Additive Vs. Subractive 3d Printers

I have been reviewing several of the different 3d printers on the market. There seems to be 2 different and competing styles. One one side you have the additive which basically builds a model out of an expensive plastic material. One the other hand you have the subtractive design which carves 3d models out of any material that you can fit in the machine and it will quickly carve out the design that you upload. The additive models take up to 10x longer to create the model and the materials are quite expensive. The subtractive is not only faster but there is a wide range of materials that you can use that are very inexpensive like wood or foam. The additive models are less expensive to buy but like an inkjet printer you end up paying the high cost of the consumable which in this case would be the plastic additive material.

Due to the speed and wide range of materials, I am much more excited about the subtractive design.

CSI Miami's Magic 3d Printer

Last nights episode of CSI Miami featured the crime solving lab taking a picture of a woman's hand which had been burned by a silencer on a gun. Scanning the picture to create a 3d picture of the silencer and then using a 3d printer to create a replica which helped to solve the case.

CSI shows are known for their future tech. Though they didn't specify a length of time for the operation, it appeared to take a couple seconds to print out a full size model. Obviously in real life this would probably take 24 hours to complete. If they used a 2bot Model Maker they could complete the model in about an hour but by a different process.

Nevertheless it was fun to watch them create a model and use it to solve a crime. No doubt this will become standard practice in the future. CSI Miami is a great crime drama with lots of future tech and creative writing that displays crime solving, if not how it will be, certainly how it should be.

2BOT ModelMaker - Interview - Ero Architects - Eli Ochoa

2Bot's Classroom Model Maker

Watch the amazing 2Bot work in the classroom.

CNN Money's 15 Companies That Will Change The World

Back In 2007 This Article Hit CNNMoney

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Here are the 10 game-changing startups most likely to upend existing industries - and spawn new entrepreneurial opportunities.

 # 13 Desktop Factory

The cost of rapid prototyping machines is already plummeting. Now San Francisco startup Desktop Factory is set to bring out a $5,000 3-D printer, undercutting competitors by 75 percent.

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Many competitors have come along since these early days but they are changing the world.