# Brother Scan N Cut or Silhouette Cameo V3, which is better???



## bibsanddribble (Mar 13, 2017)

which is the better product for a small home based business?

The Silhouette is cheaper in price by a couple of hundred Dollars but I want to know which is the better one in the long run


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## olga1 (May 11, 2014)

To me the Brother


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## bibsanddribble (Mar 13, 2017)

olga1 said:


> To me the Brother


why do you say that Olga?


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## olga1 (May 11, 2014)

is easy to use and cuts smoothly and you don't need a computer to use this machine


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## bibsanddribble (Mar 13, 2017)

the thing is that I will be using my own sayings and graphic art done in Coral PSP so do I need something that doesn't need a computer?


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## olga1 (May 11, 2014)

That I don't know. Check youtube videos


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## sassyjo10 (Jan 13, 2017)

which one did u get? I also have wondered about the brother scan and cut.TY


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## dcbevins (Jul 31, 2011)

I see this kind of questions and wonder. How often do you think someone in the market for a cutting machine buys two? 

People that have been doing this for decades might only see two or three different machines in their life.

I haven't tried either machine, but your saying you want to use PSP stood out. You need vector graphics for vinyl cutters. Bitmaps will not work. You have to use Inkscape, Illustrator, CorelDraw, Xara, or Affinity Designer. Sometimes the cutting software will double as design software and can be used.

PaintShop Pro is bitmap or raster software. It won't work with a cutter. Maybe a print cut machine, but not a plain vinyl cutter.


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## rastoma (Sep 21, 2014)

I asked a similar question yesterday but in regards to rhinestone templates. I bought a wide cutter but I'm having trouble getting it to handle rhinestone material (it's a value cutter but does great on standard vinyl), so I thought it would be best to get a craft cutter for just rhinestone templates. 

One of the most popular sites for rhinestone supplies is The Rhinestone World and they use the Cameo a lot. So that's what led me to think it would be best just to get one of those just for rhinestones and then I wouldn't have to swap blades so often in my bigger cutter.

But when reading info on the latest model the Cameo 3 I found the Brother Scan n Cut 2. The scanner in the Brother really caught my attention as I thought it would be cool. But the Cameo 3 has the Pixscan mat and will do close to the same thing using the camera on your cell phone.

And you do need a computer to use the Brother. You can send items to the Brother using a USB stick so yes it doesn't need to be constantly connected to a computer but you need a computer to do your designs BEFORE copying to the USB stick. Or if you pay for the 'unlock' code to turn on the wireless function you use that.

But the Cameo 3 does the same thing basically. It has Bluetooth and you can send items from your phone to it without needing to be hooked to a computer.

I then looked at the consumables. I read many posts that the cutting mat on the Brother machine wears out a lot quicker than it does on the Cameo and it's more expensive. Though it's pretty easy to make a DIY cutting mat for either machine.

I was then curious about the blades. Unless I missed it, you have to use special blades from Brother... ie more expensive. There is an adapter you can get for the Cameo that uses standard Roland type cutting blades... ie WAY CHEAPER. But the adapter doesn't let you use the cool feature of the auto blade setting on the Cameo 3.

The Cameo 3 has two blade holders. So it seems it can be a little more versatile. And I may be wrong about this but I think you can put in a blade and a pen at the same time and then draw something on something like vinyl and then without removing the mat start the job again using the cutter and it will cut you design out such as a bunch of decals (stickers).

I think the Brother can ultimately cut through thicker material. But the Cameo 3 can cut through items thicker than the Cameo 2 can.

And finally, the Cameo 3 is cheaper. So for me and my intended use as primarily rhinestone decal creation, the ability to use standard blades will be a big cost savings in the long run. 

And I found an awesome deal at that site that has a name of a type of plane... you know the kind that are like 'fighters' 

I first made sure I found the site in Ebates so I get 3% cash back... if you're not using Ebates PM (if that's allowed) and let me give you a referral link. It's worth it if you buy a lot of stuff online.

Anyway, I got the brand new Cameo 3 in a bundle that also included 12 x 12" sheets of Oracal 641 vinyl, the Pixscan mat (which does not come with the machine itself), a vinyl trimmer, spatula, and hook tool (weeding tool), all Silhouette brand.... AND 24 sketch pens. And then some other things that probably is included when you buy just the machine like 100 exclusive designs, a $25 credit for buying other designs, a beginner's guide to vinyl and a few other odds and ends.

That bundle was $267.83 before the 15% off coupon that they advertise on the site that is good for your first 3 orders (this was my first). The 15% off coupon knocked off $30 so the total paid was $237.83 shipped. Free shipping, no taxes. I thought that was a great price and had planned to post here (unless everyone knew about that deal already) and when I saw your post thought that may help you with your decision.


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## sinGN (Oct 12, 2016)

Brother Scan N Cut is better.


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## STPG Press (Jul 6, 2015)

sinGN said:


> Brother Scan N Cut is better.


Please stop posting here saying one machine is better when you don't supply any reasons why. It's like you don't even own any of the things you respond to, but just look something up on Google and then post it here.

You are not helping anyone here when you recommend one thing over another if you don't say why. And if you haven't actually worked with both or more of the products being compared, then you cannot say one is better than the other either.


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## rastoma (Sep 21, 2014)

STPG Press said:


> Please stop posting here saying one machine is better when you don't supply any reasons why. It's like you don't even own any of the things you respond to, but just look something up on Google and then post it here.


THANK YOU. I saw that reply and have been waiting all day until i got off work to say exactly what you just did.


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## rastoma (Sep 21, 2014)

sinGN said:


> Brother Scan N Cut is better.


WHY is it better? You cannot make a statement as if you are saying it's fact when it's an OPINION you have. And if you offer an opinion then tell us why you THINK it's better.

Do you own it? If so do you also own a Cameo 3 or have owned a Cameo 3 in the past?


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## tfalk (Apr 3, 2008)

If you are doing rhinestones, you might also want to look into something like the KNK Zing line. I looked at both the cameo and scan-n-cut and ended up buying a Zing instead. We use it for cutting twill, fabric appliques and as a backup for our Roland GX24 vinyl cutter. Having never used either of the other 2, my best guess is the Zing has a higher learning curve but I think it's a sturdier model and IIRC has a higher cutting force than the others. YMMV....


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## rastoma (Sep 21, 2014)

I've already bought the Cameo 3 since it was so cheap. But thanks for letting me about the KNK machines. I had not heard of them before. If I have to buy something else I'll look at them closer.


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