A Brief History
Are you someone that likes to deep dive new technologies? I mean really deep dive and get to the core of how things work? Do you like reverse engineering machines to understand how they work and finding ways to improve them? Well the current state of 3D printing as a technology is at a point where it might still enable you to do all of those things. You see, 3D printing as an industry has had a somewhat unique development path when compared to other emergent technologies. Generally speaking, the responsibility of developing and advancing new technology is mostly assumed by the product manufacturers. This creates a better product for consumers ideally at lower prices which in turn lead to more sales which is capitalism at its finest. However, 3D printing hasn’t really followed this traditional path and most of the progression and development of the technology has been made by the consumers through open source collaboration by hobbyists and professionals alike.
Believe it or not 3D printing and other additive manufacturing process have been around for much longer than you might think. We first started seeing 3D printers back in the 80’s and they later started making their way into labs and universities in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. The price for one of these machines was astronomical when compared to the affordable machines available on the market today. As the technology evolved and started to become more affordable we started to see these machines make their way into hobbyists and enthusiasts homes. It was apparent that there was a lot of effort going into making these products more and more affordable for consumers to the point where we started seeing fully operational, mostly assembled printers for as low as $200. This was good and bad for consumers because it meant you could finally afford an entry level 3D printer without breaking the bank but it also meant that the machines were very bare-bones, lacking very basic functions and features that you would see in other modern day electronics.
At its core a 3D printer doesn’t need much, some stepper motors, a power supply, motherboard, and aluminum extrusions for a frame and not a whole lot more. For any of you who have ever taken a look ‘under the hood’ of a 3D printer you can see that there’s not a lot going on there. This means, no auto-shut off, no wireless functionality, sometimes no color LCD screens. We’re pretty sure it wouldn’t be hard to find a toaster that had all of these features built in today. That’s not to say that the technology isn’t available because clearly we are seeing it in other home electronics but if manufacturers where going to accomplish the ultimate goal of bringing 3D printing to everyone through affordable pricing then those features were going to need to be left out.
So what does this mean for you?
Where did that leave us, the tinkerers? Well we just started developing and incorporating these features ourselves. Automatic Bed Leveling (ABL) which now comes standard on most printers was once an involved installation and calibration process. Removable build plates also once a hot upgrade, are now a requirement for any 3D printer to be taken seriously in this market. And then there’s Octoprint…. Octoprint enabled wireless functionality, webcam monitoring, I/O support, and most importantly AUTOMATION. So what was once a barebones 3D printer that could only print one type of plastic was now a state of the art, feature-rich, automated machine. The beauty of it all is that WE did this, the consumers, not the product manufacturers which could be seen as a positive or a negative depending on who you are. If you like knowing how things work and taking pride in fumbling through the learning and installation process of some of these upgrades then its great but maybe not so appealing to the person who just wants an awesome machine with all of the latest features out of the box.
If you find yourself in the latter group of individual that would rather buy the feature packed machine for a higher price instead of going through the time and effort of improving your printer yourself well then we have some news for you. The market right now is starting to see a wave of feature packed 3D printers from manufacturers like Bambu Labs and Anker that come with all of the desirable features already installed right of the box. These printers are still a little new and not completely vetted but so far we are starting to see some pretty promising results.
The Verdict
All of this is to say that no matter what side of the fence you find yourself on, whether you’re the builder or the buyer, there’s a 3D printer for you TODAY. It might not be this way for too much longer but right now you have the choice between the older more basic printers and the newer feature rich printers. This is the perfect time to pull the trigger if you’ve been debating whether or not you should get into 3D printing.