Did Cricut Ruin the Maker? Cricut Maker 5 First Impressions 😳

Y'all, this looks good. It's little. Look, it's gotten so tiny. Is that not crazy? Oh my goodness, my friends. Listen, Cricut has been getting busy lately and I am here for it. They just came out yesterday with the Cricut Maker 5 and guess what? We just grabbed one at our local Michael's, got it home, and today we're gonna do a first impression, unbox it, check it out. I'm pretty intrigued about this because y'all, look at this thing. It looks just like a Cricut Explore 5, okay? So is it any different? There's some things that people are saying. I wanna check it out. I wanna see what I think about this and it's going to be so much fun. Are you ready? Let's dive in. All right, y'all, we're getting our fabric scissors and we're opening this bad boy up. We're going to see. My first impression is y'all, it is small and it is lightweight. This is not a heavy machine. I've been lifting quite a bit of weights in the gym but this does not feel heavy at all. So we've got to figure out how heavy this thing is, which kind of shocks me because one of the things about the Maker to have the ability to do what it does requires quite a bit of just simple weight. So this is the essential bundle. They were out of stock of the higher end bundle at our local store. So this is where you get the essential bundle kit. Now, one thing I think is a little interesting is that they're only selling like these bundles or these kits. They're not selling the standalone machine. This retails for right over $400. So it's not crazy, but it is, you know, you're getting bundles of stuff. So in the essential bundle kit, this is what you get. You get the value card stock, which is interesting. You get the premium printable vinyl. So you're getting that. You're getting the insert card set. And then you're also getting the smart iron on. And I'm just going to be the first one to tell y'all if you followed me for a while, you know I am not a big fan of smart vinyl or when it comes to smart vinyl, smart HTV, you can cut this without a mat. It sounds so cool, but either I'm too old school. I just, when I cut with it, it doesn't feel like any material that you would want to use. Like it seems harder to use without a mat than just using a mat. So we don't really use these. I think it's not great for experience, like your first experience using machine. I actually don't think some of these are that great. The transfer tape, I do have to say they've stepped it up. I do love this transfer tape. It's working really well for me lately. I think you'll love it too. Again, smart vinyl, not my favorite. They're giving you a practice sheet and quite a bit of other colors. And the color choices are pretty good. They're giving you a gold, a red for Christmas. So that's pretty cool. So you can do some really fun projects, white, black, things like that. Not too bad if you want to work with that. And then it's going to let you know how to get started, how to set up your account, cricket.com slash setup. They have a really simple setup process. We have our user guide. So this right here, they have really simplified this guide throughout the years, which I think is incredibly helpful for novice and people just getting started with a cricket. They're also giving you safety and warranty details right here. So that's awesome. And then they're going to let you know again that it is the Maker 5 Essential Bundle. So you can see this right here. What's interesting, is there anything in here? Oh, okay. So this is cool. I do, I actually really, really like that they're giving you these tools in here in the bundle. So here's what you're getting. You're getting a cricket spatula. I love this thing. If you're a paper crafter, do not lose this, okay? You need it. Next up, you're getting a cricket traditional weeding tool. Do not lose this if you're using vinyl, really anything. This is your scraper tool by Cricut. This is great to have, super fun. All right, so you're getting two blades. One is your traditional scoring blade, which if you've followed the Explore 5, they have totally re-imagined how we work with any of these scoring tools, things like that. Again, not my favorite, but it's not horrible. You know what I'm saying? So this is the traditional scorer. And then they're giving you an engraver too, which is something that you didn't see in the Explore machine because engraving is something that they're kind of leaving to this premium top-of-the-line machine. Now, we just have the essential bundle here, okay? There are two more premium bundles where you can get more blades, more accessories, because the thing about this machine, and the thing I didn't love that they're kind of bringing back now is that they're setting you up with the blades you need to do what the machine says it does, which is nice because for a year or two, they were selling machines with no additional blades, things like that. So I do appreciate some of these bundles to just give us as consumers what we need to do what it's promised, because it is a little weird when it's like, we can cut all this stuff, and then you get the machine, and it's like, you can only cut 1 4th, and it's like, buy this blade, buy this blade, buy this blade. So if you are here, and you're looking for your first Cricut, I'm going to probably recommend one of these higher-end maker bundles so that you get all of those blades that are available to you for it. So anyway, these are good. Do not lose these whatsoever. And then with the essential bundle that is available, it has a little like paper, like it's literally paper, tape measure, you can throw this away. And then you're also getting the new re-imagined Cricut pins. So you can see this here as well. So this is just the black marker, very simple, very easy. And then yeah, what I also love about this bundle, guys, this is so cool. You're getting the paper trimmer. I didn't hear many people talk about these bundles. So I'm super excited. This paper trimmer is like your first, guys, this was my first paper trimmer in 2011. It wasn't white. It was like green and pink, but this is literally how I started making cards ever for the first time. This is iconic. This is like a true to me paper, like paper cutting. I love it. I think we're getting back to paper crafting like never before. So you need one of these. And then speaking of that, they're giving you, they're putting their money where their mouth is. You're