Over the years 3D printing has continued to engage and interest people for industrial uses as well as consumers. The consumer models started somewhat expensive, and way out of the ballpark of most everyday desktop printer users, but now many 3D printer manufacturers are producing relatively low cost solutions for everyday use.

If you’re in the market for a 3D printer in 2015, keep reading for a list of companies to buy them from and an idea of what you’ll be getting for what price. While most of the more complex printers are in the multi-thousand dollar range, many desktop 3D printers with excellent capabilities, utility, and software are now available.

Most 3D printers print using a heated extruder that melts a plastic filament called ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) or PLA (Polylactic acid). The filament is sold in spools by the various 3D printer manufacturers and specialty vendors–it comes in a multitude of colors and textures, including coffee-based.

Below you’ll find a number of 3D printers for to pique your curiosity and possibly dent your pocketbook. Also at the very end, there is a section on where you can buy supplies (such as ABS and PLA filament) other than directly from the manufacturer of the 3D printer you purchased.

MakerBot Replicator

MakerBot Industries, LLC has been in the 3D printing industry for a long time, the New York City-based company was founded in January 2009, and is currently pushing into the 5th generation of 3D printers. Discerning 3D printing consumers would do well to look into their lineup of products, which run the gamut from affordable to somewhat expensive.

In the middle of that range is the MakerBot Replicator desktop 3D printer at $2,899. It uses a glass built platform, supports 100 micron minimum layer height (for fine looking prints) and uses standard PLA filament for printing.

As 3D printers go, this may be a little bit on the expensive side; but MakerBot is well known in the industry and products top of the line, high quality equipment. The essentials–such as PLA and ABS filament, replacement parts, extruders, build plates and other elements are also available. Software is also needed to run a 3D printer and MakerBot provides that as well. As for getting 3D models to print MakerBot also produces a 3D scanning system called the MakerBot Digitizer.

The less expensive, smaller, model MakerBot Replicator Mini is extremely compact (74.5 cubic inches) and sells for $1,375; and it’s bigger, older sister MakerBot Replicator Z18 is large enough to handle heavy duty projects at large volume (2,592 cubic inches) selling at $6,499.

 

Ultimaker 2

Netherlands-based 3D printer manufacturer Ultimaker B.V. produces a line of affordable desktop 3D printers that are built to purpose. The lineup of printers is similar to others in the same market: a compact printer, a desktop printer, as well as a large scale printer.

Ultimaker’s offering to consumers is the Ultimaker 2, which runs €1,895 ($2,183.)

The Ultimaker 2 has a groundbreaking resolution for printing at up to 20 micron (the common resolution is 100-200 micron) layer height and fused filament fabrication (FFF), which accepts PLA, ABS, CBE filaments. The system is also capable of printing more quickly by using 100 or 200 micron layer resolution for those prints that just can’t wait. It uses a heated plate for printing and has a volume of up to 622.1 cubic inches.

The less expensive version in the lineup is the Ultimaker 2 Go, which is reasonably compact (100.9 cubic inches) and runs at €1,195.00 ($1,377); it also uses FFF and has the 20 micron printing technology. As for the near-industrial level offering there is Ultimaker 2 Extended, which is notably larger (925.57 cubic inches) uses FFF and the 20 micron technology as well. Ultimaker offers Cura 3D printing software for Windows to allow users to design and upload designs for use in the printer.

Ultimaker made the news recently by charitably giving nine of its 3D printers to Kansas City’s Science Center, Science City, in an effort to place 3D printing in the sights of the next generation of scientists. As 3D printers continue to get cheaper and easier for enthusiasts and consumers to put on their desks, it stands to reason that the use of 3D printers will be an important part of many industries, especially those in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM.)

LulzBot 3D Printer

LulzBot 3D printers are a product line of Aleph Objects, Inc. and in spite of the silly name make a very solid device. Aleph Objects is a friend of open source and has a vision that extends into embodying the spirit of Free and Open Source Software and Open Hardware–to this end, Aleph Objects has partnered with the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA.org) and is certified by the Free Software Foundation (FSF.org.)

