3D Printing: Revolution or Hype?

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Is 3D printing a revolution or just hype? Hell, I don't know. I voted for the redhead.

3D printing is going to change the world. 3D printing will change us: the way we prepare food, how we replace broken objects, how we exchange gifts, how we play with our children. It will affect our power consumption, our time management, our imagination. It will also radically change every industry we interact with: automotive, food, medical, aerospace, manufacturing, and shipping.
 
Until I've got my replicator, it's all hype.

Seriously, though, considering how slow, expensive and limited it currently is, it's really just a fad. Once it's as cheap and capable as factory produced items, then I'll think about changing my mind.
 
Until I've got my replicator, it's all hype.

Seriously, though, considering how slow, expensive and limited it currently is, it's really just a fad. Once it's as cheap and capable as factory produced items, then I'll think about changing my mind.

So it's a fad because it's new and limited right now? Everything, including technology has to learn to walk before it can run, the beginning "fad" is what finances an actual revolution.
 
A 3D printer is fairly easy to build, I mean there's a lot of open source 3D printers available. But the prices are outrageous for something that most of us just wanna dick around with. It will be an amazing tool for out children to play with, cause it'll help teach them CAD.

Ultimately I would like to print my own replacement parts and junk, but there's a huge price jump to buy one of these things. Which I can't help but think it's being done intentionally. Why is a RepRap so cheap to build, but any commercial 3D printer is so massively expensive?
 
If the prices can get low enough, these things can be an absolute BOON for modelers.

Think about all the little parts for your R/C Cars, Planes, Helicoptes, etc... you can make yourself instead of paying exorbitant prices to the mfr's ? In 10 years, there will probably be lawsuit after lawsuit for data files you load up into a free CAD program that can reproduce millions of little parts that you'd otherwise have to pay 1000% markups on.

Think music pirating was an issue? Just wait till these babies are well under $500 and inexpensive to run :)
 
3D printers are already "cheap" for any enthusiast. You can get pretty well setup for less than $300 these days. My guess is in five years we will have 0.05 mm systems for less than $500 that are home friendly. If I was an investor, I would be looking at companies who are making filaments that are 3d printer friendly + high strength once cured.

http://makibox.com/
 
You still talking about 3D printing. That's last year.

This year is all about Internet of Things. Wait till my toilet gets app-ified. I'll be able to know the weight, viscosity, color, composition and everything else about my shits.


Also, I like how everyone simply assumes that prices for 3D printers will come down. "Like DUH, i know it's $30,000 now, but i'm sure in two years it will be $70. "

I'm not saying it can't happen. I'm just saying that assuming everything will get 30x cheaper in two years is a bit optimistic.
 
I've had a heavily-upgraded Replicator 1 for a couple years now. So far, it has paid for itself by printing some replacement parts that I couldn't buy, like a custom eyelet I designed and printed to fix the shift cables in my car. There is a lot of potential, since you can create parts that would be impossible to cast, and there are a lot of items that are cheaper to print than to buy. But, I don't think the actual potential will be seen for years. The FDM tech we are playing with was created in the 80s, and most of the printer controllers on the market are based off of 8-bit controllers like the Arduino.

Once the patents expire on powder-based polymer and metal-sintering printer tech, things will open up quite a bit, since those technologies allow you to print basically any shape without the hassle of having support material. I could think of hundreds of uses for metal-printed parts, especially if you like working on cars. Need a weird wrench? Print one. Want a turbocharger but don't want to pay thousands? Print and assemble your own (Koeniggseg is actually already doing this with their car the One:1). If it breaks, print another one, etc.
 
So it's a fad because it's new and limited right now? Everything, including technology has to learn to walk before it can run, the beginning "fad" is what finances an actual revolution.

Most "innovations" end up being "fads". Very few have staying power.

One only need look at the USPTO online database for "get rich quick" patent schemes to see some of the wacky "fad" innovations that just look moronic nowadays. Because there are too many to count.
 
I have tried and tried hard to come up with what I'd use a 3D printer for, but the reality of it is that I have exactly zero use for 3D printing.

We have two 3D printers at work. One we bought early on for like 25k, and one we recently bought for about 4k. They sit idle. They were only purchased to check them out and see whether they would be of any use, and the verdict is a resounding; useless!
 
