Quote Originally Posted by curious aardvark View Post
Once 3d printers become user friendly and the big megacorps start offering encrypted downloads of their files so you can easily print your own repairs for home 'things'.
I like designing my own, but the general public won't do that :-)

THEN, you'll see a major move into the file distribution market.
My money's on google. They're more prepared to throw hideous amounts of money at already proven companies and buy them up.
Yeah i think they're funded direct from hell. But compared to apple and microsoft they're positively saintly.

I'm hoping that the world will one day wake up and abandon apple to the wastelands that they deserve. But for some reason people think white and expensive is the same as well designed and value for money. Weird, but true.

But like I said, at the moment there's no money in the home printer market. And no market for home printable files.
There will be and it won't be long.

The model-t is the first stab at a consumer friendly printer and file service.
Couple that with the machine that removes it's own prints to allow unattended print queuing and you're a long way towards the machine that will eventually be as ubiquitous in people's homes as the microwave, television or kettle (in the uk anyway).
And then you'll see companies lining up to print money :-)
Amen, I pray that apple doesnt enter this market. Imagine an all white applie printer that costs 3500 but only has a 6x6x6 build volume, hey it looks cool right? It also has a starbucks coffee dispensing side port.

I think if google enters this, it will be game over. Knowing them they will do something extraordinary. Like them or hate them, they are good at what they do which is develop technology, whether for media, for networking, search engine or whatever. They are the best and everyone knows it.

I would love to see Amazon come up with something after the failure that was the Kindle. HP is in the game too, the next 10 years will be exciting!!