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Polaroid 3d printers
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review
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The Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer turns out great prints, but it's pricier than many novice models
(Image: © Polaroid)
Tom's Guide Verdict
The Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer offers a lot of features and performance for the price, making it a great pick for home users curious about 3D printing.
TODAY'S BEST DEALS
Pros
- +
High-quality prints
- +
Good print speed
- +
Simple, usable interface
Cons
- -
Smaller print area than similar models
- -
Software is not very flexible
Why you can trust Tom's Guide Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Polaroid isn’t a name that springs to mind for 3D printing — at least not for U.S. shoppers — but the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer might change that. Polaroid has built a simple device that produces excellent quality prints using a variety of materials, as we discovered during testing our Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review.
The Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer costs $599. Like the Polaroid 3D Play Pen we tested for our 3D pen face-off, Polaroid's 3D printer is an exclusive at craft retailer Joann , currently offering the printer at an attractive discount as of this writing.
Without that discount, you’ll find less expensive choices for novice users among our list of the best 3D printers. But the Polaroid name and the quality output from the PlaySmart make this device worth a look if you want a 3D printer for the home.
- Polaroid Play Smart at Amazon for $699
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer specs
3D Printer Type: FFF
Layer Resolution: 50 - 300 microns
Materials: PLA, P-Wood, PETG
Controls: 3.
5-inch LCD color touchscreen
Build Volume: 4.7 x 4.7 x 4.7 inches
Printer Size: 12.6 x 11.8 10.6 inches
Printer Weight: 11 pounds
Polaroid’s better known for its instant cameras, and the PlaySmart takes some design cues from that iconic product, using white and black plastic and the Polaroid logo. The printer might come across as dated to some, but it didn’t look out of place next to one of my vintage 1970s Polaroid cameras.
The print area of the PlaySmart is rather small, at just 4.7 by 4.7 by 4.7 inches, for a total of 103 cubic inches. That’s a lot less than comparable printers like the Monoprice Voxel (329 cubic inches in total), but it’s the same as the Da Vinci Nano. Printing area is less of an issue than you might first suspect, though: it isn’t difficult to cut objects into parts and print one at a time if need be.
(Image credit: Polaroid)Above the PlaySmart’s print area is a small camera, used to monitor prints in progress and to produce timelapse videos.
The filament is stored on a separate holder that also monitors how much filament you have left. It’s a nice touch, but one that feels somewhat redundant when you can clearly see how much filament is left on the roll. The PlaySmart works with filament from either Polaroid or third-party manufacturers.
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review: Controls
Next to the print area, the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer features an LCD controller, which is a small but easy-to-read touch screen. It is also responsive, and picking out on-screen options is easy to do.
Still, you’ll find it easier to control the PlaySmart with the Polaroid PLAYSmart app, available for iOS and Android . This free app allows you to start prints from the library of manufacturer-supplied models, monitor a print in progress through the camera or run maintenance tasks. If you’re printing your own model though, you’ll need to use the control panel and the Polaroid SmartPrep software for Windows or Mac.
This simple 3D modeling program can load existing models in the .STL and .OBJ formats. You can resize, move, combine or otherwise manipulate your models, saving them and preparing them for printing. The print file can’t be sent directly to the PlaySmart printer, though: you have to save the print files to a USB drive, then connect this to the printer yourself and select it for printing. That seems like an odd requirement as the PlaySmart supports Wi-Fi.
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review: Print speed
The PlaySmart is a pretty fast printer: it cranked out a 4-inch high print of our Thinker model in 3 hours and 56 minutes in Draft mode. Changing the settings to Fine mode lengthened the print time to 10 hours and 13 minutes. That means the PlaySmart can quickly produce a rough print when required or produce a finer, smoother print overnight.
The PlaySmart is a little faster than most printers we have tested, producing a draft print quicker than the Monoprice Voxel, currently our favorite 3D printer for beginners.
