Three-dimensional (3D) printing is projected to go mainstream in 2013
Three-dimensional (3D) printing machines, the next great advance in tech, are expected become popular this year, according to a January 18 report in RIA Novosti.
The Finish cell phone maker Nokia announced on Friday that it is releasing a 3-D printing Development Kit. This kit will let users to design and build their own back covers for Nokia's new Lumia 820 Windows phone.
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In the blog post, Everything you need to know about the Lumia 820 and 3D printing, John Kneeland of Nokia says this:
“You want a waterproof, glow-in-the-dark phone with a bottle-opener and a solar charger? Someone can build it for you—or you can print it yourself.”
What is 3D printing?
Three-dimensional printing is, exactly what it sounds like. The way you create something on your computer now and send it to your printer, is the way you would design something on your computer in the near future and send it to your 3D printer. There is one big difference though.
After you print something now, you open the printer and take out the image on paper of what you have created. But after you print something on your 3D printer, you will take out the actual physical object that you created. Check out the video.
There is only one drawback: 3D printing machines are costly, between $3,000 and $30,000. However, this cost is expected to fall rapidly as consumers begin to adopt 3D printing technology this year.
According to this January 18 report in RIA Novosti, the sex toy industry in New York is already getting into the act (no pun intended). At an event last month, customers could get their body parts scanned and sent to a 3D print shop for just $250. The result: a sex toy that is an exact replica of their body part with their skin tone.
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