EveryCutFileThe short answer
Paper, card, vinyl and felt, with the scanner for your own drawings: SDX225. It has 1,303 built-in designs, 140 quilt patterns and 17 fonts, connects to CanvasWorkspace over your wireless network, and reads PES, PHC and PHX embroidery files so you can cut appliqué pieces for a Brother embroidery machine.
The same, with more designs and a link to a Brother sewing machine: SDX325. It lists 1,435 built-in designs and can send and receive designs over your home network with a Brother XP sewing machine.
Fabric, appliqué and Disney designs: SDX330D. It lists 1,485 built-in designs, 182 of them Disney, and comes with the Rotary Auto Blade kit for lace and other delicate fabric, a low-tack mat beside the standard one, and a code for 63 more designs.
Brother marks the SDX85 and the SDX230D as discontinued; if you find one, it has the same 3 mm Auto Blade and 12 × 12 in mat and, by Brother’s specifications, reads SVG too.
Side by side
Figures from Brother’s product pages. All three take the 12 × 24 in mat as an option and cut material up to 3 mm thick, depending on the material.
| Model | Built-in designs | Embroidery files | Rotary blade in the box | Links to a Brother sewing machine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SDX225 | 1,303 | PES, PHC and PHX | No | Not listed |
| SDX325 | 1,435 | PES, PHC and PHX | No | Yes, Brother XP models |
| SDX330D | 1,485, including 182 Disney | PES and PHX | Yes, with 63 extra designs | Yes, Brother XP models |
Opening an SVG file on a ScanNCut
CanvasWorkspace, Brother’s free design software, opens SVG and DXF files. Open the SVG there, check the size, then send it to the machine wirelessly or save it as FCM on a USB stick. That route works on every model.
Brother’s specification tables also list SVG among the formats the SDX225 and SDX325 read (and the discontinued SDX85 and SDX230D); the SDX330D table lists PHX and FCM only, so use CanvasWorkspace for that one.
What fits on the 12 × 12 in mat, from this site
Brother’s mat page gives the mat as 12 × 12 in but not the area the blade can reach, so leave a margin. Our library’s 12 × 12 in filter allows 11.5 × 11.5 in, and most of our designs fit it as they are, turned either way.
The exceptions are the largest envelopes and cards, two long boxes, the monogram alphabet sheet and the long sign bases: cut those on the 12 × 24 in mat, or scale them down in CanvasWorkspace. The filter compares the flat file, so a box or card counts at its unfolded size.
Check before you buy
The scanner and the 5-inch touch screen are what set a ScanNCut apart: Brother sells it as a stand-alone machine, so you can scan a drawing or a printed picture, edit it on the screen and cut round it without a computer.
Vinyl on a roll needs the optional roll feeder; Brother gives its cutting width as 9.9 in (251.8 mm) on the SDX225 and SDX325.
If you mainly cut vinyl decals and shirts from SVG files, compare the widths of the Cricut and Silhouette machines too.
From the maker’s documentation: Brother: ScanNCut DX SDX225 specifications, Brother: ScanNCut DX SDX325 specifications, Brother: ScanNCut DX SDX330D specifications, Brother: ScanNCut DX 12 × 12 standard cutting mat, Brother: CanvasWorkspace file formats.