2014 3D Printing Predictions - Let's Hear Them

[RedSox2013]

I thought it would be fun to start a thread so that over the next week or so we could all give out 3D Printing predictions for the coming year. This way a year from now we can review this thread and see how accurate we all were. 2013 has been a huge year for the industry, but I am willing to bet that 2014 will be twice as big. Here are a few of my predictions:



#1 HP will enter the 3D Printing industry in a big way with a 3D Printer which caters towards consumers rather than manufacturers. This introduction from HP will mean a lot of new eyeballs on the industry, and lots of new customers.

#2 Plastic filament prices will decrease by 30% on average

#3 3D Metal Printers will finally begin to get cheap enough that consumers like you and I will be considering one for a purchase.

#4 A large company like Google, Microsoft, Apple, IBM or Intel will enter the 3D Printing market in a big way with some sort of acquisition. Perhaps the acquisition will be one of the big boys, Stratasys, or 3D Systems, but it's more likely to be one of the new comers in the industry like VoxelJet.

#5 50+% of all high schools in the United States has at least one 3D Printer in it, with classes being taught utilizing that printer.

#6 There will be at least 1 more extremely controversial item printed, which will get just as much, if not more attention, as the original 3D Printed gun earlier this year. New laws will be passed on a national level related to 3D Printing guns.

#7 There will be a major lawsuit involving patents and 3D Printing, which will get national attention.

[NJ_Lifer]

I think we will see the first 3D Printer that is priced under $3500 that can print in multiple materials at the same time. Let's say Metal, PLA, and Wood.

With this, we could make so many great things.

[Larry]

I agree with most of your predictions listed here. I think that filament will continue to decrease in price, and I think there may be a major company that will bring to market a plastic recycling filament maker, or perhaps an all in one 3d printer that takes plastic scraps and prints out whatever you wish. It is also just a matter of time before some of the largest tech companies start dabbling in the industry. We saw that Apple filed some patents this month related to 3D Printing.

[DerekPeterson]

I believe we will begin seeing more ways to recycle materials into filament. I want to be able to take a plastic bottle, add color and make a toy for my kids. It can't be too hard to do, I wouldn't think.

[Davo]

I think we will see the first 3D Printer that is priced under $3500 that can print in multiple materials at the same time. Let's say Metal, PLA, and Wood.

With this, we could make so many great things.

Um, we already have this in 2013.

[NJ_Lifer]

Um, we already have this in 2013.

Do we have a printer that can basically lets say be programmed to print a metal knife with a handle that is half wood and half PLA all at once without having to manually put it together? This is what I meant. As far as I know, there are no 3D Printers that can do this yet.

[Davo]

NJ_Lifer,

We cannot presently print in metal, although we have printed with precious metal clay.

With any of the Hyrel 3D Printers, you can load four heads with four materials (say, nylon, abs, Sugru and RTV Silicone) and print one part with four materials. Granted, this is presently a complex build requiring complicated gcode (print portion A of layer 1 with material A, print portion B of layer 1 with material B, print portion C of layer 1 with material C, etc.), and one must consider what happens when material at one temperature is deposited upon another material, but it is possible.

We have printed one part with material from two heads (two different colors of ABS in a test run).

We have not yet printed one part with material from three or four heads, but it is not a large leap. When we do so, I'll post a video.