I looked at both and got the Cameo for several reasons--I wanted to use the screen on my laptop to design, I wanted to be able to scan in photos easily, wanted to use with fabric, vinyl, cardstock, etc. I like that I can either design my own cuts or can download (most are $1 each so I often wait for the 50cent sale) designs (and there are a ton). That being said, it's important to use either a fusible or heavy starch so plan on doing mostly raw edge applique, guess you could do a needle turn with a very lightweight fusible on back but cutting a complex design is harder then. Updates are free. While I've enjoyed it and used for fabric and other medium, I just got an Accuquilt Go BIG that I'm loving--cuts tons of fabric and depending on the dies bought (down side is they are pricey) you can do applique, too.