News - Study suggests home 3D printing could save people up to $2k p.a.

[HEXUS]

But the "20 common household items" chosen and their market prices look peculiar.

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[jnutt]

Did anyone read a recent article that said using these printers was equivalent to being in the same house as someone who smokes indoors

[3dcandy]

that made me laugh...crazy household items!

[Saracen]

Hmmm.

So, who thinks the "ink" equivalent will end up being priced the same way Epson, Canon, HP etc price their inks, that is, sky high?

I don't see this being a popular home purchase, and least, nowhere near at the current time.

First thing I'd want is colour control, and not just by buying different reels of plastic, and selecting which monochrome colour I want.

Second, it is HUGELY limited unless you can either download the exact design you want (and what will they cost), or you have access to a cheap, accurate and effective 3D scanning capability, and both the software, time and expertise to use it.

There are times I'd find this very useful, but right now, nowhere near often enough to buy one. Not YET.

This MIGHT be the first widespread use of a technology we all end up adopting (like, oh, digital cameras, laser printers, photo printers, hell, even PC's) .... or it might not. Right now, I'd love one to play with, but buy one? Nope.

[Tpyo]

<some text deleted> First thing I'd want is colour control, and not just by buying different reels of plastic, and selecting which monochrome colour I want.

Second, it is HUGELY limited unless you can either download the exact design you want (and what will they cost), or you have access to a cheap, accurate and effective 3D scanning capability, and both the software, time and expertise to use it.

There are times I'd find this very useful, but right now, nowhere near often enough to buy one. Not YET.

This MIGHT be the first widespread use of a technology we all end up adopting (like, oh, digital cameras, laser printers, photo printers, hell, even PC's) .... or it might not. Right now, I'd love one to play with, but buy one? Nope.

Agreed on all points. For the amount of time I'd need/use it, I can't justify the cost of even a cheap model at the moment, and the fewer options/lower quality results wouldn't help. Right now, I see a better-spec version being available at a community workshop (or similar) far more appealing. To get the high spec machine (and resulting projects) is currently too costly to justify for most individuals, but multiple colours/finer detail etc. available at communal facilities could easily justify the higher cost AND increase the appeal. I'd happily pay for time on such a machine.

[DanceswithUnix]

Last year I did quite a few secondary school visits as part of trying to find somewhere to live. It surprised me how commonplace 3d printers were in school these days, proper industrial jobs too not ones like Maplin sells.

So yes these are a toy I can't justify atm, but I suspect in a few years my kids will be asking why we don't have one.

As for the "ink equivalent", yes that is the model I expect. I can buy ink from Canon, and it costs £50 to refill my printer. Or I can buy a syringe and set of bottles from Morrisons or Asda for a fiver. Ink is cheap, and in fact if you buy enough of it in bulk to offset the ~£100 required to calibrate a printer against the ink, you won't compromise output quality either.

[Odeas]

I'd love to have a 3d printer but the costs are still way too expensive for something thats for playing around with.

I doubt many would save any money trying to print household cheap items with the cost of the printer, material & power.

[Saracen]

....

I can buy ink from Canon, and it costs £50 to refill my printer. Or I can buy a syringe and set of bottles from Morrisons or Asda for a fiver. Ink is cheap, and in fact if you buy enough of it in bulk to offset the ~£100 required to calibrate a printer against the ink, you won't compromise output quality either.

Well, calibration I do myself, for ink and paper, but I grant you, that's not the norm.

What you can't be sure of, though, with cheap ink is the quality control over both ink, and certainly for Epson, cartridge manufacture. The nozzles on cartridges are extremely small, and even tiny imperfections can obstruct or block them. And unlike machines where the head is integral to the cartridge, that happening with Epson implies either an expensive repair or a new printer.

I know the lengths Epson, Canon, HP, Lexmark etc go to over cleanliness, because I've been round thd plant, and been in the clean rooms. But what about ASDA's supplier. No idea, personally. And will ASDA replace your printer?

As I understand the 'ink' on 3D printers, this shouldn't be as much of a problem as it isn't ink, but .... how much does purity of the 'ink' affect the 'printer', or risk damaging it? Dunno.

I entirely agree with tpyo on the community workshop idea, though. I'd probably have occassional uses for 3D, but given the state of technology currently, nowhere near a day to day need. Not yet, anyway. In a few years, who knows?