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review: Print materials
The PlaySmart can print using three different materials: PLA, P-Wood and PETG. PLA, or polylactic acid is the standard printing material that most 3D printers use. PETG, or Polyethylene terephthalate, is a plastic that is commonly used in plastic bottles and the like. It is lighter and stronger than PLA, but is also more expensive. P-Wood is a form of PLA that is mixed with sawdust to produce a wood-like feel.
(Image credit: Polaroid)These materials aren’t expensive: a 1KG reel of PLA costs $38 , while a similar amount of PETG costs $48 and P-Wood is $55 for half a kilogram. You aren’t limited to these filaments, though: the PlaySmart can also use third-party filament, making this device more flexible than 3D printers restricting you to their manufacturers’ filaments.
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer: Print Quality
As fast as the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer created prints, we also were impressed by the print quality of those models.
The PlaySmart 3D printer yielded prints with clean, smooth details and very few issues.
We test print quality by printing three models: a scan of Rodin’s Thinker sculpture, a geometric sculpture and a set of gears. Our first test model came out very well: the Thinker sculpture had excellent detail and smooth, organic-looking surfaces. The printer did a great job of reproducing the curves of the sculptures back and muscles. The layers of the print were rather obvious in all of the print modes, though: the print lacked the polished smoothness of SLA printers and some more expensive FDM printers.
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)Our second test model uses a geometric sculpture that really showcases the ability of a 3D printer to produce clean, sharp edges. The PlaySmart struggled a little here, with a print that had a lot of thin filaments of PLA between the edges of the print. Those filaments were produced by the material stretching as the print head moved between the different parts of the print.
These are not difficult to trim off, though, and once removed the PlaySmart’s geometric sculpture print had sharp, smooth edges and well-defined points.
Finally, we printed a set of gears that are designed to snap together to form a set of hand-cranked planetary gears. The PlaySmart handled these without too many issues, producing a set of gears that fit together with only minimal cleaning. We did have to trim off a lot of the brim that held the print onto the print bed, though.
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer review: Verdict
The Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer offers a lot for $599: it can produce high-quality prints and churn out quick draft prints very rapidly. It also supports a variety of materials and doesn’t lock you into one supplier for your filament.
But when comparing this device to other 3D printers aimed at novices for our Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer preview, Polaroid’s offering is relatively expensive.
The Monoprice Voxel, for example, can produce prints that are nearly as good while costing $200 less.
Even at its regular price, though, you're getting a high-quality device for your money with the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer. And if that price drops below $599, then it becomes a very good deal indeed. Even when not on sale, though, the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printer is a very good pick for home users who want to get started with 3D printing and want the very best prints, regardless of how much they have to pay upfront.
Polaroid Play Smart: Price Comparison
$699
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Richard Baguley has been working as a technology writer and journalist since 1993. As well as contributing to Tom's Guide, he writes for Cnet, T3, Wired and many other publications.
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Polaroid PlaySmart on the App Store
iPhone Screenshots
Description
Use with the Polaroid PlaySmart 3D Printer
Send models to print, monitor your print and control your printer, all
through the amazing Polaroid PlaySmart App.
• Link your Polaroid Play Smart App and printer via cloud technology.
• Connect to multiple printers from just one app.
• Once connected simply select the model to print from your phone.
• Monitor your prints via the App for peace of mind printing.
• Cancel, pause and control your printer whilst on the go!
Version 1.4.9
Camera view function fixed.
General bug fixes and improvements.
Ratings and Reviews
37 Ratings
App itself is fine, won’t stay connected
The app constantly says that the printer isn’t connected to WiFi, even though it is. I’ve never been able to actually use the app, so I deleted it and have just been using the PC version with a USB drive.
Update Firmware!!
Initially this app sucked nothing it was supposed to do worked and I pretty much did everything from my computer it wasn’t until after I reached out to support and they provided me with the updated firmware which was 1.4.7 that everything worked as it was supposed to the cameras the prince being able to detect my unit while I was online everything is working so perfectly now my only gripe now is the print size
Love app till a few days ago
Have been using the app and had no issue connecting to printer and watching /checking on print.
For a week now it say printer offline. Tried to delete and add everything and no luck. When I try to look at photo of print jobs get error offline reason no available wi-Fi configured. Hope you can get this fixed
The developer, EBP GROUP LTD, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy.
