Unbricking a Cricut Is Better Than Throwing It Away, but I Want the Cricut Removed

xssfox rescued a deactivated Cricut Maker from e-waste and figured out how to make it work again.

The machine itself was apparently fine except for deteriorated rollers that could be cheaply replaced. The real problem was that Cricut had marked its serial number as deactivated.

The workaround is clever.

The Cricut sends its serial number to the computer over USB without encryption or apparently even a checksum. xssfox put an RP2040 between the Cricut and the computer, made it act as both a USB host and client, and rewrote the serial number as it passed through. Design Space sees a different machine and happily talks to it.

It works, but this isn't quite the Cricut hack I was hoping for.

The machine is still dependent on Cricut's software, accounts and servers. The workaround essentially convinces Cricut's ecosystem that this particular piece of hardware hasn't been disabled.

That means Cricut remains in control.

I would much rather see someone reverse engineer enough of the protocol to replace Design Space entirely. Give the cutter a small local application or an open driver that accepts SVGs and cutting instructions directly. At that point it stops being a Cricut service endpoint and becomes what it physically is: a perfectly useful computer-controlled cutting machine.

There may also be easier ways to achieve the author's existing workaround. xssfox suggests patching the application, proxying the USB connection in software, intercepting Bluetooth or modifying the firmware. The RP2040 solution is interesting because it demonstrates exactly where the trust boundary is, but it probably shouldn't be the final form of the hack.

The larger problem is that viable hardware can become e-waste because a company has decided a serial number should no longer work.

We've seen versions of this before. Sonos once had a "Recycle Mode" that intentionally disabled older speakers when owners used its trade-up program. Sonos eventually abandoned the practice after the backlash, but devices that had already been disabled remained unusable through official means.

I have a hard time rewarding companies that design products this way.

If I buy a machine, and the motors, electronics and mechanics still work, the manufacturer shouldn't retain a permanent kill switch over whether I can use it.

The best Cricut unlock won't be a better way to convince Cricut that the machine is allowed to exist.

It will be removing Cricut from that decision entirely.