The one thing that we don’t yet know is the filter performance. You can see how large that filtration system is to allow you to run the laser without any external venting. We have no idea if the GF filter will perform to those levels (as promised), since we have no indication yet of its performance.
But comparing the two is not a fair comparison, as the price differentials are substantial.
There’s an old trick I remember from years ago, which I used for a client who had a fax machine. I’d have to redo it again with current software, but the gist of it is this:
Set up a Linux box running Samba, then create a network print spool for CUPS that accepts Postscript files but uses Ghostscript to convert it to another format.
In the case of faxing, this was to TIFF, and it would send it off to whatever program.
It’d be trivial to make an API call to the Glowforge cloud, if they made it so.
I’m sure there will be a “print from Word” solution at some point, just not release date.
I’m not a GF fanboy but I have zero concern that the filter will work as advertised/promised. Nothing I’ve seen from GF indicates they’d release it if it isn’t working as promised. Delayed yes. But ill-functioning no.
If I thought they weren’t going to be able to make this whole thing work as advertised I’d move on and buy a used Epilog. I don’t understand why anyone with fundamental doubts would be hanging around.
When is the question I have. They have not proven they can’t engineer a machine. They have proven they can’t meet a schedule but they have proven their engineering ability. Yeah, there are some things we haven’t seen, but everything we have seen works. I have full confidence in their engineering abilities.
At this point in time its a cautious optimism. The delays are indicative of not just production problems, but that things were very underestimated. At this point in time assuming no further delays I’ll get my machine 2 years after I placed the order. There is little point in cancelling now.
Had the initial order or any of the early delays been more realistic with the schedule, I would have cancelled.
Still, waiting on July/August!
No argument there. Just bringing out a product that already exists but with no factory tooling takes a year. They’re engineers. Engineers are always optimistic. If they’re good they’ve never failed to find solutions to problems. So when starting something fresh they can see in their minds how everything will work. Prototypes work well based on expectations (it’s only a prototype after all). Moving to production is hard. The prototype is 80% of the end product but the last 20% takes 90% of the time 
Add software to the mix - with the same optimism (the only people more optimistic than an entrepreneurial engineer is a programmer) and you’ve got two tracks of work intertwined and subject to misguided optimism. It always takes longer. Lots longer. And then some more even after you’re “almost there”.
Most people never see the sausage making so they’re surprised when they are part of a Kickstarter or pre-release pre-order startup funding project. I wouldn’t be surprised if we were still a year away but I don’t expect that now. Looks like the hardware is good and it’s software from here in - and since they’re willing to slipstream features into the software post release it looks like they’re in control of the release date now.
Given how things have been communicated till now, I wouldn’t be surprised either.
After the 3rd delay I am basically just waiting for my unit. Once I get it I am sure my excitement will get back to the level it was during the first 14 months after ordering.
I worked at a food plant, the engineers redesigned the plant practically from ground up (on the inside)Then they found a flaw…dun dun duuuuunnn. The seawall side of the plant was not up to “code”. Let’s just put it this way, 15 million over budget. So I believe we be doing goodly.