getting one of their Cricut design card mats. So if you've ever thought about making cards with your Cricut, this Cricut card mat is pretty legit. Let me know in the comments down below if you want me to make a video using this card mat because it is pretty innovative and I think you'd be really impressed. So let me know if you want more details on that. And then before we get to the star of our show, they are giving you my tried and true favorite, favorite, favorite mat, the light grip mat. This is the blue light grip mat. I think it's interesting they're giving you a blue light grip mat for a Cricut Maker because with the Cricut Maker, you know, there's a lot of different mats you can use. You can use light grip, you can use standard grip that's green. There's strong grip that is purple. There's fabric grip that is pink. So many different ones. But listen, I think Cricut loves this blue mat just as much as me. So that's pretty cool. So before we dive in, take a look at this machine right here. Y'all, we're about to do the big unboxing. So let me grab it out. I'm excited to feel it. I'm excited to see it. And I have the Explorer that we can compare it to. So, woo-hoo, oh my God. Y'all, this looks good. It's little. Hi, Cricut Maker 5. Y'all, okay, this is like a paperweight. I'm shook. This is so lightweight. I love this. It feels a little elevated. But again, at the same time, it's like, is this it? You know what I'm saying? So anyway, let's take the box out of the way. There is nothing else in the box. I will hand this box over. And yeah, look at this. So before, it's sealed. So this is interesting. Like, it is literally sealed up, which I find it to be so funny. All right, we're going to bring in, so this is the Cricut Maker 5. We're bringing in the Explorer, or the Cricut Maker 4. Y'all, look at this size comparison. Look, it's gotten so tiny. Is that not crazy? It pretty much cut off this entire side here. So I imagine that being, you know, quite a bit more cost-effective. And, you know, you can definitely tell that it has, you know, lost a lot of weight. I will say it still feels sturdy and it feels like a solid machine. One thing that I think is interesting is that, I think from a design, like design perspective, they have made this machine feel a little bit more elevated just from touch. And I'll tell you exactly what I mean by that here in a moment. So let me go ahead and bring in the Explorer 5 and then we'll talk about it. All right, my friends, here is our first impressions. This is the Cricut Maker 5. This is the Cricut Explore 5. Now, what I'll tell you is that this Explorer 5 is like glossy. And then this one right here has like, kind of like a satiny finish. I wouldn't call it matte necessarily, but more of a satin finish. It feels a little bit more elevated. And then this right here is more of a simplistic, glossy finish to kind of, for you to be able to tell them apart. What I want to say, just as a critic and a fan, these have started to feel less like cutting machines and more like printers. That's just like the first thing that I think about when I see these now, is they look and feel more like a printer for better or for worse. A lot of people have feedback about this right here. I think, okay, y'all, can I just be real with you? I think Cricut is just trying to like, next they're gonna start selling dust covers. I don't remember if you all remember this era of Cricut, but back in the day, we had dust covers. People would sew you a Cricut dust cover. And I'm like, are they trying to bring that back? Because they're intentionally leaving this open. I don't know about you, but anytime that my Cricut's dusty, it's going to drive me nuts. So I'm not entirely sure why we have this opening. I'm going to assume it's for cost-saving purposes, because remember, at Cricut, we're in a world of tariffs. We're in a world where shipping's more expensive than ever. Costs to make things are more expensive than ever. So they're probably simplifying as much as possible, making it as light as possible, as easy to use. So that brings me the next question of concern. Is this Cricut Maker 5 going to hold up to the gold standard of the Cricut Maker lineup, right? So many of my amazing friends and colleagues and clients have been using their legacy Cricut Maker since 2017, as have I. You know, I've upgraded throughout the years, but many of these machines still do work. So let's talk about some of the features that people are going crazy over for this new machine. It'll be fast. There aren't that many, except this big re-imagine. There's just a few certain ones that I want to make sure that we cover in today's video. So first of all, let's address the elephant in the room. This machine is now 30% smaller. So you are going to be able to travel with it easier. It's going to, you know, fit in your space better. If you like that, if space is of an issue, you are going to really appreciate the new Maker 5, as well as the Explorer 5, and we could have a whole video on which one should be right for you this holiday season. All right, one of the big things people are chatting it up on the internet, in the Facebook groups, is the clearance that they have brought to this Maker 5. Before, the clearance, when I say clearance, I'm talking about this right here, being able to like pass through the machine, was a 2.4 millimeter clearance, all right? That clearance has increased to 3.0 millimeter clearance, which is really, really impressive, really, really good. I am really glad they did that, because let me tell you, the Cricut is powerful. The Cricut can cut through so much stuff, but you have to be able to actually pass it through. So that was a big holdup, and something I'd been waiting for them to be able to do, because listen, they are competing with laser machines. We are competing in a world with UV printers. So we have to be able to elevate what we got as far as we can. So this was a really easy lever for them to pull. I was just talking to someone on my team this morning, and they're like, Tanner, Cricut is the apple of the cutting, you know, of the craft world. And I'm like, a hundred percent. You know, they're gonna reinvent the same machine, giving us one little tweak each year. And this is one that I'm really glad they did give us right away with this machine, so that we can now cut those thicker materials with those blades already. So one thing that I thought was really fascinating between