I think it's going to take real design effort if we expect people to reuse these devices. I like your idea of the service helping you repurpose gadgets, or maybe even a deposit on your gadget -- send it in when you are done with it to recycle its rare components.
If a digital device only costs a couple of bucks, and a better/faster/cheaper one comes available a year later, the old one is going to get tossed. How many people repurposed their 2005 iPods, and those cost real money?
Culturally we are accustomed to just tossing aside the old, particularly with electronics. We're going to need significant cultural/technical/legal/design shifts to keep up with these changes. And quickly!
A large factor in this is the "lock-down" culture that has sprung up, and people buying into the bullshit that it's necessary for devices to be "secured" to be user friendly. I know it won't solve the cultural problems, but it's a complete non-starter if you can't even legally re-purpose your own hardware, or if it takes too much effort.
I wish I'd grown up with a machine shop, that sounds fantastic. I really like making stuff, but I'm a horrible handyman. I'm much more comfortable making (or just copying) a model on a computer and then printing it out. I think the interesting part of the technology is that it makes what you take for granted accessible to someone like me.
I agree, there are way too many tchotchkes on sites like Shapeways and Thingiverse, and way too few useful products. I wonder what the first "killer app" for 3D printers will be. That said, I think they are already practical for prototyping or DIY tinkering projects.
I think digital-to-physical manufacturing is so much bigger than 3D printing. http://fabsie.com/blog/3d-printing-vs-3d-cutting/ and that CNC routing (3D cutting) is likely to find killer apps far faster than 3D printing is capable.
Not in the eye of the mere mortals. Those 3D-cutters are just something that exist somewhere in a factory, could just as well be a black box. Most couldn't care less, you can't own a 3D cutter, unless you are really dedicated. Anyone can own and tinker with a 3D-printer.
Even the difference of being able to play or rent a 3D cutter at work or through some service, or iterating something at home that you've made yourself, where the only real cost to it is your time spent having fun, is game changing.
If you restrict the debate to the maker movement and people at home owning machines, I completely agree that the average joe can't own a large 8x4 3D cutter and never will, yet they can own a basic small format 3D printer.
But the average joe is unlikely to own a kiln either and unlikely to own any form of industrial pre+post-process. Disruptive manufacturing is my main interest as well as the new models of digital distribution. I believe the home will be an extremely limited means of production, but indeed a computer controlled plastic extruder (3D printer) will be an accessible technology many can own.
The killer app could be 'parametric' thereby needing digital-to-physical manufacturing such as 3D printing. For standard static items made in plastic, there are no signs what so ever that injection moulding will become redundant any time soon.
In the case of normal printing, the desktop printer didn't kill the rotary printing press, (althought the internet digital press may). Desktop printers and rotary printing presses exist for different use cases. Printing notes to red mark or travel tickets vs. a glossy magazine/newspaer. The relationship is akin to 3D printing plastic / injection moulded plastic and will likely have different use cases.
