The OEM claims it has “solved the two biggest problems” with 3D printing.
Makerbot’s Replicator Mini 3D printer
PC World reported on HP’s reveal of both a “big technology announcement” concerning 3D printing in June, and its boast that it has “solved the two biggest problems with today’s 3D printers”, according to CEO Meg Whitman.
The two issues, she noted are the “deathly slow” printing speeds and poor quality of prints, which Whitman claims HP has resolved, and PC World speculated that the announcement in June “doesn’t mean HP will release products”, but that it “implies the company will show what it’s working on and where it’s heading”, with the business market targeted before consumers.
Whitman commented: “There’s a lot of ‘buzz and hype’ around 3D printing, but the systems available now have two big challenges. [The speed is] like watching ice melt, [and] the surface of the substrate is not perfect. We believe we have solved both these problems and we’ll be making a big technology announcement in June around how we are going to approach this.”
The OEM will target business markets first because it thinks “there’s demand for systems that can be used to print prototypes and finished products”, whilst consumers’ first experiences will be “from a service provider […] where they’ll be able to send print jobs for fulfilment”. The site added that “there have been a lot of questions about HP’s 3D printing plans, partly because printers are such a huge part of the company’s business, and some people think it’s in danger of being left behind”.
The OEM had previously revealed in October 2013 that it was looking to enter the 3D printing market.