3doodler

Of all the new technologies currently emerging, 3-D printing seems to be the one with the most potential. Though you still can’t download and print a car, the applications for a well-designed and properly calibrated three dimensional printer are seemingly endless!

We’ve previously told you about a Japanese company that will turn your child’s doodles into 3-D works of art, but there’s a new product on the market that lets you skip the initial doodling and go straight to literally drawing in the air. Cleverly named the 3Doodler, the “3D Printing Pen,” as described by its Kickstarter page, completed funding in March of last year and is coming soon to the shores of Japan!

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Created by WobbleWorks LLC, a Boston-based robotics and toy company, the 3Doodler launched and successfully completed a Kickstarter campaign last March, pulling in US$2,344,134 in contributions from eager 3-D printing enthusiasts. Those who got in on the Kickstarter have already received their pens apparently, but for those of us who decided to wait and see, our chance to get them in stores is fast approaching!

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Sold for $99 in the United States, the 3Doodler will cost a bit more when Nakabayashi, an Osaka company that focuses on everything from photo albums and stationary to office equipment like shredders, starts selling it in Japan in April. The device itself will retail for 16,000 yen (roughly $160) not including tax, with plastic refills costing 1,500 yen (around $15), which cost $10 in the US. A bit of a bummer for any aspiring 3-D artists, but still within a reasonable “late night surfing the Internet and impulse buying” price range.

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Based on reviews of the 3Doodler, it seems that the device basically works as advertised–but takes quite a bit of practice to get used to, which, to be fair, sounds like pretty much any artistic tool. Additionally, while the device is actually quite large, everyone seems to find it quite light and easy to work with–though you’ll definitely want to avoid touching the hot tip! And if you’re having a hard time wrapping your mind around a “3-D printing pen,” just think of a hot glue gun that uses extremely-fast-cooling plastic instead of glue.

To see the 3Doodler in action, check out WobbleWorks tutorial on how to make a 3-D person in under two minutes!

If you live in the US and are interested in making your own 3-D figures, you can pre-order a pen on their website. For all of us in Japan, though, we only have a few more weeks until we can start making 3-D printed statues of Mr. Sato in all his glory!

Sources: ITMedia, Kickstarter, WobbleWorks, Nakabayashi, Endgadget, YouTube (LogicLounge)
Images: Kickstarter, YouTube (LogicLounge)