Cricut’s New Lineup of Cutting Machines Promise Bigger, Faster and Greater Accuracy
It’s been nearly four years since Cricut refreshed its central products, but today the company is updating the popular Maker and Explore cutting machines and you can buy them now. The new Cricut Explore 4 and Cricut Maker 4 get big upgrades, focused almost exclusively on improving what the previous versions do well.
You won’t get very far in the home crafting space these days without hearing the name Cricut. Most of the company’s direct competition has either disappeared or become considerably less relevant over the last couple of years, a fact immediately evident when you walk in to any craft store. You don’t have to look far at all to see hand-made stickers, iron-on clothing art, vinyl decals and beautiful greeting cards across Etsy, nearly all of which have been made with the help of these popular machines.
When it comes to physical look and feel, at first glance the biggest thing to separate the 4 series from its predecessors is a bolder array of color options. Where the 3 series had a lighter, more pastel shade to its exterior you will find deeper, richer color options for this upgrade. Both the Maker and Explore look nearly identical to the previous model, but if you look underneath the primary cutting blade you will fine a small white plastic foot. This shell is hiding a new optical sensor aimed at providing greater accuracy when cutting printed designs, like stickers or iron-on designs. A light will shine from under the plastic to illuminate whatever you are trying to cut, ensuring it will function the same no matter how bright your craft space is.
The new features you can’t immediately see are aimed specifically at Cricut’s massive home crafting audience. Cricut’s 3 series offered a significant cutting speed improvement when you used its self-branded Smart Materials, and the 4 series is bringing those same speed improvements to just about everything you would cut on one of Cricut’s cutting mats. For Smart Materials users, especially those who prefer to buy the larger rolls of vinyl, the 4 series now also allows you to design and cut projects up to 12 feet long. If you’re not using Smart Materials, you are only limited by the longer 24-inch cutting mat.
Many of the differences between the Explore and Maker cutting machines remain the same. Cricut’s $400 Maker 4 supports a much wider variety of cutting tools and pressure options, allowing you to cut leather and fabric and even thin pieces of wood with additional accessories. The Explore 4, while less capable, still cuts a massive array of thin materials at a much lower $250 starting price. Both will be available to purchase alone, or with bundles which include materials to get started.
