ZHUHAI, China, July 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- At the end of June, Zhuhai CTC Electronic
Co., Ltd. announced that it was set to release a next-generation
SLA 3D Printer, the Riverside, arousing a strong response across
the global technology community. Media outlets including
Techcrunch, 3DPrint.com,
3Dprintingindustry.com and
Geeky-gadgets.com have all reported on the announcement.
3DPrint.com reported it first: "It's no secret that when it
comes to 3D printing China is
becoming a formidable force within both the consumer and industrial
spaces. [...] While there are numerous 3D printer manufacturers
from China making extensive
inroads within the global market, few, if any, have emerged on the
seen as rapidly as Zhuhai CTC Electronic Co. has."
3DPrint has been tracking the
developing trends across the 3D printing industry for a long time,
and is the number one professional media outlet in the industry.
The publication has frequently reported on Zhuhai CTC Electronic
Co.'s activities. The report goes on, "The company has just
announced a forthcoming machine which they believe may open the
market wide open for desktop stereolithography 3D printers. Called
the CTC Riverside Photocuring 3D Printer, their new machine will
officially be unveiled at the International Software Convergence
& Innovation Expo 2015 in early July."
"The new printer will be priced at just $1,480 in the United
States, making it more affordable than many of the FDM/FFF
machines on the market, and substantially more affordable that
other SLA machines such as the Form 1 from Formlabs."
In addition, Michael Molitch-Hou, Editor-In Chief of 3D Printing
Industry, wrote in an article on June
25th, "CTC's Low-Cost SLA 3D Printer Soon
Available Around the World," that:
"Once Chinese electronics manufacturer Zhuhai CTC Electronic
Co., Ltd decided to get into the 3D printing space, they decided to
take that space by storm, releasing a popular desktop FFF 3D
printer, then an SLA printer, and a larger FFF 3D printer. They've
also opened a large manufacturing plant and even claim to be
working on a full-color 3D printer to be unveiled next year. Now,
their SLA machine is just about ready to ship worldwide, starting
this July."
"The Riverside SLA 3D printer is meant to be a low-cost
method for introducing desktop SLA machines to the public. To be
unveiled at the China
(Qingdao) International Software
Convergence & Innovation Expo 2015 next month, CTC describes
the $1,480 Riverside as having "a
resin plate with the longest longevity to date". Such a claim is
made based on the use of a "special thin film" that separates the
resin and the base, "extending the
plate's service life from a mere dozen or so days to several
months, greatly reducing the printing cost."
However, not all reports are complimentary. Taking a more
skeptical stance, John Biggs, Editor
of TechCrunch who just visited Formlabs in June, wrote: "The
eagle-eyed among you will notice something interesting about the
Riverside SLA 3D Printer. Almost all of the design -- from the
removable build plate to the jolly front button -- is a direct
homage to the Formlabs Form 1. One could assume, therefore, that
the Riverside should (and does) print 3D objects as well as the
Form 1 and should be a comparable product. However, where the Form
1 costs $3,299 and has been tested
for usability and safety, the Riverside costs $1,480."
Biggs highly praised
Formlabs' Form 1 and took an arguably subjective approach when he
said that the quality and service of the Riverside were not as good
as the Form 1:
"In a normal market falling prices like these are just fine.
You want a $20 t-shirt to eventually
cost $2 because automation and mass
production allow for lower prices and higher volume. However, in
technology falling prices are dangerous. At lower price points
technology doesn't become a commodity, it becomes low-quality
craft. While I won't say that $3,300
isn't a lot of money, we can assume that Formlabs drove their price
down as far as possible while taking into account research and
development. The Riverside rides on the coattails of that design
and even cuts a few corners to get there."
Responding to the criticism, He Siyi, Manager for Public
Relations at CTC, said: We are pleased that the Riverside has
grabbed a lot of attention from foreign technology media outlets.
We respect Formlabs' efforts in the desktop SLA area, and have no
intention to denigrate any competitors. In fact, all users who have
personally used such devices have acknowledged that almost every
product available provides more than one bad experience, so there
is still a huge space for them to improve design. Zhuhai CTC
Electronic Co., Ltd, as a world's leading 3D printer vendor, has
invested much in multiple technologies including SLA, in order to
provide customers and the industry with highly reliable products
that can be widely adopted.
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ctc-riverside-3d-printer-receives-mixed-reception-from-global-tech-and-professional-media-outlets-300109365.html
SOURCE Zhuhai CTC Electronic Co., Ltd