I thought this may be interesting for some of you. I filed a ticket with BBL to let them know I disapprove of the coming firmware auth changes. Today I finally got a reply, but it’s just a lame ass copypasta, basically retelling what the update on their blog already stated, ie. “there will be developer mode and people are lying about the implications” (paraphrased tl;dr)

Dear Customer,

Thank you for reaching out to us regarding the recent Firmware Authorization changes. Due to the overwhelming number of requests we’ve received on this topic, we’ve created this unified response to address your concerns.

We’ve recently published a detailed blog post explaining the updates introduced by this firmware. We’ve made the decision to implement an optional Developer Mode feature(under an updated LAN Mode), to provide advanced users with more control and flexibility. The developer mode will be released later.

To explain: When LAN developer mode is enabled by the user, the printer will retain the necessary interfaces, including MQTT channel, live stream, and FTP, to support third-party integrations that rely on LAN mode. Please note that Bambu Lab cannot guarantee full compatibility or provide customer support for this mode.

Additionally, we hope to clarify that online claims such as remote disabling of printers, mandatory subscriptions, or unauthorized monitoring of printed files are completely false. For details please kindly refer to the blog post.

At present, the Firmware Authorization update is available in Open Beta exclusively for the X1 series. Participation in the beta program is entirely optional, allowing you to explore and provide feedback on the new features. Alternatively, you can continue using your current firmware.

Please feel free to reach out if you still have questions or need further clarification after reading this. We’ll do our best to assist you.

Best regards, Bambu Lab Customer Support