3D Systems’ CubePro 3D printer [Source: 3D Systems]

Cubify is really and truly shutting down at the end of the month.

Wait a second — Cubify? Wasn’t that line of desktop consumer-style 3D printers shut down by 3D Systems many years ago?

Yes, indeed. In December 2015, 3D Systems abruptly shut down their entire consumer 3D printing division, including hardware, software, 3D models, and services. The few remaining machines were sold off at that time.

Much time has now passed since that dramatic event, but during that period Cubify hasn’t exactly disappeared. 3D Systems continued to supply materials for the CubePro devices, which used proprietary cartridges. Without a hack, the only way these devices could be used would be to obtain stock of such cartridges.

As large numbers of CubePros were sold to schools, there was a small ongoing market for cartridges. Thus 3D Systems continued to sell them both from an online store and from their Amazon page.

CubePro Materials Sales Stopping

However, today I stumbled on their online store page (please don’t ask why), and saw this ominous notice:

“The storefront on 3dsystems.com closed on September 13th, 2019. If you have a warranty claim or a question about an open order please visit our support site and open a ticket.

A limited quantity of CubePro material cartridges will be available for purchase on our Amazon store until November 1st, 2019.”

Aha! It seems that 3D Systems is finally and officially closing sales of CubePro materials at the end of this month, after four years of extended service.

Their Amazon page shows some 14 different cartridge types for sale, although “quantities are limited”. These are priced at US$99 each, for cartridges containing around 600g of filament material. With proprietary material costing in excess of US$150/kg, it’s not surprising the CubePro systems were not particularly successful, as many competitors offered equipment with far lower material costs.

It seems, however, that 3D Systems will leave one small bit of support left: the ability to download manuals and a method of activating machines, which was a step required before you could operate these 3D printers.

Moving On From The CubePro

For those somehow still using the now-ancient CubePro systems, it’s long past time to move on to other equipment.

While 3D Systems no longer offers this style of desktop equipment, the good news is that there are plenty of incredibly powerful desktop 3D printers now available at very low cost that can easily match or beat the performance of the defunct CubePro.

Via 3D Systems Cubify Support and Amazon