The Air 2 automatically opens at the touch of a button. The scoring and debossing are sharper. Be sure to check out my review of the wavy blade? However, I was able to engrave 3mm acrylic – it’s actually slightly less than 3mm, that’s just what they call it. We independently research our recommended products. The Cricut Maker works with an ever expanding array of tools designed to work with the Adaptive Tool System. And the tools work better than on the Explore Air 2. The Debossing Tip is essential for scrapbookers to create gorgeous foils. The Rotary Blade for fabric (discussed above), is the best electric cutter for fabric yet. It has a Smart Set Dial (which I love!) Want to learn about more Cricut blades? If you want a non-outlined font, you will need to select a WRITING font. Change the 2 new to a different color. What sort of storage and buttons and knobs are there? The Smart Set Dial enables you to easily cut over 100 different types of material with this craft cutter. The Explore Air 2 uses a drag blade technology that moves up and down and cuts side-to-side. It actually ranks as my top overall pick for best vinyl cutter. A: The Maker is better for cutting foam sheets because you can move the rollers all the way to the sides, so they won’t leave indents on your foam. Click here to buy the Engraving tool on the Cricut website, Click here to buy the Engraving tool on Amazon. The Cricut Maker does everything, and it does it well, an uncommon combination. It’s so much easier not having to change out tools between each individual use. I use a cloth or T shirt to do this! What exactly is the difference between these two cutting machines? As much as I dearly love the Cricut Maker, I just can’t ignore its price tag. Among the three Cricut machines the Explore Air 2 is the most popular model. Cricut Explore Air 2. This machine is regarded as the best deal, as it uses the same software as the Cricut Maker, it’s just not as powerful and doesn’t work with the new tools. A: No, the Rotary Blade and Knife Blade work with only the Cricut Maker. 1. Remove the protective cover from the new blade. The New Bold Cricut Explore Air 2 Family – There’s a Hue for You! The Explore Air 2 features embedded Bluetooth for wireless cutting. For the design of these Cricuts, I’ll discuss how the machine bodies look and feel when you use them. With the power of the Adaptive Tool System and the Knife Blade, you can actually cut fine details out of tough leather, matboard, and balsa wood. Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube, Copyright by The Charleston Crafted Blog, LLC, 2020 | Trellis Framework by Mediavine, How to lower price on Facebook Marketplace, my comparison of the Explore Air 2 and Maker, Soft metal – like aluminum, copper, brass, stainless steel. It is the better machine for fabric projects, 3d paper crafts, and for makers craving versatility out of their cutter. However, you could try to sell your used Explore Air 2 on eBay or Facebook Marketplace to get money to use towards a Cricut Maker. [Reader tip: You can also just email Cricut support with pictures to have your cartridges linked to your account!]. This is where you’ll find the most important differences between these two models of Cricut. (At least, since everything went digital!). For Fine-Point, Premium Fine-Point, Deep Point, and Deep-Cut Blades: Gently push the pin on the top of the housing and carefully pull out the blade from the bottom. It provides significantly improved cutting for fabric, 3d paper art, thick and dense materials, as well as other creative functions like embossing, engraving, and perforating. You can read my comparison of the Explore Air 2 and Maker , but the biggest benefit to the Maker is that all of the new blades that Cricut releases will be Maker-only. It has a 2x fast mode for cutting thin materials like vinyl and paper at twice the speed of the old Explore. I use the purple mat and add tape to the sides to hole my acrylic in place. I would say that anything under 3mm will work! FoxAlien LE-4040 Desktop Laser Engraver is the perfect device for home use. No more ironing your fabric onto HeatNBond or freezer paper before cuts, which will save tons of time. Well, the Cricut Maker can do a whole lot more than the Explore Air 2 can but comes with a bigger price tag to match. No complicated installation; simple and easy for beginners. Here is everything you need to know to get started! Looking past all the bells and whistles, something that must be on your mind is price. And now, the options have exploded with debossing, engraving, perforating, & more. Do you have a crafting tutorial you'd like to see? I had used a Silhouette Cameo before and really loved how easy Cricut Design Space was to use. It also only engraves the outline of a shape or word – it does not fill it in. The Air 2 also has a dual tool holder that can hold two different tools: blades, pens, or the scoring stylus. The Maker can cut 300+ different materials. A: Not that we’ve seen. This one is no contest. The most important step in engraving is to line up your material on the mat correctly. This machine can engrave/carve/cut different kinds of material such as wood, MDF, acrylic, cardboard, vinyl, and leather etc. Since the machine is a few years old now (released in 2016), it always on sale, and actually keeps getting cheaper and cheaper! If you can afford it, you'll have a versatile machine which will last you a long time. One of the things that I was most excited about when I got my Cricut Maker was the ability to swap out the blades for their new, hyper-specific tools. The model is an excellent tool if you need to cut wood, MDF, acrylic, cardboard, vinyl, leather, even pleated and powder-coated metal while on maximum speed (although it won’t cut it as nicely as wood).. Want to know which is the right machine for you? How big are they? The Maker uses the innovative Adaptive Tool System to cut, draw, score & more. The Maker was first released with three colors, then they added an additional two more. The Cricut Explore Air 2 was released in 2016, as the absolute fastest version of the Explore series. Cricut sells has washable fabric pens so you can cut and mark your fabric in one sweep, without anything getting out of alignment. And it really enables you to create more multimedia projects than you otherwise would even consider. The Explore Air 2 has a gorgeous design that comes in an amazing variety of full-body colors. Final Verdict: the versatile and powerful Cricut Maker! The Cricut Explore Air 2 was released in 2016, as the absolute fastest version of the Explore series. - All Rights Reserved. I actually prefer engraving to cutting vinyl or paper because there’s no weeding and no applying it to anything – once your design is ready, it’s so quick and easy! Cricut Explore Air 2. 3. I’ll be honest here, I was tempted to pick the Explore Air 2 as the winner here based solely on the color selection. 2. Set. The Smart Set Dial is a smooth knob where you can select the material you’ll be cutting, and the machine automatically selects the appropriate cut settings for Design Space to use. Feb 22, 2021 - Learn how to use your Cricut and making amazing papercrafts, decals, projects, and things with it! And there are all the regular and fabric pens as well. First, let’s take a look at the cutting technology that each machine uses. Similarly, Cricut removed the material dial, and instead the machine settings are set within the design program. It doesn’t look like the Air 2 will be getting additional tools any time soon (outside of new hacks that the community can try out).