3D Printing

3D Printing technology came of age at this year’s International CES. From printed drum shells to collectables to jewelry, 3D printers were doing it all. 3D Systems announced the Cube 3, which they say will be the world’s first sub-$1,000 3D printer. It features a resolution of 75 microns, which is almost four times the Continue Reading →

First Microsoft, now Adobe: 3D printing will get a big mainstream boost Thursday when users find they can now use Photoshop to edit 3D designs and output them directly to a 3D printer. Right now, designing a 3D printable object can be a cumbersome process that involves switching between several design and print prep software Continue Reading →

Makerbot Chief Executive Bre Pettis unveiled something “epic” at the Consumer Electronics Show on Monday. Like a showman, he removed a black covering to reveal a mammoth 3D printer. And it’s for making big, epic things, he said. The CEO announced the Replicator Z18 for printing large objects — up to 12 by 12 by 18 Continue Reading →

The craziness and awesomeness of CES is in full swing once again, and we’re smack in the middle of it. I’m literally in the middle of it, as I’m writing this from the booth in North Hall from where our Silver Tours are launching. These tours show off the best of the best that CES Continue Reading →

Hardware analysts at IDC are estimating that 3D printer shipments will grow 10 times in the period between now and 2017. Printers, once the provenance of hackers and engineers, will soon be household commodities. “Print is extending beyond output on media to the creation of an actual object, and that presents incredible opportunity,” quoth Keith Continue Reading →

I’ve spent a fair bit of time trying to explain the WobbleWorks 3Doodler to people over the past year or so. My descriptions generally alternate between the company’s slightly misleading “3D-printing pen” to “sort of like a hot glue gun that melts plastic, so you can write in the air.” Makes sense, right? The company Continue Reading →

Every year during the Victoria’s Secret fashion show, a gaggle of genetically blessed supermodels struts down the runway wearing next to nothing. To be fair, they are wearing something: bras, underwear, impossibly high heels and the occasional pair of giant, extravagant wings. Hold on a second. Wings? If you’re not paying attention to the avian Continue Reading →

The UK Home Office has added language to its firearms rules, making clear that it’s generally illegal to make, own, or sell 3D-printed guns. A revised version of its licensing policies says that guns like the Liberator, designed by Defense Distributed and released to the world in May, are covered under and forbidden by the Continue Reading →

By making the basic building blocks of batteries out of ink, Harvard materials scientist Jennifer Lewis is laying the groundwork for lithium-ion batteries and other high-performing electronics that can be produced with 3-D printers. Although the technology is still at an early stage, the ability to print batteries and other electronics could make it possible Continue Reading →

On Thursday, the Philadelphia City Council voted unanimously to ban the manufacturing of guns by 3-D printers, making Philly the first city to do so. Which is interesting, because the author of the bill, Kenyatta Johnson, isn’t aware of of any local gun-printing 3-D printers. ”It’s all pre-emptive,” says Johnson’s director of legislation Steve Cobb. Continue Reading →