The Elegoo Mars 3 is a step up on the Mars 2 Pro with 143 x 90 x 165 mm of printable volume. The Mars 2 Pro offers less in all directions, with only 130 x 82 x 160 mm of printable volume.

That means the Elegoo Mars 3 has a shade over 21% more build volume than the Mars 2 Pro.

The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Elegoo Mars 3 print at approximately the same speed. Both use monochrome LCDs and COB lenses as core technological components of their light engines and masks, so, generally speaking, they are similar if not the same.

You will find light-on times of as little as a second or two with both, meaning quick printing is a given for the Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3.

Perhaps the only difference in print results between the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3 is found in the print resolution.

The Mars 2 Pro’s LCD carries 2560 x 1620 pixels across a printable area of 130 x 82 mm, whereas the Mars 3 has 4098 x 2560 pixels across a printable area of 143 x 90 mm. These numbers mathamagically equate to a pixel size of 50 microns (0.05 mm) in the X- and Y- axes for the Mars 2 Pro and 35 microns (0.035 mm) for the Mars 3.

That is a fine degree of difference and arguably an unnoticeable one on many models you may print. However, there’s something to be said for the crispness in fine details, textures, and patterns that a higher-resolution 3D printer can bring. For artists producing jewelry or tabletop gamers with intricate models, we can appreciate the difference this brings.

Both the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3 feature a single linear rail to guide the print plate gantry up and down the Z-axis. Driven by a single stepper motor buried in the base of the printer and running along a single leadscrew, the motion system for both is simple and robust.

Neither showed signs of play or instability when under review.

Another crucial difference between the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and the Mars 3. The Mars 2 Pro has an activated carbon filter embedded in the base of the printer. The Mars 3 does not.

This is, in our opinion, a cynical decision on Elegoo’s part. If air quality were a significant concern of the machines, then it should be designed as standard for all of them, should it not? It currently isn’t, with only its “Pro” machines including the air filtration units.

So it seems like the Mars 2 Pro wins out here, doesn’t it? Not so fast.

The filter in the Mars 2 Pro is said to be activated carbon, which typically has a limited lifespan. So by nature, this air filter is consumable and will need replacing. Except, it’s buried in the base of the machine and requires a labor-intensive disassembly of the printer to get at, and Elegoo doesn’t sell the replacement carbon, nor give instruction on how often you should change it, how to change it, or any of the expected manufacturer guidance. It may work for a limited time, but after the carbon provided in the printer has exhausted itself, the printer might as well not have a filter—a gimmick.

Both the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3 use large transparent-bottomed resin vats for the printing medium. This is exactly as found on every budget desktop resin 3D printer in recent years and will be familiar to users of such machines.

There is a crucial difference in how you load the resin vat, though. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro requires you to slide the vat into position from the front of the machine. Whilst we can appreciate not having to lift up a wide and shallow tray of toxic liquid into the air, it does result in a moment of bated breath against potential scratches in the LCDs surface. No one should aim to be sliding against that surface, not least with a metal vat that could’ve picked up all kinds of foreign objects on its underside while out of the machine.

Conversely, the resin vat of the Elegoo Mars 3 drops in from above, lining itself up via two exposed pass-through screws used with nuts to fix the vat in place.

Both systems tighten using nuts, although the Mars 2 Pro’s do not come completely free. Butter-fingered users may find themselves dropping the Mars 3’s nuts into the resin tank from time to time.

Both resin vats are metal, with FEP film pulled taut beneath them. The Mars 3’s film is marketed as “FEP 2.0”, which strikes us as a nonsense term to throw use since FEP is the acronym for fluorinated ethylene propylene. Perhaps it is better. We experience no noticeable improvement between reviewing both machines.

The build plates on the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3 both use a rough sand-blasted texture for print adhesion, which ensures prints stick well to the metal during printing.

Both feature slanted top surfaces for resin runoff after printing, and both feature Elegoo’s simple two-screw ball socket tightening system.

The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro’s and Mars 3’s USB ports are positioned on the fronts of the machines. This gives convenient access, yes, but also the possibility of spilling resin into the port, also yes. A taste-splitting decision, we think, but at least there’s no fumbling behind the machine to plug in the USB stick anymore.

ChiTuBox firmware is what’s “under the hood” for both the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3, so expect a similar experience no matter which you choose.

The accompanying software may differ, though, with the Mars 2 Pro using the Basic ChiTuBox slicing software out of the box, and the Mars 3 comes with a one-year free subscription to the new ChiTuBox Pro Slicer.

Find out more

ChiTuBox Goes Pro: Premium Slicer Adds Analysis, Per Model Settings, Tagging, and More

We recently had the chance to review a beta version of ChiTuBox Pro and were quite intrigued by the many new possibilities, adjustments, nifty features, and the information it provides. Those findings carried on to our experience with the full version when reviewing the Mars 3. It does make preparing prints all the more convenient with auto-repair and orientation, more advanced support settings, and much more. But it is by no means a must. You can prepare your prints with the Basic version just as well, especially if you don’t want to shell out the $169 per anum after your free year of use.

Both software accepts STL and OBJ 3D model files and export in the appropriate ChiTuBox file type for the respective Mars machines. Additionally, the software also exports in a variety of file types for use with other resin 3D printers (so your experience gained with the Mars series of printers can go further.)

Does the Mars 3 print noticeably better than the Mars 2 Pro? Kinda.

The casual observer might struggle to see a difference in quality between the same print on a Mars 2 Pro and the Mars 3. However, we expect that those invested in getting the most detail possible into their prints, will see a clear difference in the clarity and sharpness the Mars 3’s higher-resolution LCD affords.

If you do not specifically need that additional, barely perceptible crispness in your prints and don’t expect them to be under close observations, then the Mars 2 Pro is enough. If you do, then the Mars 3 and 4K can do something for you that few other desktop resin printers can.

It’s a little unfair to compare the prices of the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro and Mars 3 at the time of writing this piece, so take all that follows as a snapshot of now rather than a definitive verdict on the value of these printers.

The Mars 3 is currently under preorder (and seemingly sold out) exclusively at the Elegoo website for the uber-competitive launch price of $300. Keep in mind the included one-year Pro subscription, worth $169 on its own. The Mars 2 Pro is on special for $260.

As a device in look, feel and print potential, the Mars 3 is more than good for that $40 difference. But that difference is unlikely to remain $40, and even then, you can’t get one anymore. However, we have it from Elegoo that the final product price should not be too far off and remain in the $300-ish area.

On the flip side, the Mars 2 Pro, at $260, is arguably not $60 more of printer than the $200 Elegoo Mars 2, which prints just as fast and detailed but is a little smaller.