FORM1 & Replicator 2: High-end desktop 3D printers heating up!

You know you’ve got a good business when you break a 100K funding request on Kickstarter within 2 hours… and have your goal exceeded by 500%! That’s what FORM1 did and it’s right on the heals of MakerBot’s Replicator 2  high-end 3D printer release! There isn’t demand for low cost high-quality 3D printers… there is MASSIVE DEMAND for them and things are only starting to heat-up! So, let’s see what each has to offer if you are in the market for a 2.5K desktop 3D printer! If you are new to 3D printers, read this article about the different printing technologies involved.

Replicator 2 by MakerBot

MakerBot has been making some pretty good “hobby” 3D printers for a while that had “open sourced” written all over it as it came from the original RepRap project that also spawned a number of other 3D printers. They weren’t the easiest machines to work with, required assembly and some programming knowledge but I’ve seen some pretty decent prints come out of them and for MakerBot, the Replicator 2 was it’s first REAL attempt to go mass-market with a 3D printer that anybody can use. Here are the machine’s stats.

• 100 microns printing resolutions
• uses FDM (PLA)
• 410 cubic inch build volume (11.2 l x 6.0 w x 6.1 h)
• 25 pounds (12kg)
• 2199$US (pay now, get it in a month)

What I really like about PLA filament is you don’t have the normal shrinkage or warping you have with ABS plastic which is a massive drawback. There was recently a stink in the MakerBot community about the direction MakerBot is going with this new 3d printing machine, from 100% open sourced machines to “not to sure about open sourced” future… think about it, you spend hundreds of thousands if not millions to develop technology and then give it away for your competitor to build the exact same machine at a lower price point? I think we’ll see a more closed-sourced MakerBot as times goes on, they have to in order to stay in business!

FORM1 by Formlabs

Formlabs is a new company out of MIT lab students interest in 3d printer and proposes a different future for desktop 3D printers… replacing FDM totally for SL technology – which is superior in resolution but the drawback is having to “clean” the finished supporting materials in a chemical tub… a minor step in my opinion but one worth noting never the less.

• 25 microns
• uses SL
• 156 cubic inch build volume (4.9 l x 4.9 w x 6.5 h)
• unknown weight but guessing about the same as Replicator 2s
• 2299$US (“pay now” and get it later)

This machine has some big guns attached to it, like SolidWorks founder Jon Hirschtick which is a massive company in the design and engineering field (I use Autodesk) and like MakerBot, lots of smart and creative people behind it. This is a new company so there isn’t much history to go on but this really looks like something that will happen for sure!

Which machine is best?

There you have it, two different 3D printers using different technologies to accomplish the same thing – turning virtual bites into physical matter. Which is better? It all depends on your budget (material isn’t free) and what you plan on doing with it… if it’s for a ball to give to your cat, the Replicator 2 is a great cheap option but if it’s highly detailed architectural models to be placed in a museum on the extremely cheap and small side of things, the FORM1 wins hands-down.

Options, options and more options

What I really like about 3D printers this year is that the competition is FIERCE, it seems almost every week there is a new company releasing a 3D printing machine out there for the mass market. You have 3D System’s Cube (among many options), Eventorbot, Ultrabot, HYREL, PandaBot, Solidoodle and the list goes on and on – all at various price points and resolutions.

Bottom Line

It’s a great time to be in 3D!