Cricut Easy Press 2 Review – Is the Cricut Easy Press 2 Good as a Heat Press?

An overview of the Cricut Easy Press 2

The Cricut Easy Press 2 is a compact, easy-to-use alternative to more traditional iron boxes and heat presses. The Easy Press 2 boasts accurate temperature control, fast warm-up times, and a 9″ x 9″ press area in a portable, lightweight frame to deliver you professional iron-on results in 60 seconds or less. It can deliver results ideal for basic T shirts, tote bags, pillows, aprons, and much more, while ensuring quality transfers that can last long, even after multiple washes! An even and consistently heated press area drives home the quality and value of the Cricut Easy Press 2 over other alternatives.

On top of all of this, the Cricut Easy Press 2 comes with tons of safety features so you can rest easy; namely an auto-shutoff feature and a heat insulated resting base! The Cricut Easy Press 2 comes in three primary variants, the smaller 6″ x 7″ press area for smaller projects, the medium 9″ x 9″ for a wide range of projects, and the large 12″ x 10″ for any other projects you are looking to tackle. This review will focus primarily on the 9″ x 9″ variant, but many of the features and functionalities of the Cricut Easy Press 2 extend to all of their offerings!

See also: Cricut EasyPress Mini

All of the Cricut Easy Press 2 Features

• User-friendly, easy-to-learn & simple-to-use design
• Precise Temperature control up to 400 F (205 C)
• Lightweight, portable design to save space
• Extremely fast warm-up times of 60 seconds or less
• Advanced heat plate design with ceramic-coated surface
• Heat Insulated safety base
• Auto shutoff to protect against fire hazards
• 9″ x 9″ press areas perfect for T shirts, tote bags, pillows, aprons, and much more

What’s In the Box?

• Cricut Easy Press 2 9″ x 9″
• Heat Insulated Safety Base
• Welcome Booklet to get Started Right away
• Quick Reference Chart of temperatures and more!
• Materials for your first Practice Project

How to use the Cricut Easy Press 2

Getting started with the Cricut Easy Press 2 is extremely quick and simple. First turn on your Easy Press and set your time and temperature. You can use the Clock and Thermometer buttons to switch between the timer and temperature settings, and adjust them using the +/- buttons. Make sure to setup the time and temperature for your intended project! You can reference the quick reference chart included with your Cricut Easy Press, or use the settings given to you by your suppliers, or even use the settings you find online!

Allow your device some time to get warmed-up. The 9″ x 9″ Cricut Easy Press can take up to two minutes to get to the desired temperature, the larger size can take even longer! Note that while heating up, your Cricut device will show an orange color, and once your desired temperature is reached the device will show a green color. 

Make sure you are pressing on a firm, heat-resistant surface. You may want to use a protective mat or sheet to further protect both your pressing surface as well as your substrate. Note that Cricut recommends the Cricut EasyPress Mat for just this purpose.

You will then want to lay down your substrate with the transfer paper on top. Place your Cricut device on top, and while applying gentle pressure, press the green Cricut button. This will begin the timer, and once the timer is finished you’ll hear a beep. Make sure to keep your Cricut device still while pressing, and give your substrate some time to cool down before removing it from the press surface. Now you can enjoy a professional press that’ll last, even after repeated washes!

Please note that your materials need to be free of wrinkles and water content before transferring your designs! You can gently press your materials without the transfer paper to help make sure your substrate is dry and wrinkle free. 

Cricut Easy Press 2 vs. Heat Press

There are a lot of obvious benefits of the Cricut Easy Press 2 over more traditional heat presses, namely the size and portability. The Cricut Easy Press 2 has a lightweight and compact design to help you save space, and can serve as a portable heat press to move as you see fit. This can really help out when working in a tight space or a small workshop. More traditional heat presses are often large and heavy, making it difficult to move while taking up a relatively large portion of space. The Cricut Easy Press 2 can easily solve this issue!

The Cricut Easy Press 2 also has a much faster warm-up time than their more traditional heat press counterparts! The medium, 9″ x 9″ sized Cricut devices can heat up to their set temperatures in 2 minutes or less, while more traditional heat presses can take upwards of 5 – 10 minutes, depending on the press area. This has huge benefits, since you won’t need to stand around waiting for things to heat up. You can get started with your pressing right away!

However, more traditional heat presses still maintain a lot of benefits over the Cricut devices. For starters, a heat press will typically have a wider temperature range for operation. With a maximum of 400 F (205 C), the Cricut Easy Press may struggle when pressing with certain fabrics or materials, and with certain types of inks. If you need to work with higher temperature ranges, a more traditional heat press may be the better option for you. 

More traditional heat presses may be easier to use for some people, especially those with disabilities, due to the difference in how they are used. With a heat press, the substrate is placed down and the heat platen is locked into place on the transfer materials. This means that you won’t need to apply a constant, gentle pressure yourself, but rather the machine can apply this constant pressure for you. There is also less risk of the heat platen moving during the press time with a heat press, since it is locked into place. This may be another drawback to consider with regards to the Cricut Easy Press 2, especially if you have concerns about your ability to apply a constant and steady pressure. 

