Well, call us surprised. Hidden among the numerous 3D Systems displays at CES was the still-not-released CubeJet color 3D printer.
We were very curious about this particular machine, as it had been announced – and shown off – one year ago at CES 2014. But in the year that followed, no machine was released. We even had trouble finding references to the elusive machine at 3D Systems’ site. We began to consider whether the 2014 announcement was some type of marketing experiment.
But, we our speculation was answered when we saw the machine sitting pretty on the CES floor.
The CubeJet is a full, RGB-color 3D printer based on the Z-Printer technology 3D Systems acquired some years ago. Basically it’s a sub USD$5,000 version of the previous Z450 unit. It produces excellent, full-color 3D prints, or would if it was available for purchase.
Here’s what we found out.
The CubeJet is still intended to be a real product, possibly being released in the second half of 2015, and at the same intended price point, USD$5,000.
But why the delay? Apparently the company has been working to lower the cost to produce the CubeJet. This makes sense, as the original Z450 had a much higher price point. They’re retaining the same color printing process, but reducing the size and “optimizing entire mechanism”.
You might want to compare the image of the “current” CubeJet at the top with this image of the “2014 CubeJet”. It seems the new version is more sophisticated, at least on the outside. Yes, they’re working on it.
How do we know?
We spoke with the technician whose full-time job is to work on developing the CubeJet. It’s real!
