This is the version we have purchased ourselves, so we’ll start there: we have fully paid for an xTool O1 Omni Dual UV in the Versatile Bundle. It is not a loaned unit or a review sample. It’s paid for and waiting to be shipped.
That said, this article is not going to justify our purchase. It will be the opposite: what exactly you get with the Dual UV, what of the promised features no longer hold up, and in which cases the Single is the better choice.
Affiliate links: if you buy through them, we may earn a small commission at no cost to you. The review is independent.
What it includes
Two Epson F1080 printheads. The first with the usual six channels —CMYKWV— and the second with four inks that are the very reason for this version:
- RW, rigid white.
- FW, flexible white.
- FR, fluorescent red.
- FY, fluorescent yellow.
xTool describes it as the version “for creators focused on high productivity and exclusive neon effects,” and in materials it adds to rigid the leather, wood, and canvas. The work area, maximum relief, and vision system are identical to the other two versions.
What xTool has already denied
This is the part you need to read before paying, and you won’t find it on the product page.
When the fluorescent channels were announced, the community took it for granted — and it was said and repeated — that they would mix with the CMYK to expand the range of reproducible colors. It sounded logical: anyone from graphic arts knows that adding inks to the process expands the gamut, and a printer that could reproduce colors outside CMYK would be a strong selling point.
It’s not like that. xTool has confirmed that the fluorescent inks do not work together with the CMYK channels to expand the spectrum. They are used as spot colors, separately. A community user summed it up with a painfully accurate phrase: with that, the real advantage of the Dual is reduced to printing directly on leather and little else.
Some suggest it might come with a software update. Maybe. But it’s not available today, and buying a machine for what it might do someday is exactly the mistake that cost us half a year last time.
What still holds up
With the myth debunked, what remains is still relevant for those working with the right materials:
The flexible white. This is the real reason. Printing on something that bends requires a white base that bends with you; with rigid white, the layer ends up cracking. Leather, faux leather, canvas, tote bags, patches: if that’s your catalog and not an anecdote, the Dual is the only one of the three that gives it to you directly.
The two fluorescents, as spot inks. Red and yellow. Well used — a detail that shines under black light, a selling point for a children’s or party product — they are a marketable differentiator. Misunderstood, they are two channels you will never touch.
Speed with relief. According to the pre-launch specification sheet, which is not included in the official datasheet and we take that with caution, the Dual prints noticeably faster than the other two when stacking layers. This fits with a UV-DT beta tester saying their machine runs at the same speed as the single-head one: the fast one is this.
The two printheads, in the cost column
We have to be fair with the opposing argument, because it’s valid.
The F1080 wears out. The community estimates 399 for a replacement and a lifespan of six months to a year depending on use and maintenance. With two printheads, that cost doubles. And there is a second effect that is less visible: the printhead you don’t use still needs maintenance — ink, humidifier, cleaning cycles — because it is part of the machine’s circuit.
The honest conclusion is uncomfortable: if you’re not going to use the flexible white regularly, the Dual is the worst purchase of the three. For that case, there is the Single UV. You pay a thousand euros more upfront, double the expensive part, and maintain a printhead that doesn’t return work to you. There is no positive spin on that scenario.
Why we bought it
With all the above on the table, these are our reasons. They apply to our workshop, not necessarily to yours.
We work with materials that bend, and quite a bit. Faux leather, canvas, bags. Today we reject or only partially fulfill orders because we can’t print color on those materials. Flexible white turns that into catalog items.
The rotary and laminator were not optional. The personalized thermal cup and the sticker with finish are part of what we already sell. That’s why we went for the Versatile Bundle: if we were going to buy both accessories anyway, it made sense.
And a less noble reason, which we also share: we are going to write about this machine. Having the configuration with more inks allows us to test and show things that we couldn’t from the Single. It’s a valid reason for us and completely irrelevant for you.
What was not a reason: the fluorescents. We will have them and test them, but we didn’t pay for them.
Prices
European store, excluding VAT:
The difference between the Rotary and Versatile is €816.75, and the laminator and loose roll feeder set costs €905.48. In our case, the math favored the bundle. Do your own calculation, because in other combinations it’s not the same and some in the community have asked about that difference without getting an answer.
Before hitting pay
Three warnings, one of them uncomfortable for us:
It can’t be changed later. The ink configuration is fixed. There is no upgrade from Single to Dual.
Watch out for flexible white in the Single. If xTool delivers what their CEO hinted at in the live stream and ends up bringing flexible white to the entry-level version, much of the Dual’s argument evaporates.
We don’t have it yet. Everything here comes from the datasheet, published prices, and what those who have already tested it say. When it arrives, we will report if the decision was good. Also if it wasn’t.
Written by Noemi and Javi, from Picasita. We are xTool affiliates and our workshop is a brand demonstration space; we buy our machines with our own money. More about this blog and our relationship with xTool.
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