Review: A machine that can laser, cut, print, draw and more? That’s the xTool M1 Ultra!
I’ve reviewed a range of xTool’s impressive laser engraving machines previously, so I was super-excited to get our hands on their newest offering: the world’s first 4-in-1 craft machine – the xTool M1 Ultra.
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Summary
The xTool M1 Ultra is a 4-in-1 craft machine, giving you laser engraving & cutting, inkjet printing, blade cutting and pen drawing functionality. This combination of functionalities makes it a fantastic product for creatives and artists to maximise their potential and productivity.
With its incredibly easy setup (simply unbox and you’re ready to go), modular design for changing functions, wide material compatibility and plenty of extra accessories to suit your needs, the xTool M1 Ultra could be the only tool you ever need!
- Buy now from xTool
How we tested
xTool provided me with their xTool M1 Ultra machine with an included 10W laser module and multi-tool carriage module (for use with blade tools and pen mode). The inkjet module was not included in the kit I received.
As well as the included material pack that comes with the xTool M1 Ultra, I was also provided with an additional material pack for use across the xTool machines that I have reviewed.
The packaging and machine is quite large but I was able to unbox and set up the machine safely by myself.
I tested each of the different functionalities on various materials, as well as trying a prepared project from the xTool DesignFind site, as well as using a combination of AI and stock images to source my designs.
I have previously reviewed the xTool P2 laser cutting machine, the xTool S1 laser engraving machine and the xTool F1 Ultra laser engraving machine.
The results
xTool M1 Ultra review
Key features
- Processing modes: Laser Mode, Blade Mode, Inkjet Printing, Pen Drawing, Multi-module Processing
- Laser power (Watts): 10W/20W Diode Laser
- Working area dimensions: 300mm x 300mm (295mm x 295mm with cutting blade and 296mm x 286mm in inkjet mode)
- Product dimensions: 620mm x 498mm x 178mm
- Product Weight: 112kg
- Max working speed: 400mm/s
- Maximum Laser Cutting Capacity: 10W: 6mm Basswood Board/ 20W: 10mm Basswood Board
- Maximum Blade Cutting Capacity: Fine-point Blade: 1.5mm/ Cutting Blade: 2.5mm
- Software compatibility: Android / iOS / iPad / Windows / MacOS
- Connectivity (USB, Wi-Fi): USB/Wi-Fi
- Warranty: 14-Day Return Service, 24-month Warranty
1. Functions 5/5
Laser engraving and cutting
Having previously reviewed other xTool laser engraving machines, I felt comfortable starting off by testing the laser module on the xTool M1 Ultra.
The laser module is completely self-contained and easy to install – you simply slide it in place and lock it in using the lever (I also discovered the machine will helpfully tell you if you haven’t locked it in place properly).
When it comes to laser cutting specifically, your material needs to be raised up off the base plate to ensure a clean cut, as well as preventing you from cutting into the base plate. The xTool M1 Ultra had a unique triangular prism riser - essentially a grill of triangular bars that you lock together and can put your material on top of. This is actually a clever little feature, as you can easily assemble and disassemble it and store it away when not in use.
Before starting my test project, I made sure to calibrate the laser module. This was an incredibly easy process. I simply placed a piece of basswood plywood on top of the prism riser, the machine engraved a cross into the wood, and then I moved the laser guide so that it overlapped the cross – that was it! Super-simple!
Even though I have tested more powerful lasers on other machines, I was still very impressed with the 10W laser module. My first test was using a free pre-made project from xTool’s DesignFind site for a simple wooden protractor.
This only took a matter of minutes to make and created clean and precise engravings and a perfect cut.
Following this test, I created a few more designs using the laser engraving function on a variety of materials, including cork and felt – all of which came out perfectly.
Upgrading to the 20W laser module would give you more power and the ability to cut slightly thicker materials, but in all honesty, I found the 10W module more than adequate.
Blade cutting
I was really intrigued by the potential of the blade cutting feature, and wasn’t disappointed by my tests. The basic xTool M1 Ultra packages come with a cutting blade and a fine point cutting blade, but there are also extra add-on options such as a rotary blade and foil transfer tip.
Each of these different blades comes in its own holder/casing with a safety lid, meaning all you have to do is pop it into the multi-tool carriage module (or the basic carriage for the fine point blade), clip it in place and you’re ready to start cutting.
Having done some paper cutting by hand before, I was fascinated while watching the xTool M1 Ultra process these jobs mechanically. The module smoothly rotates the chosen blade to cut curves cleanly and with incredible precision.
The fine point blade is designed for cutting paper, sticker, vinyl and more. I tested it out by cutting through some coloured card, which it did with ease.
