MYSWEETY CNC Router Machine Control, Offline GRBL Control Module with TFT Touch Screen for CNC 3018/3020/ 3040pro/ 4540 for Metal Cutting Wood Working

I build CNC machines, as well as repairing lasers, CNC, and other machines for customers.I'll admit I'm not really a big GRBL guy, but I have to respect what people can do with basically a $20 control system.The downside to a lot of inexpensive GRBL CNC, Laser, and Plasma cutters, is that there really isn't any tactile control for the devices, leaving you to use your keyboard.Well.... I wanted to throw a 4 foot by 4 foot CNC together from parts I had hanging around, and give it to the old man 2 houses down. He's super into woodworking, and he always comes over and marvels at My Big CNC machines, and says he wishes he were young enough to learn it. I tell him He is, but he insists it's too hard.The thing is, He's a Whiz at computers, and graphic editing (Kudos to you folks over at the Senior center!)I'm 100% confident he's going to be able to get up to speed fairly quickly, but I wanted to simplify the process by giving him "buttons" instead of having to send G-Code commands via keyboard.The other issue is that he has a desktop computer, not a laptop. So he has to be able to design something in his living room, and cut it in the garage.That's where this little device comes in...It's basically like a tape recorder for CNC... It'll play back command strings via "buttons" on the screen, which makes doing things like Homing, Moving X, Y, and Z, Start, Stop, Etc... Extremely simple....You still need a motion control driver board for the steppers, spindle or laser, and such, this just gives you a means of controlling it without a computer.You save your cut file to an SD card, pop it in, and it'll play it back for the CNC so it can follow along.The interface is really pretty decent... It's super small, but what do you expect for $30 or so dollars?It's functional, really easy to set up, and it puts "Big Boy" capability into the hands of the tinkerer.With this controller, and like I said, and $18, or $20 GRBL CNC Motion control board, you could literally control a Ginormous industrial machine! GRBL is solid, it's just that it's so inexpensive that for some reason, everyone makes really tiny GRBL machine components... I guess to keep the cost down.The size is really the only drawback..... The control system is top notch!If you're messing with GRBL, and want a graphical controller, which doesn't require the PC to be tethered to the machine, Check one of these out!Don't be fooled! The size and the price, do not make it any less capable.Neat little gadget!

On paper, this is a nice controller. In practice, I find the screen really hard to read. Very low contrast display.My old controller, with a much smaller screen, is much easier to read.Also, the response time from the touch screen is slow. I have to stop myself from double clicking.

Picked this up for my 3018 Pro CNC machine because I don't want to keep it connected to my PC to make small adjustments when I'm readying the cutting surface. It's decent for that purpose; I've already stripped out the board/screen and got rid of the plastic case so I can print my own for mounting it. You could probably find a way to mount it yourself using the existing case, but like most DIYers I like to over-complicate things. Only thing that really lags on this is the touch screen; it's not the best quality, but don't expect it to be.

I plugged this into my Sainsmart 3018 PRO. Previously, I'd used the standard white offline controller with the tiny screen. This thing is a HUGE upgrade over that. Not only is the screen 6-8 times bigger, but it is also a touch screen. There are way more variables you can alter, numbers you can see, and navigation is way simpler and more intuitive. If you do any offline work, this is well worth the small investment for the convenience.I didn't realize this when I ordered it, but you can also connect it to wifi (instructions are included) to upload files. You can't use wifi to directly control the CNC remotely from your computer. However, you can have the controller connected to the machine and send files over to it remotely from the computer, then execute them on the controller. Connecting to wifi takes some work and file editing, but it's all laid out in the instruction manual. Once it's done, you don't have to do it again. You access the device through a web browser by entering the controller's IP address (once it's connected).

Gave 1 star because the seller changed the link from a $36 Touch Panel GRBL controller to an actual $550 machine. The item is supposed to be what is pictured in this review. They do not even currently sell this controller.MySweety GRBL offline touch panel controller.The controller is a bit slow from the time the buttons are pressed to the actual response. It has plenty of control options for everything on the mill XYZ and spindle. It does not have any means to be mounted to the machine other than laying flat on the bench. If your machine does not have an enclosure it will be prone to be covered in chips. It is plug n play with most GRBL control boards. It does have the benefit of not needing to have a computer close to the machine and allows you to completely run the machine from the controller itself through the use of a SD slot. It does come with both the SD card and a Thumb drive. If you can get over the controller lag and no mounting options it is not to bad.

I had hoped that this would let me automate a lot of tasks to run when I was not present in the shop. It does, to a limited extent, but I can only give it three stars. The biggest drawback is that there are features on my machine that it cannot access -- or that I don't know how to program it to do. When using my laptop interface, for example, I can do an automatic surface mapping to account for any less-than-level surface or material in the CNC. I don't know how to do that with this controller -- it either can't do it, or it isn't documented and I'm not smart enough to figure it out. So unless my piece is perfectly flat and level, the results I get from the automated controller are not as good as the results I get from the surface-mapped laptop controller.For the right uses, this seems like a solid addition to a machine. For my projects, which are usually in metal and require very tight tolerances and high precision, the lack of certain functions renders it inadequate. Your mileage may vary.

This unit works well enough but the display is so dim I have to turn off my shop lights (very unsafe) to use it.