xTool P2 CO2 Laser Cutter Review

Conclusion – An excellent CO2 laser cutter

An excellent laser cutter for makers

The xTool P2 is an excellent product. It is solidly constructed, easy to use, and has more features than many competing products. If you owned one of these, it would be easy to start a crafting business. That said, it is a lot more expensive than hobbies level laser cutters/engravers.

At the time of writing, the xTool P2 is selling for £4,299 (discounted from £4,699). This makes investing in a P2 laser a huge expense. That said, this is much less expensive than the Glowforge Pro, which is arguably the P2’s main competitor.

Better than Glowforge?

Having used a Glowforge extensively, the xTool P2 is a breath of fresh air. While the Glowforge is easier to set up and use (thanks to its pre-calibrated laser, pre-filled coolant, and Proof-grade materials), the P2 is the more versatile product. It features a stronger laser, a larger bed size, stronger control options, and a wealth of upgrade options. If you are willing to put more effort into setup and learning the ins and outs of laser cutting, you will be rewarded with a more capable machine.

With support for Lightburn and xTool Creative Space, P2 users will have access to many features that Glowforge place behind a subscription paywall. With offline tools, xTool users are not at the mercy of servers to control its operation. That’s great news for anyone with a garage or workshop with a poor (or no) internet connection. It also ensures that the machine will remain operational even if xTool went under.

xTool Creative Space also includes a lot of profiles that will allow users to quickly start cutting and engraving materials. It also includes options that will allow users to quickly test settings that they can use for future projects with that material. If you are willing to uncover the best settings for your chosen materials, you will be blessed with great results. That said, we have never run into issues with xTool’s stock profiles for any materials that we have used.

The xTool P2 is an excellent tool

In our eyes, the xTool P2 sits between the Glowforge and full-on industrial laser cutters. xTool Creator Space has a lot of user friendly options for newcomers, and xTool has plenty of online guides to help newcomers get started. Even so, this laser cutter has the same control options as more advanced machines. It even supports the same Lightburn software.

xTool’s P2 is a powerful tool, and it can allow users to create incredible things. In this review, we have only scratched the surface of what is possible, and we hope to use this machine again in some future projects. The only downside of this machine is that it is very expensive. Thankfully, xTool has cheaper laser options for laser newcomers. That said, there is a reason why the P2 costs so much, and its because it is such an advanced product.

With its powerful XCS software suite, a wealth of upgrade options, and relative ease of use, it’s hard to argue that this machine does not offer great value for those in need of such a machine. The P2 is a powerful tool for makers and creatives, and it deserves our seal of approval.

You can join the discussion on the xTool P2 on the OC3D Forums.