Remember when color computer printing first started? It started with laser and dye sub 4 color schemes that barely produced 100dpi and impact dot matrix with 4 color ribbons. Eventually, someone came up with ink jet, and that was developed into color inkjet to make it affordable for average users. Even the color inkjet printers were expensive for average users at $250-350 back when I worked for Best Buy in the early 90s. That's like paying $500-700 for a printer today.

We'll see this evolve just like color printing. At first, brittle, one color polymers, and then that will evolve, probably into more durable and multi-color polymers. Metal work may come down later. Who knows, maybe in 20-30 years we'll have multi-metal plus plastic printers that cost $300 for the average user. In 50-60 years we very well could have replicators like Star Trek that make food and no longer have to farm animals. We just have to nurture this budding new technology for now.

Right now, it may not be all that useful, relegated to niche markets, but it could very well develop into something great for all humanity. That is, if our society survives long enough to do it. If the Us economy collapses under a huge weight of government debt, we won't have the resources to do it.
 
I have tried and tried hard to come up with what I'd use a 3D printer for, but the reality of it is that I have exactly zero use for 3D printing.

That's part of the problem. A lot of people don't have a use for it, other than printing out goofy toys. And, the technology is so far from being user friendly that there is a large learning curve. It took a couple years of upgrades, practice, and research to learn my machine's quirks, the printing materials, and techniques for getting really good prints. I'm not sure FDM will EVER really be consumer-friendly because of its limitations. Powder-based printers have much more potential for user-friendliness, but I don't see cheap powder printers rolling out for a long time.
 
I don't think it's a "fad" or "hype"... but it maybe will take some time before we see any mass-market appeal like we saw with 2d printers.

3d TVs are more of a fad IMO, because it's really not very functional for many people. 3d printer could see lots of useful applications in the long run. tablets I don't hink were ever a "fad", they always seemed practical and the next logical step in mobile computers
 
Remember when color computer printing first started? It started with laser and dye sub 4 color schemes that barely produced 100dpi and impact dot matrix with 4 color ribbons. Eventually, someone came up with ink jet, and that was developed into color inkjet to make it affordable for average users. Even the color inkjet printers were expensive for average users at $250-350 back when I worked for Best Buy in the early 90s. That's like paying $500-700 for a printer today.

We'll see this evolve just like color printing. At first, brittle, one color polymers, and then that will evolve, probably into more durable and multi-color polymers. Metal work may come down later. Who knows, maybe in 20-30 years we'll have multi-metal plus plastic printers that cost $300 for the average user. In 50-60 years we very well could have replicators like Star Trek that make food and no longer have to farm animals. We just have to nurture this budding new technology for now.

Right now, it may not be all that useful, relegated to niche markets, but it could very well develop into something great for all humanity. That is, if our society survives long enough to do it. If the Us economy collapses under a huge weight of government debt, we won't have the resources to do it.

And yet...affordable color printers are shit today.

They drink $50 ink carts 10 pages at a time, they paper jam....they're generally awful appliances and for the rare times one wants to print in color, it is typically less expensive and less hassle to take the work to a printing department.

Comparing the development of 3D printing to consumer color printing...is not something that makes 3D printing look at all desirable.
 
the verdict is a resounding; useless!
yea, but in 10 years it might be good enough to provide actually daily-use thing... instead of going to the store to buy silver wear you can just print them, for example...
 
I think it's way too easy to tell, it's already changing many people's lives, from high quality prosthetic limbs at fraction of cost, to cutting edge vehicle design etc, the only thing holding back the floodgates is the speed or these early printers imho.
 
I think it's way too easy to tell, it's already changing many people's lives, from high quality prosthetic limbs at fraction of cost, to cutting edge vehicle design etc, the only thing holding back the floodgates is the speed or these early printers imho.

edit: "of"

Waiting for BBS to join 21st century with edit features lol.
 
And yet...affordable color printers are shit today.

They drink $50 ink carts 10 pages at a time, they paper jam....they're generally awful appliances and for the rare times one wants to print in color, it is typically less expensive and less hassle to take the work to a printing department.

Comparing the development of 3D printing to consumer color printing...is not something that makes 3D printing look at all desirable.

You must be buying different printers than me.

