However, resin itself has many downsides when compared to FDM. To get the upside out of the way first: The resolution, printing speed and visual quality are dramatically better. However:
- Resin is weaker than filament deposition products. Even 'tough' resins are still weaker than e.g. PLA.
- FDM prints are usable as soon as they're outside the printer. Resin prints need to be washed, cured, and often painted. The print itself is faster, but the amount of time you spend is greater. Besides, FDM printers have gotten relatively fast.
- A resin-printing setup takes up a lot more physical space, which can't be reused without thorough decontamination.
- And perhaps most importantly, resin is allergenic and can be toxic. The more often you come into contact, the sooner you'll become allergic to it -- that's not so much a matter of if as when, unless you take hazmat protocols seriously. You need nitril gloves, overalls, decontamination protocols, respirators and exhaust fans, otherwise you're begging for trouble.
PLA, by contrast, can be relatively safely printed in your living room with no safety equipment at all. Even engineering plastics are more accessible; polycarbonate, for instance. (...be careful with ABS, and scared of nylon.)