BBC News, 22
August 2013
 |
| The device takes around 12 minutes to scan a small, simple object |
The
Makerbot Digitizer, which costs $1,400 (£900), will be shipped to the first
buyers in October.
Demand for
the machine appeared to overload the company's store when it went on sale on
Thursday evening.
The
Digitizer is the latest product looking to bring 3D printing to mainstream
technology users - but experts are sceptical.
The machine
is designed to allow the replication of objects without any need for the user
to learn any 3D modelling software or have any other special expertise.
It works by
pointing several lasers at the object and detecting contours in the surface.
It also
allows users to upload their 3D designs directly to Thingiverse, a website
where 3D designs can be shared.
No
hamburgers
The time it
takes to scan an object varies, but one demonstration involving a small gnome
was said to take around 12 minutes.
"The
MakerBot Digitizer is for early adopters, experimenters, and visionaries who
want to be pioneers in Desktop 3D Scanning," the company says.
"This
includes, but is not limited to, architects, designers, creative hobbyists,
educators, and artists."
However,
Makerbot has made it clear that the scanner is not suitable for intricate
designs and that users should not expect "too much" from the machine.
"Expectations
should be realistic," the machine's FAQ page reads. "You will not be
able to, for example, scan a hamburger and then eat the digital design."
It adds
that objects that are shiny, reflective, and fuzzy are not well suited to
scanning.
Despite the
industry's hopes that 3D printing will be hugely popular in the near future,
others have dismissed home 3D printing as something of a gimmick.
"Appearances
have become completely unhinged from reality when it comes to the mania created
in so-called '3D Printing' stocks," warned influential investment analysts
Citron Research.
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