There are two current LulzBot offerings for 3D printers, the standard desktop the LulzBot TAZ 5 3D Printer and the compact LulzBot Mini 3D Printer.

The LulzBot TAZ 5 3D Printer is an open frame printer (the previous listed have been enclosed) and claims to be the “industrial grade” 3D printer for on desktop selling at $2,200. It supports numerous filament types, from HIPS, PLA, and ABS, and provides a large volume environment for printing at 1,238 cubic inches. Most importantly, the TAZ 5 has a printing plate that can heat up hot enough for industrial-strength metal-based materials.

The Lulzbot Mini 3D Printer may be more affordable at $1,350 and is more compact with 223 cubic inches of print volume. It is also capable of using a large number of filaments (similar to the TAZ 5 variant.)

 

Formlabs Form 1+

Started by engineers and designers out of MIT in 2011, Formlabs Inc. produces one 3D printer product: the Form 1+ high resolution 3D printer. This print is a little bit on the expensive side, weighing in at $3,299 for the new product plus one liter of resin for printing.

The Form 1+ works differently from filament-based printers by using stereolithography to print from the bottom-up. These types of printers work by shining a laser on a photo-reactive (photopolymer) resin that hardens when struck by light, the platform then pulls the print up out of a vat of the resin as the object is printed. The technology will solidify layers as thin as 25 microns–down near the range of the Ultimaker 2–and it can build extremely complex 3D prints. The tank of the Form 1+ allows for a printable volume of approximately 156 cubic inches.

The price tag listed above includes the PreForm software supplied by Formlabs for designing and printing models with the Form 1+ printer.

Afinia Desktop 3D Printers

Afinia, part of Microboards Technology LLC, produces two 3D printers: the H480 3D Printer and the H800 3D Printer. The former model is an open model designed for ease of use and the latter model is a closed model that will be shipping sometime soon.

The Afinia H480 3D Printer runs $1,299 and features an open design as mentioned above. It even ships with a spool of ABS plastic as a starter. It can print anything five inches cubed using that ABS filament. It’s claim to fame is that it can be ready to go out-of-the-box and the ABS filament is inexpensive.

The Afinia H800 3D Printer runs $1,899 and is a closed design, boasts a 30 percent faster printing speed and a volume five times larger than the previous model. The H800 supports high-quality, inexpensive ABS and PLA filaments and can produce prints at 100 micron resolution.

Afinia also proudly boasts that the H800 won the TechZone 360 2015 3D Printing Excellence Award and the RAPID 2015 Exhibitor Innovation Award.

 

MakerGear M2

Ohio-based MakerGear LLC is a 3D manufacturer has “providing 3D printers and supplies to schools, engineers, artists, businesses and DIYers since 2009.” The company’s printers also come as kits (which require assembly) or can be shipped pre-assembled.

The MakerGear M2 runs a cool $1,775. It is the 3rd generation of 3D printers produced by MakerGear and mounts heated extruder on a “black powder-coated rigid steel frame” and a “CNC machined black anodized-aluminum axes mounts.”

Like several previous printers, the MakerGear M2 is an open model that is rightly described by MakerGear as “sleek and beautiful,” as such printers have an industrial, skeletal look to them. It comes with the MakerGear 1.75mm Stepper Plastruder, which works with ABS and PLA filament.

While it is possible to purchase a kit for home assembly, the MakerGear team suggests that only people with a background in hardware and electronics go that route–and only if they enjoy the assembly process.

Since MakerGear is a small company, there is a supply chain and a little bit of a wait for shipping MakerGear M2 kits. It might take a little bit of lead time before shipping.

