Creality Sermoon P1 all-in-one 3D scanner review: Untethered scanning with reliable precision

The Sermoon P1 comes packaged inside a carrying case, inside a retail box, that also houses a strap for the carrying case. The hard-shell case has compartments for all the accessories, like the calibration board, extra battery, markers, documents, power adapter, and more.

After eventually getting connected to Wi-Fi, calibrating was a bit challenging as well. The cross-line and parallel line laser calibration went smoothly, but the single line calibration took a few attempts.

With Creality’s 3D scanners before the Sermoon P1, the data was captured by the scanner, but the processing of that data was handled by an external device. That meant being tethered to a laptop or desktop when scanning anything, no matter how big or small. With the Sermoon P1, the processing power has been placed inside the scanner itself, with a Qualcomm 8-core CPU clocked at 3.36 GHz, an Adreno 740 GPU, 24 GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and 256 GB of UFS 4.0 storage. How this translates to actual real-world use, we’ll talk about in the next section.

Using it in standalone mode comes with some performance limitations, but the Sermoon P1 can be used in wired mode as well. On its own, untethered, it can scan objects at up to 60 FPS, but when plugged in, it can reach up to 100 FPS. There is also a third wireless connection mode that can do up to 80 FPS. NIR scanning is limited to 18 FPS in standalone and 30 FPS in wired mode.

We’ve tested the accuracy of the Sermoon S1, and since this is essentially an S1 + handheld computer, this review focuses more on the ease of use and functionality. Starting with ergonomics, the Sermoon P1 is not as comfortable to hold as an S1 or X1, given the additional weight and the fact that you’ll need to use both hands in most cases. The location of the start/stop button on the right side is also not ideal since it requires readjusting your grip. It’s better to use the on-screen button with your thumb, which makes the physical button redundant. That said, it is not too heavy or loud, even though the internal fan pushes a decent amount of warm air out the bottom. The grips are comfortable, and the lanyard ensures it won’t fall.

The 6-inch touchscreen, coupled with what is essentially a touch-optimized version of Creality Scan 4, makes the scanning experience seamless. Editing raw scans with the touchscreen is easy enough, and you get access to all the tools that the software has to offer. Fusing and meshing can be done on-device or transferred to a more powerful device either wirelessly or through a wired connection. In either case, the transfer speed is excellent. We did notice that the on-device fusion and meshing result in a little less detail (last image in the gallery below) compared to fusion/meshing on a desktop (an M4 MacBook Air in our case). It is also slower on-device, but that’s to be expected. The scans for the two remotes, as well as the pedals of the EUC, were highly accurate and allowed 3D printing of precise holders for mounting.

Auto alignment works great, as seen in the samurai pen holder model. Like some other scanners on the market, the Sermoon P1 also struggles a bit with black and reflective objects when using blue light lasers, even though Creality claims it can scan black/metal objects without spraying. To test NIR scanning, we created a model of the Libernovo Omni chair, and while the processing took about 10 minutes, the scanning process was quick and hassle-free.

Lastly, the FPS claims are accurate, which results in a smooth interface while scanning and processing. Battery life is nothing special, but it is sufficient for three to four heavy scans (including processing). Creality ships the P1 with an extra battery, so it’s good to have a fully charged one on hand.