[QUOTE=hercemer;9295]
Quote Originally Posted by atoff View Post

My printer estimates that I can print the juicer at normal settings for $1.44 in 5 hours and 33 minutes.

That’s over your estimate of $0.99 but I can have it right now in any color I want.

Imagine browsing a website like Amazon, but you can simply print whatever you buy. No shipping, no handling, no angry calls to UPS… just a juicer sitting on your print bed.

We’re already there with sites like thingiverse.

I can drive to Target and buy a toothbrush holder, or I can go here http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:265761 and print one for nearly nothing.

I had assumed that all my prints would cost more than the same item could be mass produced in China. As I tally the cost of my prints, it’s a lot closer than I thought. Combine that with the incredible convince of being able to just “click” on an item and watch it print in front of you… I’d say it’s already practical, or at least desirable.
I stand by what I said, it's not at all practical for the every day consumer. You're considering only the cost of the filament, what about energy cost, your time, cost of the printer, etc.etc. If your goal to purchase a printer is to print 99cent object all day I'm pretty sure by the end of the day you'd have spent over $1k at minimum for $10 worth of "useful" items. Lets be real, is that crappy plastic hair brush you printed on Thingiverse comparable to what you could have purchased? In the future? Sure, absolutely... right now? No, not practical.

It's very useful for tinkerers, hobbyists... but the average consumer isn't going to spend the time to learn to model decent items and spend hours modeling the object, then wait for it to print. The items on Thingiverse are for the most part nothing more than novelty. I've browsed and browsed, and I can't find a single thing that interests me on that site. Let me print a worthless gear heart or two why don't I? lol

It might sound like I'm against 3D printing, but that's not at all the case, I think it's fantastic... just not "PRACTICAL" for the every day average Joe right now.