I just replaced a cheap all-in-one the wife and kids have been using for the past few years due to the print head finally failing. Not worth fixing a 4 year old printer when I can buy a newer/better one on sale for $100 It rarely had paper jams, and used generic ink that cost around $2.50 each (3 seperate color and one black). Then I turned in the empties to the local office store for a $2 credit that I usually used to buy paper :)

Have another color printer I mainly use to print DVD & photos, that still works fine after almost 10 years.
Also uses generic ink for about the same price, except it uses 6 differnt colors.

I'd never buy a color printer that didn't have cheap generic ink available, as the cost of the ink is usually much more then the printer over the printers life.
 
They are neither. They are just the next logical step. People use to fix their own stuff before it became cheaper to buy something new. Why was it cheaper to buy new? Because it was mass produced at low costs. Being able to produce your own items at home at lower costs will help people fix/replace everyday items. There are tons of things I have seen people make with home 3D printers which saved them some money. Everything from containers, to replacement parts, furniture, organization tools, prosthetics, etc. I was trying to find a link I read a few months back where a guy was saving literally hundreds of dollars a year with his 3D printer by creating everyday items. Found some similar ones though.
 
Once it takes of, it's going to be THE biggest Hyper Revolution ever until ST type replicators and the 9.9 warp drive.
 
Once it takes of, it's going to be THE biggest Hyper Revolution ever until ST type replicators and the 9.9 warp drive.

Replicators! Yeeesss! I want a machine to make my hot tea and chocolate drinkies instead of me having to stop reading a good book to make them for myself. And kitty food too...kitties need replicator noms! :D
 
As someone who has a lot of material-based hobbies (motorcycles, models, trains, computers) I get so excited about the possibilities of 3D printing. My limiting factor in my hobbies is always parts; either I need a replacement for something or I have a design in my head but do not have the prototyping tools to produce the design. 3D printing is the answer to both.
 
two limiting factors imo:

1. Designing parts - People don't want to have to learn CAD or some 3d studio variant just to create a small part they want. And they sure as hell don't want to pay someone else a large royalty for the download rights to some random design (that may or may not fit their need). Many people want to simply copy or replace something they already have. To this effect, 3d scanning needs to become easier/better/integrated with 3d printing such that an idiot can put a small object on a platform, and that's it.

2. The actual materials. If you have kids, tell them to get a chemistry degree. Materials tech, Polymers, whatever, this is where 3d printers need to innovate still. Someone will find the right combination of materials that are perfect for 3d printing that combines strength, cost, and not poisoning the baby/dog.


To add on to #2, there are already people getting wild with the uses of 3d printing. There are bakers using 3d printers to make specialized cakes/desserts with incredible detail. Why stop there? How about a device that used bacon as its primary material? Edible Bacon art. Are you reading carefully? Bacon De Milo

And what really baffles me is why haven't they made a 3d printer in toy stores, ala Build-A-Bear, where a simplified 3d designer is provided to kids, they make all the parts they want for an action figure, it prints them out right there in front of their eyes (with crazy lights and other stuff added to make it seem cooler), they get the parts and snap it all together to make THEIR action figure. Find a way to get the costs under $20 per figure (also not a choking hazard) and you'll be rich.
 
two limiting factors imo:

1. Designing parts - People don't want to have to learn CAD or some 3d studio variant just to create a small part they want. And they sure as hell don't want to pay someone else a large royalty for the download rights to some random design (that may or may not fit their need). Many people want to simply copy or replace something they already have. To this effect, 3d scanning needs to become easier/better/integrated with 3d printing such that an idiot can put a small object on a platform, and that's it.

It's not that hard to learn some of this stuff and there is a lot of free software out there to do it. In addition there are a lot of free designs you can download and use.

2. The actual materials. If you have kids, tell them to get a chemistry degree. Materials tech, Polymers, whatever, this is where 3d printers need to innovate still. Someone will find the right combination of materials that are perfect for 3d printing that combines strength, cost, and not poisoning the baby/dog.

Not sure where you are going with that, as there are already some great materials for 3D printing. But sure, we could always use better materials.

And what really baffles me is why haven't they made a 3d printer in toy stores, ala Build-A-Bear, where a simplified 3d designer is provided to kids, they make all the parts they want for an action figure, it prints them out right there in front of their eyes (with crazy lights and other stuff added to make it seem cooler), they get the parts and snap it all together to make THEIR action figure. Find a way to get the costs under $20 per figure (also not a choking hazard) and you'll be rich.

That is a good question, perhaps you should do that, or better yet, find these people...
 
