MakerBot’s Digital Content

While Thingiverse has been a wonderful source for 3D models for the initial wave of 3D printing, it’s not exactly consumer-friendly. It has a large number of models (over 218,000, according to a recent statement by MakerBot CEO Bre Pettis), which is good and bad. It’s good because the model you want is somewhere in Thingiverse. It’s bad because the number of models makes it difficult to search. 
 
Once you find a model it is uncertain whether it will successfully print. Model geometries are sometimes just pathological. 
 
To solve this MakerBot has launched a digital store catering to those who don’t want to spend time searching for the perfect model. Just select a model from the relatively large collection of custom made 3D models in MakerBot’s new Digital Store and you’ll be able to print them immediately without issue, as they’ve been specifically designed for easy 3D printing. 
 
MakerBot has hired a special in-house team to create these models, which do not require supports to print, nor any glue to hold multi-part models together: all multi-part models are snap-fits. 
 
At launch some six “collections” of objects are offered for paid download, with prices ranging from USD$0.99 to USD$2.99, depending on the object. You can also purchase an entire set. The sets available today include: 
 
  • Around Town: a collection of quirky figurines in various roles (see red dude above). 
  • Chunky Trucks: mini-construction equipment and personnel, superb for a child’s sandbox
  • Cosmic Cadets: Rocket parts that can be assembled into larger units
  • Dragons of Glastonbury: Knights, Wizards, Damsels, Castles and of course, Dragons
  • Famous Flyers: Notable aircraft from history, ranging from a Montgolfier-like balloon to an F-117 stealth fighter
  • PetPals: Strange pet-like creatures and their habitats
 
We think this is a great idea; the last thing MakerBot (or any in the 3D printing community) needs is someone to purchase a 3D printer and be disappointed that they can’t successfully print things due to poor 3D models. Now that's far less likely to happen. 
 
Via MakerBot
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Formlabs Now Accepting Bitcoin

Formlabs, makers of the most popular resin-based personal 3D printer, announced they will now accept Bitcoin for purchases at their online store. While there may be other 3D printer manufacturers accepting Bitcoin, Formlabs seems to be the only big player doing so. 
 
Bitcoin, if you somehow haven’t heard, is a new digital currency enabling electronic fund transfer between individuals and organizations in a manner similar to plain old cash. Recently the exchange rate between Bitcoin and “real” currencies has skyrocketed, with Bitcoin values exceeding USD$1,000. 
 
At this time Bitcoin is still viewed by many in the public as “some strange techie thing” and as such it is actually used mostly by those deep into new technologies. 
 
But they are one of Formlabs’ target markets. It’s a good move as Formlabs’ support of Bitcoin will no doubt be viewed favorably by that market. 
 
There could be a downside, however. Our spies tell us that while it’s pretty straightforward to purchase Bitcoins, it is quite another matter to convert them into “real” cash. Apparently there just aren’t a lot of large bulk purchases of Bitcoins, which will be just what Formlabs requires to convert their Bitcoins into cash for their operations. It could be that Formlabs believes they’ll only receive a small portion of revenue via Bitcoin and therefore conversion won’t be an issue. 
 
On the other hand, Formlabs staff might receive salary in Bitcoins if this move is highly successful. 
 
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Which 3D Designs Are Worth The Money?

While it’s easy (if you know how to search) find free 3D models for printing on Thingiverse, there are several sites offering pay-for 3D models. In a world where there are literally hundreds of thousands of free models, which ones would people purchase for cash? 
 
3D model site 3DAGOGO offers a selection of free models, but some are offered at a price. They recently listed the five most popular items sold from their site and we wanted to see what kind of items people were buying. 
 
The top item was a multi-part Airship model, followed by: 
 
  • A christmas tree ornament
  • A wine bottle holder with a guitar theme
  • An action toy
  • A halloween skull
 
What does this tell us? 
 
Clearly there is interest in seasonal items, as both the ornament and skull fall in that category. The bottle holder might be classified as a “useful” household device, and in this case made even more interesting through the guitar theme. Finally, the airship and the action toy are just very cool models. 
 
If your 3D model is sufficiently attractive and useful in either function or timing, it could be worth some money. 
 
Via 3DAGOGO
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Is 3D Hubs' 3D Printer Report Accurate?

The other day we reported on 3D Hubs most recent statistical analysis, in which they provided a list of what they consider to be the most popular 3D printers - at least in their scope of operation. The report generated comments and criticism, as the results were believed inaccurate by some readers. 
 
They're right - the data is not accurate. It merely represents what 3D Hubs "sees" in the 3D printer universe at that time. Certainly the data is skewed towards European printers, as a big chunk of 3D Hubs operations take place on that continent. 
 
But here's the thing: there are scant few sources of real information on the current population of 3D printers. The report from 3D Hubs is one of the few data points we've been able to examine. 
 
We know from speaking with innumerable 3D printer manufacturers that they're all booming. Many will say "we've doubled production last month" or similar statements. All true, no doubt. 
 
But they almost never say how many printers were sold. 
 
It seems that this type of information is kept as secret as possible, revealed only occasionally by accident or murkily buried in a sentence of a financial report. The reason for the secrecy, at least with the publicly-traded 3D printer manufacturers, is to protect unpredictable swings in their stock prices, should investors misinterpret shipping quantities. 
 
Thus we're left with little information. 
 
That's why we're interested in the 3D Hubs report: it provides at least SOME data and that's a lot better than nothing. And we don't even want to start thinking about percentages of returned units... 

 

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