HP teases plans to conquer the 3D-printing market
Move over, LaserJet. This week, HP CEO Meg Whitman said that her company will announce the details of its 3D printing strategy in June, expanding the lineup beyond the home-office systems we know so well. HP's upcoming devices will apparently improve upon two weaknesses of currently available models. For one, Whitman said 3D printers are intolerably slow -- "like watching ice melt" -- so we can expect faster performance. HP is also looking to enhance printing quality, and Whitman implied both of these upgrades will be evident in the company's big announcement in June.
Unsurprisingly, HP will target its 3D-printing products toward businesses rather than consumers, at least at first. The company has hinted that it will work with service providers who process 3D printing orders, while HP provides the actual hardware. We'll have to wait a few months to find out more, but it's worth noting that HP briefly had a partnership with 3D-printing firm Stratasys several years back. It didn't pan out in the long term, and, judging by this photo, HP's upcoming product will look a tad different.