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- EBP GROUP LTD
- Size
- 28.1 MB
- Category
- Utilities
- Age Rating
- 4+
- Copyright
- ©EBP Group Ltd
- Price
- Free
- Developer Website
- App Support
- Privacy Policy
More By This Developer
You Might Also Like
Polaroid Offers PlaySmart FDM Desktop 3D Printers
News
This is Obsidian, this is Yan, this is Duplicator! No, it's a Polaroid.
A well-known manufacturer of photographic equipment, and more recently also equipment for 3D printing, announced at CES-2019 a compact desktop FDM 3D printer Polaroid PlaySmart. “Since we launched the Polaroid ModelSmart 250S 3D printer and Polaroid Play branded 3D pens at CES 2016, we've had great feedback from users in the UK and Europe interested in affordable 3D printing hardware. We are now proud to offer our first small format desktop 3D printer for the European market, bringing the possibilities of 3D printing to an even wider audience. The Polaroid PlaySmart 3D Printer is an easy-to-use, affordable entry-level solution for homes, schools and businesses,” said April Lunde, CEO of Polaroid.
But the new 3D printer has little to do with Polaroid itself. The trained eye of 3Dtoday participants can easily guess the shape of the Chinese 3D printer Wanhao Duplicator 10 in the new proposal. So it is, although it is not yet known who exactly acts as an OEM.
In general, the history of this long-suffering device, which turned from Kodama Obsidian to Furling Tech YAN, then to Duplicator 10, and now also to Polaroid PlaySmart, is entertaining and instructive. Once again, we will not retell, just leave a link to the material with a detailed debriefing.
Well, we can only be happy for Furling Tech, which managed to win back on licenses after crowdfunding failures. There is only one small "but": Kodama Obsidian was originally offered on Kickstarter for $99, but it's worth clarifying that this offer was only for early customers and applied to printers in the basic configuration. Polaroid, on the other hand, offers a completely “fancy” option, but already for 450 euros.
Includes 5" touch screen, 200 megapixel remote camera, 0.4mm quick-change nozzle, 360° airflow on models, heated A/M platform, spool stand with built-in scale (to know how much material remains on reel), the ability to transfer data both via USB and via SD-cards, and wirelessly (Wi-Fi), a mobile application, 2 GB of internal memory, as well as a motion tracking system based on Smart Eye technology.
The latter allegedly will allow you to identify failures and marriage, comparing the results with digital models. The size of the construction area is 120x120x120 mm with a layer thickness of 50 to 300 microns.
Polaroid PlaySmart 3D printers are scheduled to go on sale in March this year. Additional information is available on the official website at this link.
Do you have interesting news? Share your developments with us, and we will tell the whole world about them! We are waiting for your ideas at [email protected].
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Polaroid Play 3D pen review: when hands turned into a 3D printer
Promotional materials for 3D pens most often talk about creativity, free drawing in space and other things that are interesting to play for the first 5-15 minutes, and then forget about them and the device.
But it turns out that 3D pens were invented for a completely different purpose - to overcome the lack of parts printed on a 3D printer. And when all the shelves in the house are already occupied with the results of 3D creativity - all kinds of three-dimensional sculptures of butterflies, cars, eiffel towers and other objects - a 3D pen can become a useful tool for repairing plastic parts.
Historical background
A 3D pen is a cross between a glue gun for about 30 UAH and a 3D printer that costs from 7000 UAH. All of them work on the same principle: a plastic rod is fed into the heating element and is fed out through the nozzle in the form of a thin stream of molten plastic. The difference between a glue gun, a 3D pen, and a 3D printer lies in the plastic used (the heating temperature of the nozzle depends on this), as well as the diameter of the nozzle (a smaller diameter gives more accuracy in layering the molten plastic). Also, the 3D printer has a computer-controlled nozzle movement mechanism, which allows you to get very high layering accuracy, which is very difficult to achieve when holding the nozzle in your hands.
