English
Login

Buddy3D Camera

Relevant for

CORE ONE family
MK4 family
XL family
MMU family
PRO family
+
49 comments
Article is also available in following languages
English
Čeština
Polski
Deutsch
Français
Español
Italiano
日本語

The Buddy3D camera features high-quality optics and IR illumination, allowing you to monitor your printer even in complete darkness. 

The camera can be powered by a USB-C connection. The device supports the MicroSD memory card format. Before inserting, the card must be formatted (supported formats: FAT32, exFAT) and inserted into the camera when the camera is turned off.

See below for instructions on how to install the Buddy3D camera. Note that the printer has to be powered on for the procedure.

How to install

  1. Login to Prusa Connect on your phone or computer browser. It is not possible to connect the camera through the Prusa App, only to see the camera after it is already connected.
  2. Enter the printer you want to use with the camera.
  3. Click on the "Camera" tab.
  4. Click on "Add Wi-Fi Camera".

  1. On the pop-up window that will appear, fill in the WiFi network name (SSID) and password that the printer is connected to and click Generate QR code. The maximum length of the Wi-Fi network name accepted is 26 characters.

  1. Subsequently, the camera needs to be connected to the power supply. A green LED near the camera itself will start blinking fast, showing that the camera is not paired.

  1. To enter pairing mode, reset the camera by pressing the reset button for 1 second. The button is located on the underside of the rotating top of the camera. Point the camera up to see the button near the Micro SD card slot.
Buddy3D Camera reset buttonCORE One Camera reset button. It needs to be
pressed
with an Allen key.
  1. Point the camera at the generated QR code. Do not use dark mode. You might need to try different distances from the camera to the code. A tone will sound after scanning the QR code. Note that the image might take a few seconds to appear.
        • Successful QR code reading = short beep
        • Unsuccessful pairing = 3 long tones
        • Successful camera network connection = "Welcome tone"
  1. After a successful connection, the first image in Connect will be displayed. The green LED on the camera will blink slowly, showing that it is connected.
  2. The camera will automatically update after connecting to the Internet for the first time. The camera will play a tone after a successful update. You can then start using your Buddy3D camera.

Mounting the camera on the printer

Prusa CORE One

The camera has magnets embedded in the casing and snaps to metal frame of the CORE One, specifically to the front corners. While you can route the cables to either of the front corners, we suggest mounting the camera in the left corner, as the cabling will be a bit neater. For installation, follow the step-by-step guide

PrusaXL

You'll find step-by-step guide here.

MINI, MK3, MK4, Enclosure

You can find the printable mount here.

Specifications

Device: Guardian PR1
Resolution: 1920x1080
Input: 5 VDC, 1 A
Frequency band: 2.4 GHz
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz

Assigning a Micro SD card in the slot will not store images or videos, it is only used for firmware recovery at the moment.

Troubleshooting

  • If the Camera connects to the network but does not send the image to the interface, check the Wi-Fi signal strength and the camera's location. Check also if the WiFi network name (SSID) and Password are correct. The fields are case-sensitive.
  • Make sure your router operates on the 2.4 GHz frequency band.
  • Try resetting the camera by pressing the Reset button for 4 seconds. Remove any Cameras from the "Camera" Tab in Connect, and start the process again.
 

21 comments

Log in  to post a comment
Lucus17
Is there no update in the timeline for the promised firmware updates to make the Buddy camera actually good?

The fact that it has the capability to be able to pan and tilt remotely is great (or would be if the back end was there to use this)

Its very disappointing that image cant be adjusted if viewing on Prusa connect on PC so feed is just permanently upside down.

No live feed? Really? so you and you alone aren't able to do this when every other camera in the planet has no issue? No timelapse?

You do realise ,as is this makes it worse than every camera on the market?

I'd have no problem with any of these if you didn't promise this functionality at launch and then do absolutely nothing about it.

Can you not make it open source so we can actually fix the problems you cant be bothered to fix?
awh
It seems very un-Prusa like to have a black box, proprietary cloud/non local camera as the official solution. I want to add the camera feed to Home Assistant and run Obico.

I also have issues with the IR cam being used despite plenty of light.
Danghar
I have problem on point 8. The camera is conecting i asume by the signal and slow blinking but no image.I have Easy SSID and password with no special characters, its like : HOME pass 1234. How can i check firmwere version? How to update to the newest version?
Naznys
how can i see when a new firmware for buddy3d ( core one corner camera) is released?
koesterakis
Here: https://prusaconnect.sleekplan.app/changelog?type=t674d9c2d47e2d
Remco de Vries
Can't connect the Buddy3D cam to my PrusaXL printer via Prusa Connect.
I use the correct SSID and password and here one short beep when the QR code is scanned. After that nothing happens any further. Even after a reset and going back to factory settinge of the camera I get the same result each time. Is there another work around to fix this???
Patte
Probably the same problem as many before you: I assume your camera has firmware version 3.0.1 installed. This means special characters and spaces in your routers SSID or password are not supported.