Well, personally I think today will go down as a turning point. As I watched the live streaming of HP’s press announcement in NYC today, I was not a little jealous of Andrew who was there in person and got to play with Sprout and see the Multi Jet Fusion parts up close.
I was duly excited by this one, it sounds amazing and if they deliver on all they said today, Andrew is right when he says this is a game changer. It could well be the one that does change things! Applying the brakes, though, there are still no prices for the 3D printer and/or the consumables and the wait for commercial availability is still 14 months minimum, slated for 2016.
Even so, this is not a Kickstarter start-up, and the revelations today come off the back of years of R&D from a global conglomerate with the IP and the vision to deliver promises made.
So, as I live tweeted, it occurred to me — what were 3D Systems and Stratasys going to make of this. On the inkjet side of things, this is really going to mix things up ….. and some.
I decided to ask – they could only say no.
Nothing from Stratasys yet, but 3D Systems sent me this, on the record:
“As the founders and pioneers of 3D printing technology, it is tremendously validating to have a company like Hewlett Packard enter this space. We view their announcement as a net positive for us and for our industry. However, having spent more than 30 years growing our company and advancing this technology, we’ve learned that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to 3D printing. With a full range of print engines, print materials, cloud printing services and an integrated content-to-print workflow connected by a digital thread, we believe we are well positioned for growth, and intend to remain innovators and leaders in 3D printing.”
And yes, I did ask for the unofficial version too, but they’re staying tight-lipped!!
