The trend report is out and in the “trending printer” section it’s interesting to see the increase in the tiny M3D printers and the large “Ultimaker extended” together with the professional Object 24 leading the race

This could indicate an expansion in the market in a three fold way - People start to get the printers out of their garage and into their living rooms (M3D) The hobbyists now try to increase their capabilities after discovering 3D printing (Ultimaker Extended) and are willing to invest more , thus stepping into a professional market (Object 24).

Anyways this is just my interpretation of this graph. Let’s wait for the next report to see if this trend holds up.

Don’t forget to check the full report

What do you guys think about this?

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I would interpretate the grow of Objet24 printers in the way that more people decide to start a small buisness with 3d printing.

Hobby users wont be able to affort such printer (in most cases) and those, that need professional printers, but want to start small, would go with the Objet24 or similar. Larger printers would be too big of an investment and cheaper ones aren’t that reliable / precise /…

It will be very interesting to watch the growing of the BigBox, which should be a great deal for advanced hobby users.

I’m wondering, if the frequence with which revolutionizing changes come with new 3d printers has reduced a bit. I have the feeling, that less printers are released, that do something completely different (may it be advantagous or not). What would you @Arnoldas wish to see in a new 3d printer ?

It would definitely be interesting to hear, what the 3dHubs staff is hoping / expecting from future 3d printers.

Cheers,

Marius

Exactly Marius, I think that the the hobbyists are increasingly able to turn into these semi-professionals!

What I want to see personally are the 3 types of printers to develop
1) Self calibrating, isolated etc (completely foolproof) printer that doesn’t fail when you insert a different material or open your window for the mainstream user (Great visual design is a must).

  • This one doesn’t have to have perfect quality, but more focused on effortless printing

2) A sort of a Master kit for the true makers, which could print different material and maybe even different technologies within one kit. The vital thing in this design should be the ease of changing all the nozzles and whatnot. Fixing it also should be made very easily accessible as well so that the tinkering is allowed to the max.

  • This one would be a too complicated machine for the public, but would distinguish the true 3D printing enthusiasts from the public very much

3) I don’t know too much about the professional printers, but I guess the main improvement of it could be reduction of the price and size of them. I think once every mid-sized town in the western world can afford at a few such copy-shops, I would see it as a turning point in the whole industry.

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