In spite of its popularity the Cricut is not our favorite line of digital die cutting products, but we give the Expression Machine credit for being able to cut a wide range of materials. Even though we don’t think the majority of users would want to be limited to cutting designs from a collection of cartridges, we can understand why this may be the preference for some.

There can be a limited interaction between your Cricut Expression and your computer – through Cricut DesignStudio Software – but you will always need a cartridge to cut anything with the die cutting machine. In their defense, the cartridges offer quite a lot of variety. It is very possible you are not the type of user that wants to spend hours designing your own birthday cake graphic, especially when there are hundreds and hundreds of cute ones all ready to go.

Also, when you add DesignStudio to the mix you add a lot of ways to manipulate the images you own – not even close to the freedom you get with other die cutting systems – but quite a bit. You can weld fonts, for instance, and blend images from multiple cartridges together for something totally unique. The flip feature will allow you to easily reverse the orientation of any image, and you can also easily resize and slant your cartridges’ images.

With the auto-fill feature, the Expression die cutting system will automatically arrange as many of a given pattern as possible onto a page for cutting, saving you on materials. With the Expression’s larger mat, which measures 12 x 24 inches, you can get some pretty large shapes. That will come in handy for projects like vinyl lettering for your walls.

This die cutting machine does have some significant portability issues. Weighing in at a whopping 21 pounds, it is not one you will just want to throw in a duffle bag. Indeed, it was never marketed as a portable die cutting system. It was always meant to be parked in one place most of the time. This die cutting unit does function beautifully independent of a computer, but there is no onboard tool storage or carry handle. Lack of portability is only a drawback for some people, though.

The Cricut Expression die cutting machine will power through cardstock, chipboard, sheet magnet, foam, felt, balsa wood, vellum, cling vinyl, fabric and more. You would probably not want to try your luck with anything heftier, though all of these die cutting units could be used to cut things they were not designed to cut. Everything would just wear out more quickly.

This die cutting system is pretty weak on capabilities. It cuts and draws and does both really well, but we definitely preferred the units that allowed for options like piercing, engraving and embossing.

Cricut customer service options are all pretty good. Their website is easy to navigate and their people pick up the phone fast and give great service. Cricut has message boards, newsletters, tips and tricks. There are also a fair amount of die cutting project ideas.