3 ms·

Let's use my 2D printer as a predictor of the future. It requires really expensive proprietary cartridges for the raw materials (aka the ink), it takes a fairly

Let's use my 2D printer as a predictor of the future. It requires really expensive proprietary cartridges for the raw materials (aka the ink), it takes a fairly long time to print most things, and the assembly of the more complex projects (books, photo albums, wall sized posters, etc.) is tedious. By contrast, 2D printing to online professional printing services is much easier, generally cheaper, and the finished products are delivered anywhere I want quickly with no assembly required. As a result, my family's use of our 2D printer has declined dramatically over the last five years. With our subscriptions to Amazon Prime and Google Shopping Express, I anticipate our use of the 2D printer will dwindle even further and any desire to own a 3D printer to follow suit.

andrewmb 13y ago
Pretty much this exactly. Even as an insider, I don't ever see 3D printers being as ubiquitous as PCs or microwaves. However, I think that one day, probably on that 10-year timeline, every printshop and Kinko's will have one. But for home use? It makes more sense for them to be consolidated and shared/rented. The laws of physics are actually the limiting part for most 3D printers--you can only extrude plastic or cure resin so fast without crazy expensive support hardware. People compare this to Moore's law; the analogy is sound, but they don't realize how far along the curve we are with respect to the supporting technologies that go into these machines.