The first pen was designed to do the job that a 3D printer couldn't. After all, only in advertising 3D printers can you send a 3D model for printing and get the finished thing in a few hours. In reality, there are a lot of restrictions and conditions that do not allow you to print items so easily. Quite often, for example, the printed part breaks or the printer skips some areas.
This is exactly what happened in the early 2010s with Maxwell Boge and Peter Dilworth. They downloaded the 3D model to be printed on their 3D printer, and returned 14 hours later when the part was printed. It turned out that the 3D printer had skipped one layer of plastic, which meant throwing away the finished part and reprinting another in the hope that the printer worked as it should.
The men decided to take a different path and created the first 3D pen in 2012. That prototype was very similar to a glue gun and therefore did not have any additional features. But today, there are many vendors that produce 3D pens equipped with screens, adapted to different types of plastic, with control over the speed of plastic feed, quick change of plastic, and a number of other options.
Contents Polaroid Play 3D Pen
The Polaroid 3D Pen is a basic model and is therefore included in the package. In the box with it will be a stand, a starter set of skeins of plastic, a power cord, paper instructions and a transparent plastic rectangle with adhesive legs for use with a proprietary application.
The power cable is a simple cable that can be connected via USB to any compatible source. However, it is better if it is a power supply from a modern smartphone that produces 1.5 or more amperes, because the pen itself requires 5 volts and 2 amperes. From sources with fewer amperes, it will work, but it will warm up longer, and during active operation, the nozzle may even cool down.
PLA plastic starter kit - four multi-colored coils of wire 5 meters long and weighing 15 grams. The working volume is a coil of 1 kilogram, which costs about 1282 UAH. For its pen, Polaroid releases a palette of plastic in 20 colors, which is also compatible with the company's 3D printer or other 3D pens and printers.
The instructions for the Polaroid Play 3D Pen state on the first page, right after the burn warning, that the 3D Pen is not a toy. However, to read this, you need to know some of the popular European languages. There is no instruction in Russian or Ukrainian.
Using the 3D pen
Using the pen is quite simple: plug it into a USB source and press the button labeled on/off. Then wait until the red indicator next to the Play logo changes color to blue. This means that the nozzle has warmed up to 180-200 degrees Celsius.
Above the connector for connecting the power cable is a plastic inlet. The Polaroid Play 3D Pen uses 1.75mm PLA type filament. PLA is one of dozens of types of plastics. For example, the cases of laptops and other gadgets are often made from plastic such as PC or ABS.
When filament is loaded in the 3D Pen and the ready light is blue, you can start creating by pressing the down arrow button. It activates the plastic feed motor to the nozzle.
The feed rate is controlled by buttons on the other side of the handle and there are 4 speeds in total. When using a weak source, such as 1 amp, at a high flow rate, the nozzle may cool down and the blue ready indicator will flicker.
For continuous feeding of plastic, the feed button must be pressed once and released. If you need to manually control the feed, then the key must be held down and held.
To change the filament, for example to a different color filament, press and hold the power button. The feed motor will pull the rest of the plastic out of the nozzle. It automatically pulls the filament out of the nozzle when the pen is not used for 10 minutes.
Creative with 3D Pen
Although the original 3D pen was designed as a repair tool, today it is advertised more as a creative tool. However, if you try to draw some kind of three-dimensional object, for example, a butterfly, “head on”, it is unlikely that anything will work out, except for a bunch of wasted plastic.
The principle of drawing with a 3D pen is based on templates. First, the contours of the desired object must be printed on paper, which then must be traced with a three-dimensional pen and filled with plastic inside the contour area. Then it remains to glue a set of such contours into one 3D object.
For the first time, the search for contours for drawing with a 3D pen will simplify the proprietary Polaroid Play application. It contains only ten templates, but there is a function to add new templates from a photo. Additional templates can be downloaded, for example, from 3dsimo.com.
In order not to damage the screen of a smartphone or tablet with hot plastic, it must be protected with a transparent rectangle from the kit. It is on it that it is proposed to draw with a pen.
Repair with 3D pen
The 3D pen is a very useful tool if you need to repair some broken plastic parts - shells, buttons, hooks, etc.
