Makerbot has released an inspiring video about how a group of hackers built 3D-printed hands for children and adults who are missing fingers or entire hands. The project aims to take the cost and complexity associated with hand prosthesis out of the process. It is working. → Read More
Now that we have confirmation that the Liberator 3D-printed pistol can be fired without destroying the body, let’s address what this means for 3D printed weapons and, presumably, homemade weapons in general. → Read More
If the whole of human knowledge were to be wiped out tomorrow, how would you recreate the consumer electronics industry so you can jam out to some rockin’ tunes? Why you’d build these unique 3D-printed headphones. Except for some twists of wire, these cans consist of thin pieces of printed plastic and the speakers are actually plastic with a coil of copper wire embedded, by hand, into a set of… → Read More
Lithopanes are objects created to let light through to different degrees, allowing you to create a sort of greyscale image that is visible when the plate is placed against a light source. Created by the folks at Makerbot, the lithopanes are completely customizable and you can upload your own images that will then print in about an hour on a standard printer. → Read More
MakerBot and OUYA announced a partnership today that will allow gamers to print their own OUYA game console cases at home. The partnership will see OUYA create 3D design files for Thingiverse.com, MakerBot’s 3D printing design repository, which are designed to be used with the MakerBot Replicator 2 Desktop 3D printer. → Read More
Austin-based re:3D just started a Kickstarter campaign for the Gigabot, a large-format 3D printer designed to build things on a 24x24x24 inch built envelope, allowing you to make much larger objects than you can with similar printers like the Makerbot. You can get the bot kit for $2,500 or a pre-assembled unit for $4,000. → Read More
Bre Pettis, founder of 3D-printer manufacturer MakerBot, announced their first desktop 3D scanner, the Digitizer, at a SXSWi keynote today. Pettis was coy about availability or final design but instead was focused on making a splash at the event.
“We’re excited to put ourselves out there with the announcement. I have a tradition of announcing things at SXSW. I don’t think there are many actual… → Read More
Two makers on opposite ends of the globe, Ivan Owen in Bellingham, Washington and Richard Van As in South Africa, have teamed up to build a custom robotic hand and publish it on Thingiverse. The best part? They built it for Liam, a five-year-old South African boy who was born without fingers on his right hand, by collaborating online between continents. → Read More
A fascinating project is making the rounds this weekend that could change the way we think of 3D printers. The Filabot is a robot that can turn scrap plastic into 3D printer filament, thereby allowing an almost endless supply of material for prototyping and manufacturing. → Read More
We were lucky to have a few minutes to sit down with Bre Pettis of Makerbot. The company just announced an interesting improvement to the Replicator 2, called the Replicator 2X, that is tweaked to work with ABS plastic rather than the rigid, organic PLA. This new version is for experimenters who are looking to print in more materials. The extruders – the things that squirt out plastic – are also… → Read More
Today was the official grand opening of the MakerBot Store in New York. Head over to 298 Mulberry Street and you can buy MakerBot printers, filament, and pre-made items, such as bracelets, watches and toys. And that’s not all.
MakerBot CEO Bre Pettis unveiled a new 3D photo booth powered by ShapeShot. The photo takes a couple of minutes and costs $5 for three reusable shots. Then you can order… → Read More
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is planning for a future when 3D printing, thanks to “creative” patents, could no longer be free. Because the technology is so nascent, patenting parts of the process or renewing expiring patents could prevent incremental improvement of the technology out of fear or patent infringement. The EFF wants to head this off at the pass. → Read More
If you’ve followed the news, a collective of hackers recently rented a 3D printer to build a real, working gun. The group, Defense Distributed ,began the project but once the renter, Stratasys, discovered what they were building, they took the printer back.
Writes the Danger Room:
Cody Wilson planned in the coming weeks to make and test a 3-D printed pistol. Now those plans have been put on… → Read More
The handsomest man in the world, Bre Pettis, gives the second handsomest man in the world, Phil Torrone, a nice visit to the Makerbot Store in Manhattan. The store is now selling Makerbots, filament, as well as pre-made items like watches and toys.
The store is at 298 Mulberry Street. → Read More
Makerbot has just announced the Replicator 2.0, a brand new Makerbot Replicator with a larger build plate, coated metal chassis, and improved software as well as better print resolution. In short, this is the Makerbot all grown up.
