In the past, 3 dimensional design seemed to be reserved for large companies with seemingly infinite resources. And although many innovators did find their path despite these limitations it was extremely difficult. Difficult to prototype an idea and therefore difficult to pitch or sell an idea. That path has evolved. Recently 3D printing has been propelled far beyond our wildest dreams and has been made accessible to the average consumer. These affordable devices allow even the most unexpected innovators the ability to experiment with and produce product designs that might otherwise have been lost in a sea of limitations.
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What made it possible
It all started with consumer products such as the MakerBot, one of the first 3D printers targeted at the consumer market. Before long 3D printing went main-stream when new models emerging such as the Cube 3D and Da Vinci (pictured below). The list continues to grow. Right now the price point for a decent personal 3D printer is in the range of $500 to $1,000 but as we all know when a new technology first hits the market prices tend to be a bit high. You can certainly expect that in coming years those prices will fall dramatically and the technology will continue to improve.
What you can produce
Just about anything you can dream up. All you need is an idea and a fair bit of technical know how to produce everything from jewelry and tech accessories to architectural scale models and even prosthetics. No longer are we limited to a 2 dimensional canvas. We can take our ideas beyond, pushing the limitations that once constrained us.
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