When you think of 3D printing I always thought this was already out, you print off on a piece of paper and slap on some 3D glasses.
I was recently researching 3D printing and there is actually a company who aims to bring REAL 3D printing to the home! Imagine, you have an idea for say an iPhone case, or a cupholder, you attached that sucker to your laptop and an hour later you get a plastic version that creates itself from just a few feet away, amazing, huh?
The Melting Of Plastic
The printer, which was created by Steve Schell uses melted plastic to “print” or mould your creation into it’s shape. The 3D technology is taking shape within the past few years (No pun intended) and quite a lot of companies have started up a race to build the first for home users. They are out there and available for $1,000+ but for home users this is just not viable or cost effective, Schell and his colleagues at New Matter came up with their version of the 3D printer called MOD-t. What they did was decrease the number of moving parts required to print in 3D which cut the costs massively, they are available to pre-order from their website for just $279!
The package also includes some state of the art software where users can come up with their own designs or simply print off pre-made ones from more experiences users worldwide. I think this would open up a fantastic new market for everyone, as Schnell says, you would not only be able to create your own brand new designs and manufacture things right from your home, you may also be able to come up with new parts for your washing machine or dishwasher, basically anything!
See A Business Idea Anyone?
For those Entrepreneurs out there, imagine being able to create parts, create your very own ideas in your head in your living room within minutes. This could quite possibly cut down manufacturing costs to basically 0! No need to take your prototypes back, you could simply make the adjustments yourself.
On the other hand you can literally create an entire Business out of it by supplying parts for certain things, right now I can see the gaps in the marketplace for people who cannot find parts for certain items anywhere. The Business ideas are tremendous, create baby toys, dogs toys, think of the possibilities!
The MOD-t printer will be available this spring (2015)
