400,000 3D Printers to Go in Chinese Schools Next Year

3D printing technology is making its way into schools around the world, with President Obama encouraging the use of 3D printers in the United States the closest-to-home example. Kinpo Group's CEO Simon Shen announced today in Taiwan that China is also on its way to embracing 3D printing--and even one-upping the US as far as school usage goes. Shen noted that the Chinese government has a new plan for the approximately 400,000 elementary schools across the country: a 3D printer for every school within the next two years. Kinpo Group, the parent company of XYZprinting, hasn't confirmed that the machines will be of their manufacture, though indications are strong that the company's sub-$500 3D printers will contribute. For more details on school use around the world, and Shen's insights into China's near future, read the full article: http://3dprint.com/56699/china-3d-printers-schools/


Below is a classroom full of eager students:
http://3dprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/c11.png

To think, when i was in school we had bbc micros and 9 pin dot matrix printers - probably, i never saw one till i got to college.

And now the computer part of the equation is so ubiquitious nobody even thinks about it.

I'd have considered a 3d printer nothing short of magic at that age :-)

This article made me laugh at first, because either :
- a lot of sad little machines will be left to rust,
- or a lot of people are going to do serious teaching, training and troubleshooting over there.

China can always be surprising, but I'm afraid it'll look more like the first one.