Desktop 3D Printing at a Crossroads: Will the Market Split Between DIY and Consumer?

By on January 21st, 2025 in Ideas, news

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There are now two groups of desktop 3D printer operators [Source: Fabbaloo / LAI]

I’ve been thinking about this past weekend’s Bambu Lab controversy, and have some thoughts.

Bambu Connect

As a catch-up, Bambu Lab announced firmware changes to rectify outstanding security issues that could have enabled hostile takeovers of equipment connected to their cloud network. The changes involved the introduction of a new locally run tool, Bambu Connect, to act as the broker for access to the printers.

Bambu Connect meant that there would be workflow changes for operators using third-party slicing and monitoring tools. While this immediately generated negative comments, Bambu Lab did later indicate they were working with other parties to ensure workflows could still operate under the new security regime.

In spite of Bambu Lab’s clarifications, there has been a huge negative wave across the 3D print community. Regardless of what Bambu Lab said or will say, there are some that swear they will never buy from Bambu Lab again.

Desktop 3D Printer Markets

I believe this event is one of the initial manifestations of a permanent split in the desktop 3D printer market.

Desktop 3D printers have basically been a single market up to now, composed of tech-savvy individuals willing to put up with the unreliability of the equipment and labor required to tune and operate the machines.

As I wrote last week, this environment is changing. Machines, particularly those from Bambu Lab, are increasingly automated and reliable. Because of this, the “bar is lowered” for those wanting to try the technology, and we now see machines being acquired by many less-technical people.

How do you achieve the highest reliability and performance as a product manufacturer? It’s achieved by ensuring each step of the process is predictable and within tolerances. The best way to do that is to control the process, or at least ensure operational activities fall within the reliability range.

But control by the manufacturer is not something desired by the original market for desktop 3D printers. Those who are comfortable building and tweaking machines want the ability to control the process and are often against companies having control.

On the other hand, the “consumers” that are acquiring 3D printers need someone to do that control function because they are technically unable to do so themselves, unlike the DIY people. They might be trainable, but they are not interested in being trained. They just want it to work, just like all the other devices they own and operate. Having the manufacturer control things to ensure it works properly is something they need.

Consumer Market Differences

Here’s the key point: the “consumer” market is vastly larger than the DIY market. Companies like Bambu Lab and very likely others will attempt to market into that large community as soon as their technology is ready. By “ready”, I mean the reliability and ease of use are compatible with casual use by non-technical operators.

Apple does much the same thing: they provide a controlled environment that just works for the majority of customers. With that strategy, they built one of the largest companies ever seen on the planet. If you don’t like Apple’s control, you buy other products.

I believe the desktop 3D printer market is heading towards a similar split. The attraction of the enormous consumer market will be irresistible as soon as the technology gets to the right level of “easy”.

As 3D printer manufacturers gradually find their way into that space, we will see controversies of this type erupt over and over. At some point, the market will drift apart into two segments: one highly controlled technology for consumers and another highly open technology for makers. The former will be much, much larger.

For buyers, it will mean making a decision about buying a Bambu Lab (or equivalent) system or committing to an open-source DIY system, like a Voron (or equivalent).

For 3D printer manufacturers, it means they have to choose which direction to go. Should they serve the maker community with open protocols and upgradeable equipment? Or should they build a more controlled environment to access the much, much larger consumer market?

You can’t do both; otherwise, you will end up with controversies like we saw this weekend with Bambu Lab’s firmware announcement.

By Kerry Stevenson

Kerry Stevenson, aka "General Fabb" has written over 8,000 stories on 3D printing at Fabbaloo since he launched the venture in 2007, with an intention to promote and grow the incredible technology of 3D printing across the world. So far, it seems to be working!