This is a FDM printer that is a lot cheaper than the MakerBot ($800 vs $2100). The Form 1 is a SLA printer, which means it is better at making small, precise parts; but worse at making parts that are durable enough for actual testing in assemblies (as opposed to just looking pretty).
It is interesting to see competition to the MakerBot, since $2k is still a bit high, and if the PandaBot's "calibration-free" design works as well as they claim, the ease-of-use factor is still a big thing to exploit.
If it has even moderately good print quality, a commercial, fully-assembled FDM printer for under $1000 is an interesting prospect.
The basic thought was to get it to a point that we could provide it to designers and university students with little to no engineering experience and they could start printing their 3d models right away. Hence, the heavy emphasis on self-calibration and ease-of-use.
The price range just works because we also designed it from the start to be a manufactured product, so we get an economy of scale very quickly as more people pick it up.
Comments
This is a FDM printer that is a lot cheaper than the MakerBot ($800 vs $2100). The Form 1 is a SLA printer, which means it is better at making small, precise parts; but worse at making parts that are durable enough for actual testing in assemblies (as opposed to just looking pretty).
It is interesting to see competition to the MakerBot, since $2k is still a bit high, and if the PandaBot's "calibration-free" design works as well as they claim, the ease-of-use factor is still a big thing to exploit.
If it has even moderately good print quality, a commercial, fully-assembled FDM printer for under $1000 is an interesting prospect.
Thanks.
The basic thought was to get it to a point that we could provide it to designers and university students with little to no engineering experience and they could start printing their 3d models right away. Hence, the heavy emphasis on self-calibration and ease-of-use.
The price range just works because we also designed it from the start to be a manufactured product, so we get an economy of scale very quickly as more people pick it up.
You can see print quality examples on ponoko, Derek swung by our office to see it close up in action yesterday: http://blog.ponoko.com/2012/10/04/pandabot-3d-printer-launch...