Cricut Easy Press 2 vs. Household Iron Boxes

Household Iron Boxes are designed to use heat and steam to press out wrinkles from your clothes. They aren’t designed for sublimation or other vinyl transfer projects, and because of that they will often offer lower quality when compared to heat presses designed as a heat press. Iron boxes will typically have an uneven heat distribution on the press area, may contain a stray amount of water which can impact designs, and have much less direct control over temperature.

I think there’s no question here, a household iron box may be suitable as a quick workaround or as an easy way to test something out, but as far as heat presses go, an iron box will never compare to a heat press or the Cricut Easy Press 2.

Traditional Heat Press Brands

The Cricut Easy Press 2 certainly doesn’t meet everybody’s needs. If it seems that a more traditional heat press might be better for you, these brands are your best bet:

• Tusy. See our detailed review of the Tusy product line here.
• Fancierstudio. See our detailed review of their flagship product Fancierstudio Power Heat Press 15×15 here.
• Heat Press Nation has many heavy duty heat presses. See our reviews:
  • HPN Signature PRO 16×20 Heat Press Swing Away with SurePressure

Cricut Easy Press 2 Accessories

The Cricut Easy Press 2 has a ton of add-on accessories to help bolster your capabilities and make your life easier! The Cricut device will normally just come with the Easy Press 2, the Safety features and guides, and that’s it! If you are looking to help make your life easier by using silicon pads to help protect your surfaces or other helpful accessories, you check out the Cricut website to find their own provided solutions! Of course, you can always use alternative solutions if you so prefer. Check out some of our Sublimation Quick Tips for more advice on helpful solutions to common problems!

You can also help yourself by getting other Cricut products that pair well with the Easy Press 2. Check out some products like the Cricut Explore Air 2, which can be used to cut vinyl for your pressing projects! These devices are able to cut a ton of different materials, such as card-stocks, faux leather, poster boards, iron-on vinyl, adhesive foils, and specialty papers. This means you can easily pair the Explore Air 2 with your Easy Press 2 to really bolster your capabilities while staying within a well-reviewed and trusted brand. 

How do consumers and users feel about the Cricut Easy Press 2?

The Cricut Easy Press 2 is one of the best selling and highest reviewed heat presses on Amazon, having a 4.6 star rating with over 600 reviews! People generally love the Easy Press 2 for many of the same reasons we outlined above. The Easy Press 2 is a reliable, compact, and portable solution for iron-on transfers and other transfer projects. The Cricut device is perfect for someone looking for something small to use for either their small business or their own personal use. It has a wide range of capabilities for a ton of smaller projects.

The major issues with the Cricut Easy Press 2 come when you consider it as a solution for a larger project, a more technical project, or as a permanent solution for a business need. Ultimately, the Cricut Easy Press 2 isn’t capable of consistently matching a larger heat press, due to the limited size and restricted temperature range. But, the Easy Press 2 delivers on what it promises, a high quality and easy to use heat press!

Pros

• Portable, compact, and lightweight design to make easy storage and transportation
• Accurate and consistent temperatures for consistency between presses
• Easy-to-use in order to get started right away
• Lightweight design and ease-of-use makes it perfect for smaller projects
• Quick warm-up times mean you won’t have to stand around waiting for your press to get to the desired temperature

Cons

• Limited press area meaning less range in potential projects
• Restricted temperature range which can impact certain types of materials
• High price for a restrictive set of features
• Requires you to press yourself, which may lead to some inconsistencies between presses

Related Product: Cricut EasyPress Mat

Our conclusion on the Cricut Easy Press 2

The Cricut Easy Press 2 deserves the praise it receives, since it reliably delivers on all that it promises. It is an easy-to-use, lightweight, compact, and portable solution to tackle your iron-on projects, and can be a perfect tool for any small project you want to approach. The Cricut Easy Press 2 has three major variants to the press area, specifically a 6″ x 7″ press area, a 9″ x 9″ press area, and a 12″ x 10″ press area, allowing you to get the Cricut device that best suits your needs. The Easy Press 2 also has a very quick warm-up time, typically in 3 minutes or less, meaning that you won’t have to stand around while waiting for your press to get to the proper temperature.

There are some drawbacks however. The Cricut Easy Press 2 has a limited temperature range, only able to reach a maximum of 400 F (205 C), which can be restrictive depending on your desired use. The device requires you to apply a gentle and stable pressure, which can be difficult to do especially for people with disabilities. This can lead to inconsistencies between your presses, due to a difference in the pressure you are applying to your materials. The Cricut device is also relatively expensive, especially when compared with more capable heat presses. 

Despite all of these drawbacks, I would highly recommend the Cricut Easy Press 2 to anyone who is looking for a small, compact heat press for their iron-on needs. The high price of the Cricut device is justified when you consider the ease-of-use, reliability, and compact nature of the Cricut Easy Press 2. You should definitely consider checking out the Cricut Easy Press 2 if it fits both your budget and your business needs!

If you are interested in printing on mugs, the Cricut Mug Press is a fabulous solution as well.