Bambu Lab has launched the R1, a 55W CO2 laser cutter and engraver designed for the desktop and capable of cutting and engraving card, wood, clear acrylic and leather, and engraving glass, stone and coated metals.
Prices at $2,499 (excl. tax / incl. shipping) or €2,499 (incl. tax / excl. shipping) pre-orders for the R1 start on 22 September 2026 direct from Bambu Lab.
Capable of carving through up to 18 mm black walnut plywood and 20 mm acrylic, the working area is 600 × 300mm, while an optional Conveyor accessory allows the R1 to take stock up to 3,000mm long – enough to bring furniture-scale work within reach.
Auto Laser Alignment tackles the issue of laser and mirror set up – a laser alignment sensor (a plate with a crosshair) is mounted on the toolhead, and the R1 reads the beam off the crosshair, locates where the path is off, and corrects it using motorised mirror actuators in around one minute.
Before cutting, the R1 computes where the material and design sit, how high the surface is and how the toolhead will move across it. This TriSense System handles all three through cameras, lasers and encoders working as one.
A BirdsEye Camera captures the whole work area, the Toolhead Camera locates exactly what you are cutting, and the Pinpoint Laser marks the spot right on the material. A Distance Measurement Laser reads surface height and sets focus automatically, on flat and curved surfaces alike.
XY encoders report toolhead position in real time, keeping every move on course. In practice, that means engraving evenly across a curved object such as a bowl, finding and detailing objects small enough to be fiddly by hand, and tracing a printed outline – the shape of a sticker, for instance – then cutting along it with accuracy under 0.2 mm.
Bambu Lab state that much of the calibration and motion technology in the R1 has been developed from its proven 3D printing technology, including algorithms for vibration compensation, direction change and syncing the laser power to the speed with which it moves (slow sections of an engraving can burn darker and fast sections come out pale).
A Vision Encoder (sold separately) can calibrate and correct the mechanical drift that will inevitably occur over long use, allowing users to maintain the R1 accuracy of 0.1 mm across 600 mm of travel.
Classified Class 1 under IEC 60825-1 – the safest rating for a consumer laser. In standard enclosed use, the beam stays fully contained, with no goggles or separate room required. An extra fan on the right side pulls air in one side and pushes it out the other for a steady flow.
Bambu Lab say that for long stock, as it runs through the pass-through opening, incoming air forms a curtain that holds fumes inside until the exhaust takes them. An E1 Pro Air Purifier (sold separately) can connect directly to R1’s exhaust outlet.
Other safety considerations state that opening the lid mid-job stops the laser at once, a dedicated sensor watches for flames, an Auto Fire Extinguishing System (sold separately) can put our a fire on its own, and an emergency stop cuts all power.
For more news and features on how Bambu Lab equipment is being used by professional designers and engineers, click here for all our previous content.