I also tried it with some holographic sticker paper which produced a really nice result, although it was tricky to remove some of the smaller cut-out pieces.
The cutting blade is designed to be used with thicker materials, such as leather, matboard and even balsa wood. I tested this out by cutting a perfect circle from some relatively thick felt.
Here I encountered my only problem with the xTool M1 Ultra, which, in fairness, may have been due to my error rather than the machine.
You are supplied with two cutting mats to use when blade processing, a light grip mat for paper and thinner materials, and a fibre grip mat for fabrics. Both of these mats have a sticky surface on both sides, meaning the mat sticks to the baseplate of the machine, and your material stays in place on the mat.
Unfortunately, when I first tried to cut some felt, I’d neglected to ensure the mat was fully stuck down to the base of the machine (I had pressed it down but obviously not enough). When the blade hit my piece of felt it caused the mat to become unstuck and cut my felt incorrectly, forcing me to press the emergency stop button to cancel the process and reset.
Once reset, I made sure the mat was stuck down properly, and then repeated the process and the cutting blade processed a perfect circle quickly and smoothly.
Although this may well have been my user error, I noticed that the sticky mats quickly got dirty (felt fibres were left on it after use), so I imagine over time they could easily lose their stickiness and this could become a problem.
I personally would prefer there to be a more secure way of locking the mats in place rather than relying on a sticky surface.
Pen mode
If I’m being completely honest, the pen mode was the feature I was most fascinated with. While I have drawn all my life and have a background in art, my hands also shake quite a lot. So the idea of being able to draw perfectly straight lines with a machine really appealed.
The pen mode is incredibly simple to set up, and my kit came with 8 fine point pens (0.4mm) included. All you need to do is place your pen into the plastic holder, and then place that into the main carriage and clip it in place.
You don’t have to use the provided pens either, as long as it fits in the holder you can use any pen you like. When on pen mode you can also have the safety lid open, meaning it’s not a problem if you have particularly long pens.
The key to using pen mode is that each colour you want to use needs to be on a separate layer. If you’re making your design from scratch, this is quite easy to keep in mind. However, when using an existing design, I did find it tricky to create different coloured layers (there may well be a function/tool within the XCS software that can do this, but I ended up using some external software).
You tell the software what colour pen each layer will use, and then start processing. The machine will draw your first layer, then pause and tell you to change the pen to the required colour for the next layer.
It’s incredibly fun to watch the machine drawing, especially with the sometimes seemingly random order in which it decides to draw different elements (I’m sure there is some logic going on there).
My only criticism of this mode is that with drawing certain shapes, I found that the starting point where it places the pen down would sometimes vary. With some pens this wouldn’t matter, but with others it can make a more obvious mark, especially on curves.
Inkjet Mode
As mentioned earlier, my xTool M1 Ultra bundle did not include the inkjet module (be aware that it is not included with the basic bundle), so I’m unable to review this feature.
The key selling point of the inkjet module is the ability to print on materials other than paper, such as wood and fabric for example.
2. Instructions and Software 4/5
The basic instructions included in the user manual are clear and easy to understand for getting your machine unpacked and set up ready for use. There are also instructions for how to attach each of the different modules which is good to see before starting.
Once you’re ready to start, you can scan the QR code in the manual or head to the Xtool website and find the support section for your specific machine.
There are a lot of tutorials and video guides available, as well as the community forum where you can find questions and answers from other users.
Currently, when you purchase the xTool M1 Ultra machine it comes with 15+ free courses included. I didn’t have access to these, but I imagine they would be useful for complete beginners as the combination of functions, safety advice and material specifications can be a little overwhelming.
You can find instructions and guidance for almost everything you would want to do with the xTool M1 Ultra on their website, but it’s not always the easiest to find – and while video tutorials are useful, sometimes you want a step-by-step picture guide for specific tasks.
Once you have set up your machine, you will need to download the free XCS software (xTool Creative Suite). Within the software, you can start your design straight away, access the support site and beginners guides, check out the material easyset library where you can find parameters and settings for different materials, as well as the DesignFind library where you can find project files made by the xTool community (paid and free options available).
I find the software quite easy to use for processing pre-made designs, however when it comes to creating or editing designs, I don’t think it’s always that user-friendly or obvious.
Having previous experience with editing software I’d say that it is fine for basic tasks, but if you wanted to do anything more specialist (such as making image masks, vector tracing or splitting an image into layers), then you would probably need to study the support material in depth.
3. Compatibility 4/5
When it comes to compatibility with different materials, the xTool M1 Ultra really does give you a huge amount of potential. In fact, you can view all of the possibilities on their material list.
