LAS VEGAS, CES 2013 – MakerBot just announced the Replicator 2X, an advanced 3D printer that’s can print complex 2-color models and is optimized for ABS plastic.
In addition, MakerBot released a printer API and expects third-party software makers to create software for the iPhone and iPad to run its printers.
“I expect we’ll be building the moon base with them,” said Bre Pettis, MakerBot CEO after introducing the Replicator 2X to a scrum of press. “That’s where it’s going.”
The Replicator 2X is priced at $2,799 and will start shipping in mid-March (you can sign up to preorder it here). It prints at a resolution of 100-microns (which is pretty good for a prosumer 3D printer) and has two extrudes for printing two colors simultaneously.
The company also released MakerWare 1.1 software and Firmware 7.0 updates for its line of printers, including the X2’s predecessor, the Replicator 2.
Whereas the Replicator 2 uses a biodegradeable PLA plastic (made from corn), the 2X is optimized for printing with stronger ABS plastic, which is the most common type of plastic for consumer goods. It can print in multiple colors and multiple kinds of plastic.
Pettis said 3D printers are rapidly going from making toys and models to real world applications.
Brian surgeons are printing models of tumors to prepare for surgery, and the MakerBot booth is exhibiting a baby breathing monitor built on a Replicator.
“There’s wave after wave of new applications,” he said. “There are new ones every day.”
The Replicator has been hailed by Wired magazine as the machine that will revolutionize manufacturing, taking it from factories to the desktop.
One MakerBot engineer showed off an iPhone case he made himself in about 90 minutes at a cost of a few cents (if you ignore the cost of the $3,000 printer).
And here is a baby breathing monitor built into a onesie. It connects to an iPhone and will sound a warning if the baby’s breathing becomes irregular. It’s designed for use with babies that suffer from sleep apnea.
Leander Kahney is the editor and publisher of Cult of Mac.
Leander is a longtime technology reporter and the author of six acclaimed books about Apple, including two New York Times bestsellers: Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products and Inside Steve’s Brain, a biography of Steve Jobs.
He’s also written a top-selling biography of Apple CEO Tim Cook and authored Cult of Mac and Cult of iPod, which both won prestigious design awards. Most recently, he was co-author of Cult of Mac, 2nd Edition.
Leander has been reporting about Apple and technology for nearly 30 years.
Before founding Cult of Mac as an independent publication, Leander was news editor at Wired.com, where he was responsible for the day-to-day running of the Wired.com website. He headed up a team of six section editors, a dozen reporters and a large pool of freelancers. Together the team produced a daily digest of stories about the impact of science and technology, and won several awards, including several Webby Awards, 2X Knight-Batten Awards for Innovation in Journalism and the 2010 MIN (Magazine Industry Newsletter) award for best blog, among others.
Before being promoted to news editor, Leander was Wired.com’s senior reporter, primarily covering Apple. During that time, Leander published a ton of scoops, including the first in-depth report about the development of the iPod. Leander attended almost every keynote speech and special product launch presented by Steve Jobs, including the historic launches of the iPhone and iPad. He also reported from almost every Macworld Expo in the late ’90s and early ‘2000s, including, sadly, the last shows in Boston, San Francisco and Tokyo. His reporting for Wired.com formed the basis of the first Cult of Mac book, and subsequently this website.
Before joining Wired, Leander was a senior reporter at the legendary MacWeek, the storied and long-running weekly that documented Apple and its community in the 1980s and ’90s.
Leander has written for Wired magazine (including the Issue 16.04 cover story about Steve Jobs’ leadership at Apple, entitled Evil/Genius), Scientific American, The Guardian, The Observer, The San Francisco Chronicle and many other publications.
Leander has a postgrad diploma in artificial intelligence from the University of Aberdeen, and a BSc (Hons) in experimental psychology from the University of Sussex.
He has a diploma in journalism from the UK’s National Council for the Training of Journalists.
Leander lives in San Francisco, California, and is married with four children. He’s an avid biker and has ridden in many long-distance bike events, including California’s legendary Death Ride.
You can find out more about Leander on LinkedIn and Facebook. You can follow him on X at @lkahney or Instagram.
