Lulzbot Taz PRO vs. Ultimaker S3

[Bramvb]

TLDR up front: can the lulzbot taz pro really print more materials than the ultimaker s3, and if so which materials are added over the latter?

Long version:

Hey all, my father in law wants to give me a 3d printer as a gift, and now I’m having to choose between all the options. I’ve basically narrowed the choice down to being between the Ultimaker S3 and the Lulzbot Taz PRO, as those are around the budget he’s given me and seem to have the best reviews in terms of reliability, amounts of available materials and ability to use dual extruders.
I’ve got some limited experience using very cheap and error prone 3d printers at uni and at hackathons, but this will be my first 3d printer, so I’m also happy to hear both machines are said to be easy to work with.
I think I’m leaning towards the Ultimaker S3, since I like how it’s enclosed out of the box (for more stable print environment and less dust and wind, has built in wifi monitoring and is wirelessly operable, and the print quality on fast print settings is supposed to be better. That being said, I like that the maximum print dimensions of the taz pro are considerably bigger and that it’s commited to open source hardware, but I think those two benefits don’t outweigh the benefits of the ultimaker s3 (feel free to convince me otherwise, or remind me of differences I’m missing).
The main thing keeping me on the fence, then is that I read in the only review comparing a lulzbot and an ultimaker (both slightly older models, though) that “The Ultimaker 3 also can’t compare to the number of filament types supported with the Lulzbot Taz 6”.
I’m definitely interested in using more exotic filaments, so this could sway me, if true. But with all the brand names and asterixis, I’ve not been able to find out specifically which materials could be printed on either that would not be available on the other. So does anyone here have experience/ expertise on the matter?

[JoeBowler300]

I don’t own a pro but I find it hard to believe that the pro can print more material than an Ultimaker 3 printer. Why is that? The only limiting factor I can think of would be the pro can achieve a higher temperature hot end than the 3. Another limiting factor could be a non all metal hot end on the Ultimaker 3, the limit then would be the temperature the bowden tube can handle; usually somewhere around 240C. Dual printheads is a cool concept but a bit over rated IMO. I do have the dual print head on my TAZ 6. A dual idex setup would be the way to go IMO. Lulzbot’s slicing software is a derivative of Ultimaker’s software. What’s the cost of another print head from both makers? That too may be something to consider. I agree with the two choices you’ve narrowed your search down to; I’d have to say that was probably my conclusion also when I adventured into the 3D printing arena. To me though Ultimaker was getting a bit out of the casual hobbyist’s price range. Prices too have gone northward for Lulzbot printer parts. Why do their print heads need to be more than the price of an entire 3D printer? Even if it is from China, which their quality has greatly improved too over the past few years. I also dislike that Lulzbot came up with the “adapter” plate to use their new print heads based on their smaller printer the mini. It should be the other way around. Perhaps spending some time reading through the forum posts for both makers will also help your decision to make the best choice. Good luck! Enjoy that gift!