You can laser engrave kraft paper, cardboard, cork, wood, metal or even brick; blade cut fabric, vinyl, heavy cardstock or even Kevlar; or inkjet print on various types of wood, paper, card or felt… and that’s just a few of its capabilities!
There are some important caveats which xTool does make clear, such as your inkjet printing will have different results depending on the absorption rate of the material. And while you can technically laser engrave and cut acrylic, it is only advised for opaque acrylic only.
The other area to be aware of with compatibility is safety. While you might technically be able to engrave or cut something, whether it’s safe to do so is another matter. Felt is a good example for this - you can laser engrave on it, but the power required to cut it with a laser poses a fire risk.
I did find some occasions where the Material EasySet Library would tell me that a material was not compatible with my machine when I knew that it would be capable of processing it. This is a little frustrating, but you can find recommended settings for all materials in the support section… of course, doing anything not recommended is completely at your own risk!
There’s also plenty of add-ons to increase the range of materials you can work with, such as the riser base and rotary kit to allow you to work on deeper and curved materials.
One area where I think users could be frustrated with compatibility is with replacement consumable parts. Take the cutting blade for example – that one single blade is only going to give you so many cuts before it either becomes dull or breaks. But it’s not just a regular craft/scalpel blade that you can replace yourself, it’s a custom part that you will need to order directly from xTool… and you don’t get any spare blades included.
The same goes for the inkjet module - you’re going to need to order replacement cartridges directly from the manufacturer. Of course, needing replacement parts that are specific to your device is nothing new, but with ink cartridges being known to be bad for the environment, it would have been nice to see a more eco-friendly refillable option.
4. Maintenance and Safety 5/5
Overall the xTool M1 Ultra is an excellent machine that is very safe to use. This is particularly important with the laser functionality. As well as helpful safety videos and advice online, the main protection comes from three highly sensitive flame detection sensors and the light filtering lid, allowing you to clearly see your design and what’s happening inside the machine without the need for goggles.
There’s also an auto stop function, so if the lid is opened or the machine moves in any way while functioning it will stop instantly.
I particularly liked the fact that the xTool M1 Ultra comes with a smoke extraction system that comes with included filters that can easily be replaced (I was amazed at how dirty my first filter was after just two days of use).
In terms of general maintenance, the general calibration processes are incredibly simple to do and each has an accompanying video. The same goes for more complex maintenance (none of which I had to do), such as cleaning the flame detection sensors or probe and laser lens.
In my experience, the xTool M1 Ultra is an incredibly easy and safe machine to use and maintain.
5. Value for money 4.5/5
What’s in the box:
- xTool M1 Ultra
- Power cable and adapter/USB cable
- Smoke exhaust module & 8 filters
- 10W Laser module
- Multi-function carriage
- Fine cutting blade
- Cutting blade
- Pen holder
- Fine point pen x 8
- Material pack
- Triangular prism holder x 4 and triangular prism x 10
- LightGrip cutting map and FabricGrip cutting mat
- USB key x 2
- Lens mount (spare part) x 2
- Lens mount rotating piece
- Screwdriver
- Grease
- User manual
At the time of writing this, xTool M1 Ultra 10W basic bundle pack is available for £999.00, which comes with a 14-Day Return Service, 24-month Warranty and 60-Day price guarantee.
There are three more 10 W bundles available increasing in price:
Advanced bundle: Includes all of the above plus M1 Ultra Ink Module, Rotary Blade and Foil Transfer Tip
Deluxe bundle: Includes all of the above plus M1 Ultra Ink Module, Rotary Blade, Foil Transfer Tip, Air Assist, Riser Base, Honeycomb Panel, RA2 Pro.
Ultimate Craft Bundle: Includes all of the above plus M1 Ultra Ink Module, Rotary Blade, Foil Transfer Tip, Air Assist, Riser Base, Honeycomb Panel, RA2 Pro, 12'' x 10'' Smart Press, Mini Press, Smart Press Platform, Smart Press Mat.
While these machines do come with a significant price tag, it is competitive with other laser engraving products on the market. Taking into consideration the 4-in-1 mult-tool functionality and the superior safety features, I consider the xTool M1 Ultra to be very good value for money (albeit a bit of an investment for individuals).
Our verdict: Should you buy the xTool M1 Ultra
I think the xTool M1 Ultra is a fantastic machine that would be of huge value for many different types of creative people.
Whether you’re looking to specialise in creating a specific product as a small business or are an artist or crafter looking for new ways to expand your creative skills, the xTool M1 Ultra is the perfect product to enable you to incorporate technology into your craft.
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Looking for more laser engraving machines?
If you’re looking to get creative with laser engraving but without the need for a large machine, check out our xTool F1 Ultra engraving machine review.