the Cricut Maker 4, the Cricut Explore 5, and the Cricut Maker 5 is the speed. They have not increased the speed of cutting in any of these machines. So the cutting speed has stayed the same. So if you have a Cricut Maker 5, if you have a Cricut Explore 5, if you have a Cricut Maker 4, the speed across the board is the same cutting on your standard cut settings, of course. So this would be comparing cardstock, something that all three machines cuts really, really well. So if you're looking to upgrade, and that, you know, speed is of an essence for you, but you have a Cricut Maker 4, things like that, you don't really need to upgrade because the speed isn't getting any faster. And there's no necessary blades that this machine has that your other machines do not have. For example, one of the things that I am most disappointed, and I'm just being honest, this is just friend to friend, that they kind of don't have anymore is the clamp A and clamp B. They do have the area for the marker, but they no longer have a clamp A for the scoring stylus. And that, my friends, is very disappointing to me because as somebody who crafts really fast, is all about speed and efficiencies, this slows me down having to come over here, open it up, take out this blade, put in the scorer, and then rinse and repeat, things like that. It's just not my vibe, but you can tell that Cricut is definitely, you know, going through this re-imagine with this new setup, and it is what it is, you know what I'm saying? Like, I don't think I would do it. I don't think I would recommend it. I would love to know more from Cricut's offices on why they wanted to do that. They had been getting away from the scoring stylus for many years, so it's no surprise to me. They had the scoring wheel that also went into clamp B, and you couldn't have them simultaneously in there. As a paper crafter and an avid 3D paper artist that loves to cut and score and do that often, I would probably stick with a more legacy machine so that I still have that clamp A and clamp B. All right, my friends, so this is the Cricut Maker Fob up close and personal. You can see it here. You can open this up, and obviously that's trash, but this is a pretty solid tray. You can now sit items in here. It's kind of like a little holding spot. It has like a little lip so you, you know, it won't roll off, but this is it. So again, do you see what I'm saying? Like, it feels more like a printer now. It kind of looks more like a printer. You can see the sides are really sleek, and it, you know, is going to look great on your craft area wherever you do like to craft best. I think this is super, super fun, and it's really simple. So, you know, some of my biggest questions for this machine is, are cut quality going to improve, stay the same, or, you know, is it going to be worse? That is something that we do not want to happen as we are now seeing, you know, these new machines come out. I hope that they have spent plenty of time developing these and making sure that, you know, we're not giving up any quality when it comes to it. You know, both of these new machines don't even have a necessarily like a load button. It's all about, you know, the play button now, and then it loads, measures, and cuts all at once. So one thing to look at here is this area right here, where you can see where the magic is. So this right back here is where it has that extra ability with those specialty tools that you'll be able to, you know, grab from your older machines or grab separately. And you'll be able to put a fine point blade in here, which is in here now, but you'd be able to take it out and place in here a knife blade, a rotary blade, the scoring wheel, things like that. This is the extra force. This is the, you know, secret sauce to make the maker the maker. The Explorer does not have that to give the added pressure and the ability to cut, you know, what is it? Over 500 different materials. There are so many different things that this machine can cut with, and it's super, super impressive. All right, my friends, this has been our Cricut Maker 5 unboxing and first impressions. And let me tell you, we're gonna have to leave on a little cliffhanger because I am not sure that for this price point, it was only 399. Like, in the world of inflation, how are they keeping this machine the same price? I'm excited. I hope that this is gonna be able to live up to expectation, which is the Cricut gold standard, which I love, but we're gonna have to figure it out. So what we're gonna do is we have some of the amazing foam board that is going to be super thick that can cut through here. We're going to test that. We're also gonna do some other testing of just regular machines, regular materials that we would use in the other machines in this to make sure that it lives up to the standard. Nonetheless, Cricut is killing it with launches. They have launched the Cricut Explore 5, the Cricut Maker 5, that new Autopress. All these things are super, super cool. So things I love about this, I am really loving the new vibe, even though it's gonna take some getting used to, even though I have my own thoughts about it. I wanna hear from you all as well. I'm excited for innovation. I always get excited when there's new things innovating in the industry, and I'm always ready to embrace it, even with my critiques, even with my thoughts. I always like to move forward. So I'd love to hear from you in the comments. Things that I am a little skeptical about, again, is just the quality. Can it maintain it? We're going to film another video and figure that out as well. And yeah, let me know what your thoughts are. If you're looking to upgrade, always recommend a newer machine just because it'll be the latest and greatest. Firmware, software updates, the things that they are going to have, they're pouring all of their energy into these new machines. So if you are looking for a new machine, I would definitely consider the Maker 5 or the Explore 5. These are both really great machines. I will tell you, I have had a great experience with my Cricut Explore 5. I've been cutting on it for months now. I love it. I've been turning to it time and time again. So I hope that after we see the cut quality, that I'll be turning to my Cricut Maker 5 time and time again too. So let me know what you think in the comments down below. We will be posting our first impression cutting very soon. And until the next video, I'll see you later. Bye guys.