[DanceswithUnix]

I know the lengths Epson, Canon, HP, Lexmark etc go to over cleanliness, because I've been round thd plant, and been in the clean rooms. But what about ASDA's supplier. No idea, personally. And will ASDA replace your printer?

And that is where the economics gets interesting. I have a reasonable inkjet. It does DVD printing, has a multiplexor for double sided, individual colour cartridges so they last longer. Thing is, it costs £50 for a full set of ink, and it does get used for the odd photo quality print so I do stick with official cartridges.

When I realised the kids were starting to print a lot of stuff I got them their own printer, and refill it with a £5 refill kit (not even the compatible cartridges). Their current printer was £45, more than I wanted to pay tbh, but I think the one before was £18 and didn't quite make 2 years and the new one seems more solid. A second disposable printer has turned out to be very cost effective, and if I need something like a map printed where the colour balance isn't important I sometimes use the kid's printer myself.

If 3d printers follow the path of inkjets, you may end up with two of them so one of them runs really cheap supermarket plastics

[crossy]

First thing I'd want is colour control, and not just by buying different reels of plastic, and selecting which monochrome colour I want.

I guess one way to do this would be to get some inkjet type heads on the deposition nozzle, so as the (white) plastic was laid down the inkjets could fire and send colour, which the cooling plastic could then lock in permanently. Actually kind of surprised that someone's not tried this already since it's a very obvious idea.

Second, it is HUGELY limited unless you can either download the exact design you want (and what will they cost), or you have access to a cheap, accurate and effective 3D scanning capability, and both the software, time and expertise to use it.

The demo on the BBC showed exactly, then again there's maybe an opportunity there - the 3D equivalent of the old "copy shops" that used to be vogue before home/office printing became easy/relatively-cheap. Take in your object and they can scan it and either give you the scan or 3D print it there and then.

This MIGHT be the first widespread use of a technology we all end up adopting (like, oh, digital cameras, laser printers, photo printers, hell, even PC's) .... or it might not. Right now, I'd love one to play with, but buy one? Nope.

Yep, I wouldn't mind borrowing someone else's for a day - just for curiosity - but even in my wildest imaginings I can't come up with a valid justification to buy one of these.

Besides, I'm saving my money for the time that someone manages to figure out how to convert energy to matter and we can buy a Star Trek-style replicator as a result...

[DanceswithUnix]

I'm starting to think a 3d printer rental business could be a flyer

[directhex]

Hmmm.

So, who thinks the "ink" equivalent will end up being priced the same way Epson, Canon, HP etc price their inks, that is, sky high?

They are already. There are lots of patents on 3D printing technology, and the holders of those patents charge a LOT in license fees. Each time a patent expires, prices for everyone and everything drop across the board.

[Saracen]

I'm starting to think a 3d printer rental business could be a flyer

Perhaps. A lot would depend how easy it is to prepare the file for printing. Hence my comment about 3D scanning.

I most certainly would not be surprised to see 3D printing as an option in your local high street print shop. A guy I know runs such a business, and he's added to the range of services as technology allows, starting with plotter/cutters from Roland, etc, plastic film and sign-making.

[Saracen]

....

The demo on the BBC showed exactly, then again there's maybe an opportunity there - the 3D equivalent of the old "copy shops" that used to be vogue before home/office printing became easy/relatively-cheap. Take in your object and they can scan it and either give you the scan or 3D print it there and then.

Not sure if we saw the same demo (Click! IIRC). The one I saw certainly had a model with different colour bits, but it looked like 3 or 4 different plastics had been used, rather than a 'blend'.

I mean, imagine a four-colour inkjet printer, but each section could be printed in yellow, cyan, magenta or black and ONLY those colours. You couldn't mix a pixel blend to produce green, or blue, or purplish-red.

The demo I saw appeared to be of the level of 4 input plastics gives four possible colours, not millions of them. And that would still be highly limiting.

[scottfscottf]

Staples were on about making 3d printing available in their stores last year, printing in full colour using paper.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/11/30/staples_3d_printing_service/

It seems Staples have only opened an experience centre in the netherlands at the moment though.
http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/staples-first-3d-printing-experience-centre-goes-live-powered-by-mcor-technologies-205213151.html

[pp05]

It is the time taken that makes it largely not worth it for the home.