FlashForge Dreamer and Creator Pro

Flashforge USA was founded in 2011 and seeks to disrupt the desktop 3D printing market with novel innovations in low cost 3D printers. One of those innovations is that the Flashforge Dreamer 3D printer uses two extruders (instead of the more common single extruder) that allows for building in two colors (or materials) at the same time.

The Flashforge Dreamer 3D Printer uses these two extruders to print at a 100 micron resolution and it runs at about $1,099. It is an impressive piece of technology with a touchscreen, a built in CPU, 4 gigabytes of memory, and a high-end plastic-alloy body, and multiple LED pixel strips. It is capable of printing with ABS, PLA and PVA (Polyvinyl acetate) filament types.

Another dual-extruder printer is the Flashforge Creator Pro Dual Extrusion 3D Printer, which sells at $1,199. It provides many of the amenities of the Dreamer version, and has a beautiful black exterior. It boasts a sturdy metal frame in a warp resistant aluminum so it can handle high heat. It also supports an LCD screen and button board. It will also print with with 1.75 mm ABS and PLA filament types.

 

Printrbot (Play, Simple and Plus)

For the enthusiast, Printrbot Inc. provides one of the cheapest 3D printer models as well as excellent form and design. Founded in 2011, Printrbot was originally funded by Kickstarter, to the tune of $830,827 in December of that year—and the outfit has only grown since.

As for 3D printers, Printrbot has three main models: Printrbot Play, PrintrBot Simple and Printrbot Plus.

The Printrbot Play model comes as a kit or pre-assembled and it comes with a one year commercial subscription to Fusion 360, a cloud-based 3D modelling software suite produced by AutoDesk. This model costs a mere $399 and this makes it one of the cheapest desktop 3D printers on the market—it’s also available in white or black. It features an 80 cubic inch build volume, print resolution of 50 microns and uses 1.75mm PLA filament.

The Printrbot Simple Metal model also comes as a kit or pre-assembled, and can be upgraded with a number of options (including a heated bed) and also comes with the one year commercial subscription to Fusion 360. This model will run $599 without the heated bed and $749 with—it also comes in black or silver, but there’s also a red special edition available. Larger than its younger sibling, the Simple features 216 cubic inches of build volume, also has a print resolution of 50 microns, and uses 1.75 mm PLA filament for printing.

Finally, the Printrbot Plus upgrades on the entire thing by providing dual extruders and jumps hugely in price to $1,5990—it also comes with the same commercial subscription to Fusion 360 and it only comes in black. Much larger than the previous two, the Plus model features a 775 cubic inch build volume, a print resolution of 100 microns, and can use both 1.75 PLA as well as flexible and ABS filament. This makes the Printrbot Plus the most versatile printer produced by Printrbot.

 

Where to buy PLA, ABS, and other 3D printing filaments

After purchasing a 3D printer, you’ll want to get supplies to keep the whole shebang running. This means access to specialized materials such as PLA and ABS filament. There are quite a few vendors available selling these products, and most of the time you’ll just be able to order it from the 3D printer manufacturer you bought from, but if you want alternatives look no further.

The web already has lists forming of companies that sell ABS, PLA, flexible, nylon, PVA, and more. Such as this page on 3Dsuppliers.org with a massive list of vendors that sell filament and other 3D printing supplies. If you find a vendor near you, you should contact them first by phone to make sure they have what you need and at a cost you can afford. Also take a look at this list curated by ABSPlastic.eu, which keeps an international listing of different shops providing different types of 3D printing filament.

For the adventurous, PLA and ABS filament can be found on Amazon.com as well, featuring a variety of manufacturers.

Finally, since it was mentioned above, there is a shop that produces bio-material filaments (including one that is coffee-based.) Be sure to visit the website for 3Dom USA, there you can find many different types of PLA filament in varying colors and using different materials, including glass-filled PLA and the coffee-based PLA. The company also ships with bio-based eco-friendly spools for the ecologically aware customer.

Featured image credit: MakerBot Industries, LLC