If you're considering getting a Silhouette CAMEO right now you're probably looking for a comparison between the CAMEO 5 vs CAMEO 4.
.png "Silhouette CAMEO 5 vs CAMEO 4: Side by Side Comparison")
With both 12" desktop vinyl cutting machines currently available and with a very different price, I'm getting a lot of questions about what the actual differences are and if the features of the CAMEO 5 make it worth the higher price. Read on for a side by side comparison of CAMEO 4 vs CAMEO 5.
I've been using the Silhouette CAMEO 4 for years and have been using the CAMEO 5, almost exclusively, since I bought it in October 2023. It's important to note - the reason I've been using the CAMEO 5 vs the CAMEO 4 has nothing to do with the features or liking it better, but as a content creator and educator the easiest way to learn something or see differences between it and prior generations is by using it a lot.
The CAMEO 5 has a handful of new features and updates. Some of them are nice to haves, some of them are user requested, and some of them are what I like to call for-bullet-point-purposes-only.
Here's a side by side list of CAMEO 5 vs CAMEO 4 features and specs and below I'll elaborate on a few.
Some of the big questions I get are around how loud the CAMEO 5 is so I am including a video clip of it cutting so you can hear compared to my voice.
Keep in mind, the noise level is influences by the cut settings and material being cut along with the direction of the cutting.
The new features that I like the best are the ability to now sketch and cut or sketch with two colors without having to swap the blade. That was a feature that was actually taken away with the CAMEO 4 so it's nice to have that back.
If you're a paper cutter or do a lot of print and cuts and are tired of loading the mat or having your material curl, the CAMEO 5 ES mat is a nice option. I didn't have the best first impression but it's grown on me and I can see why it would be useful to some users.
The price tag though...is a third of the price of the CAMEO 5 machine or half the price of the CAMEO 4...so take that for what you will.
While I don't love having the CAMEO 5 roll feeder detached because it's another piece to store, it does seem slightly more sturdy than the built in CAMEO 4 version.
While some may find it useful I don't care a whole lot about the cross cutter being on the front (CAMEO 5) vs the back of the machine (CAMEO 4), nor does the ability to use (the overly slow) IPT really impress me.
And one thing that hands-down the CAMEO 4 wins at is having cut settings at the ready in Silhouette Studio. There are almost no default cut settings in the software for the CAMEO 5 and creating each one, manually, for every material is painful, time consuming, and can cause a lost of wasted material in testing.
So with all of that, plus the increased price of the CAMEO 5, you'll have to decide if the CAMEO 5 vs the CAMEO 4 is best for you considering the price, the ability to use certain accessories and tools, and the noise.
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