Love prusa but noticing changes...
I love prusa for its general dependability and customer support...but as they have grown, I have noticed a shift. I used my MK4s CONSTANTLY and whenever I had an issue, I knew that I could ask questions and get it working again. This is why I had no hesitation in upgrading my originally Mk4 to a MK4s and then with a MMU3 followed by an enclosure. All from kits because again I knew I could get great support. This is also why when the core one was announced I jumped right in to upgrade kit for my printer.
As prusa has grown however things started to shift a bit from my perspective. At first I noticed that the little chat bubble that pops up to get 24/7 chatline help started showing up less and less. It used to be on most pages of the website. Then it was only in the assembly guides. Now...its pretty much GONE. Yes you can still find it...but its not even listed on the help tab anymore.
I have also noticed that as upgrades are released, there has been more and more of a direction that focuses on "release it and let the community figure out the kinks" (early MMU3 and core one integration for example not having a design to keep it compact and preserve enclosure setup....something that should have been ready at launch).
I have also started having bad customer support experiences as well. For example, I had an assembly issue resulting in needing to send it in. (specifically, I was having problems getting the belt to work properly and after many many sessions with tech support decided I need help). Following that, they sent me a box. I box it up and send the pictures in for approval. Only to be told that sending it in is not covered by my warranty and they will be charging me the cost of a new printer assembled if I send it. At that point I pretty much gave up and my core one has been sitting unfinished for almost a year now.
To be clear I am not coming on here trying to complain. My goal is to share my experiences and my perception. My hope is that by sharing these experiences, it might help Prusa work to preserve the customer positive approach that has brought so many people to buy their printers.
RE:
At first I noticed that the little chat bubble that pops up to get 24/7 chatline help started showing up less and less. It used to be on most pages of the website. Then it was only in the assembly guides. Now...its pretty much GONE. Yes you can still find it...but its not even listed on the help tab anymore.
I cannot confirm that. For me the chat popup is always right there, starting on the main page www.prusa3d.com -- see the screenshot.
Otherwise I don't have much statistics. I have used my Core One (kit, my first Prusa printer) for 9 months now and have contacted support twice, regarding the same issue. The first time I felt like they made me jump through some unnecessary hoops, which included buying a small spirit level and making a video of it travelling up and down with the bed. But eventually they provided a generous set of spare parts.
RE: Love prusa but noticing changes...
My two interactions with support are what led me here. They couldn't figure out why my printer was crashing on long diagonals (the grounding problem) and why I was getting nozzle probing errors (the PWM interference problem) so finally they pointed me to the forum to get answers instead.