The market is still in the early stages but there is definitely huge potential for it. Imagine the convenience of 3D printing a hard-to-find car part to get your car operational. I believe NASA has explored this application since obtaining parts in space is a challenge.
 
Wake me when quality handheld 3D scanners become affordable. I want to scan my broken part, (possibly) mess with it in a modelling program, and then print a replacement. I'm not willing to pay $50K for a scanner - Even if the printer is $500.
 
And what really baffles me is why haven't they made a 3d printer in toy stores, ala Build-A-Bear, where a simplified 3d designer is provided to kids, they make all the parts they want for an action figure, it prints them out right there in front of their eyes (with crazy lights and other stuff added to make it seem cooler), they get the parts and snap it all together to make THEIR action figure. Find a way to get the costs under $20 per figure (also not a choking hazard) and you'll be rich.
$20/figure, and they get to sit there watching it build the figure for the next eight hours!
 
Replicators! Yeeesss! I want a machine to make my hot tea and chocolate drinkies instead of me having to stop reading a good book to make them for myself. And kitty food too...kitties need replicator noms! :D

For replicators to be of any real use, we need a new source of energy that doesn't suck like it is now.
 
The market is still in the early stages but there is definitely huge potential for it. Imagine the convenience of 3D printing a hard-to-find car part to get your car operational. I believe NASA has explored this application since obtaining parts in space is a challenge.

I watched a video not too long ago from Ford where they 3D printed an entire prototype vehicle's body panels and most of the interior. The engineer being interviewed stated that the printer saved them hundreds of thousands of dollars in time and materials, and cut the production time from months to weeks. Another example I read about mentioned using a 3D printer to build houses (using cement as the filiment) in impoverished areas as it could turn out a 750 sq/ft home with 2 bedrooms in about 40 hours (IIRC, I think I'm close at least) from foundation to roof.

So yes, there are places where this tech is going to revolutionize current industries. For the average person, it's not quire ready yet, but won't be long. I like the idea of 3D printing an entertainment center customized to my exact specs.
 
Saves time sculpting something, that you designed on a computer, just print the thing out the same day.

Somebody made a down scaled functioning kidney, so the next decade or so, printed organ replacements.

It has benefits, but the cost at the moment is kind of ridiculous.
 
Why do people think 3D printing is hype ? For Car parts especially I can see this being a huge thing for restorers or technicians that cannot find a replacement parts and for small speciality parts as well. This could help usher in a new industry in the future.
 
Definitely not hype, maybe not quite revolutionary (that would be when the prices fall), but definitely evolutionary. Man has forever created tools to shape ones environment, this is just another way to make it easier and faster.

I just wish "it" would get here like tomorrow so we can get on with dreaming up more stuff to make.
 
For Car parts especially I can see this being a huge thing for restorers or technicians that cannot find a replacement parts and for small speciality parts as well.
As the technology stands right now, the result of a 3D printed part is significantly more fragile than an injection-molded part. The result is also more "rough" (texture), the build size is limited, and the build itself takes a very long time to complete.

Every new technology has its quirks. The future of 3D printing is promising, but the current technology is rough. Some folks just can't see past the rough, so they think the technology as a whole is worthless. Thus, hype.
 
The future of 3D printing is promising, but the current technology is rough. Some folks just can't see past the rough, so they think the technology as a whole is worthless. Thus, hype.

Consumer 3D printing is hype and will likely always be hype just because of economies of scale and opportunity cost. I can plant my own grain, tend to it, harvest it, sprout it, mill it, and then make bread, or I can go to the store and buy the kind of bread I want at any time of the day.

There will be niche consumer applications for it in hobby circles and those applications will get qualitatively better and less expensive over time.

However, when you look at everyday life of an average person (mass market consumer) then you see that 3D printing solves a problem that no one has.

Buying a multi-thousand, or even multi-hundred dollar machine, maintain it, just to print out a part that you can buy for a couple of bucks makes no sense at all.

In order for 3D printing to become consumer technology you would need a daily use for it, and unless it starts printing actually edible and appealing food (I know, they tried already) there just isn't any daily process in anyone's household that a 3D printer could be used for.
 
I have tried and tried hard to come up with what I'd use a 3D printer for, but the reality of it is that I have exactly zero use for 3D printing.

Make silly character from popular video games and sell them on the internet. Kids love'em some mad birds.
When they come with a writ because of copyright infringement run like hell! :D
 
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