As you can see from the video, the new Replicator is completely rebuilt with new materials and a larger cavity that allows you to make projects of up to 410 cubic… → Read More
In theory, this Kickstarter project aiming to sell a sub-$2,000 MakerBot clone shouldn’t be that much of a big deal. The MakerBot Replicator, one of the first (and best) home 3D printers in the world, is an open source product, and as such, anyone with a little wood, some soldering experience, and a dream should be able to build one – or a hundred and one. But in practice the Kickstarted project… → Read More
It’s been months in the making, but here it is: the first episode of TechCrunch Makers, featuring Bre Pettis of Makerbot. We visited Bre’s downtown Brooklyn factory where he and the rest of team design, build, and ship hundreds of Makerbots a week. → Read More
Works of art are timeless and now, thanks to Makerbot and the Met, they can be deathless, too. A June 1 hackathon brought a group of artists and hackers together at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art where they 3D scanned a number of well-known pieces of art. The work is now appearing on Thingiverse where you can download and print things like the head and shoulders of a sphinx and Bather by… → Read More
Makerbot creator Bre Pettis and his musician friends from Scary Car made this cute little video featuring 3D printed action figures being created in (near) real-time and then discovering love. → Read More
We got a great look at the new Makerbot Replicator and, more important, we sat down with founder Bre Pettis to talk about the future. His take? The future is here and 3D printing is one of the things that will change the world.
Pettis built the first Makerbot at NYC Resistor, a hackerspace in Brooklyn. He realized the potential was, in a sense, infinite and, thousands of sales later, Makerbot… → Read More
MakerBot has just announced the MakerBot Replicator, a new, larger replicator that is larger than a breadbox (literally) and supports Dualstrusion 2-color printing.
With a build envelope that’s roughly the size of a loaf of bread, The MakerBot Replicator™ gives you the power to go big. Make an entire chess set with the press of a button. Friends, classmates, co-workers, and family will see… → Read More
Rather than looking back (which I’m sure we will), I thought it would be nice to look forward to 2012 and beyond and note some of the gadgets that will change the world in the next few years. I’ve included mobile, gaming, and computing gadgets but I think 2012 will also be the year of Windows Phone, 3D printing, and fitness technology that actually makes a difference.
I’m not expecting much in… → Read More
Makerbot’s Thing-O-Matic is pretty pricey – $1,299 for the kit and $2,500 for the assembled kit – but (and this is my professional opinion) it is amazing and everyone in the world should own one. That said, Fab.com has a special deal on Thing-O-Matics this week – $999 for the kit and $2,000 for the assembled device – one of the first and biggest discounts ever on the entire system. → Read More
We’re big fans of the home 3D printer here. It’s a truly disruptive technology, though for now the cost is still a bit too high, and the uses aren’t quite practical enough, for it to be a household item just yet. But that hasn’t stopped people from putting it to good use.
Project Shellter is one of the most interesting applications of the technology I’ve seen. The project aims to produce… → Read More
This project on Thingiverse is just about amazing. It’s a complete lock and key set made entirely using open source plans and a printed on a Makerbot. It can only be opened using the right key (or, given it’s made of plastic, a lighter) but it’s the engineering that clearly counts here. → Read More
Now this is some pretty hardcore dorkitude, but our buddies at Makerbot just released a new extruder for their building devices. Why is it special? Well, the first extruders did 3mm streams while this one does 1.75mm streams, increasing the “resolution” of the objects and question and allowing you to extrude two streams of hot plastic simultaneously. → Read More
MakerBot Industries, creator of home 3D printers, has announced a total of $10 million in funding from a number of investors, the bulk coming from Foundry Group. Also included in the round were Bezos Expeditions, True Ventures, and RRE, along with a dozen or so angel investors.
The company started in 2009 with around $75,000 in seed money, and since then has put together and sold some 5200 of… → Read More
The folks at Makerbot made a bust of Stephen Colbert and gave him a copy when they appeared on his show a month or so ago. Not content to let it just moulder in the shop, they decided to attach it to a weather balloon and send it up over Long Island. The resulting video and images are striking: the Great Eagle himself in flight high over the salty waves of the Atlantic, overtopping the great… → Read More
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