.

The announcement says the filaments in its pictures are sold separately. Bambu Lab has not given a shipping date for Europe.

Bambu Lab adds that its H2D, H2C and X2D printers will get hybrid printing with nozzles of different orifice sizes. It says some of this arrives this year and the rest should follow by the first quarter of 2027.