Feb 8, 2018 | By Benedict
New Matter, the company behind the MOD-t 3D printer, is shutting down at the end of February, citing financial problems. The company will continue to offer limited technical support to MOD-t users over the following months, but MOD-t printers will lose their Wi-Fi functionality later this year.
The life of a 3D printing company can sometimes be painfully short. It might have been four years ago, but it seems like only yesterday that California-based New Matter was launching its Indiegogo campaign for the MOD-t printer.
Makers had a lot of success with MOD-t, but over the last year or so, there had been signs of problems at New Matter.
In October 2017, the 3D printing company launched a Kickstarter campaign for its second-generation MOD-t, with prices starting at $199. But that Kickstarter never reached the finish line: on Wednesday, November 15, New Matter announced it was discontinuing the campaign in response to disappointing feedback from backers who were expecting bigger technical improvements in the new printer.
Yesterday, February 7, New Matter announced that the entire company will cease operations at the end of this month.
“It has become clear that our aspirations to transform the industry simply don’t fit profitably into the current market dynamics in desktop 3D printing,” said CEO Steve Schell.
It’s never nice to see a 3D printer company go under, especially if you happen to own a 3D printer made by that company. So for all MOD-t users out there, we can understand your worries about New Matter shutting down at the end of February.
The company says it is taking steps to ensure that MOD-t 3D printers can still be serviced and fitted with replacement parts…for now.
“We have taken steps to make this transition as smooth as possible for MOD-t users,” Schell said. In particular, we intend to keep the New Matter Store operational through mid-summer 2018, and we will make limited technical support available through mid-summer as well.”
Unfortunately, once that time period is up, things will be rather more bleak for MOD-t users. The 3D printers will eventually lose their Wi-Fi functionality, meaning users will have to print using a USB connection via the MOD-t desktop app. More importantly, the 3D printer’s hot end will not be repairable if it breaks, and there are a finite number of spares available.
The MOD-t’s 90-day warranty will be honored for all purchases made before January 4, 2018.
“We want to thank all of you who have supported us,” Schell added. “Despite our disappointment with this outcome, the whole New Matter team is nonetheless proud of what we’ve accomplished over the last four years, and we recognize that we simply could not have achieved what we have without your enthusiasm and encouragement.”
There is now a discount sale on remaining New Matter stock.
New Matter closure summary:
- Company shuts down February 28, 2018
- New Matter Store open until mid-summer 2018
- After Store closure, users need to install MOD-t desktop app and third-party slicing software
- Wi-Fi functionality will be lost after Store closure
- Broken hot end cannot be repaired once failed; limited number of spares available
Posted in 3D Printer Company
Maybe you also like:
- 12 of the best 3D pens and 3D printing pens
- Resin 3D printing used to make Brainwavz B400 audiophile earphones
- Shark-inspired 3D printed structures pave way for next-gen drones, planes & wind turbines
- 3D Systems releases 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS, promises easy lattice generation
- 3D printed syntactic foam could enable new generation of deeper-diving submarines
- Altair introduces new simulation-driven Inspire 2018 design software
- MannaBot One: a 3D printer for cannabis patches
- Desktop Metal, Dassault Systèmes partnership results in Live Parts generative design tool for SOLIDWORKS
1) There is no money in home 3D printers...and if there ever is, HP, Epson, Cannon, and Samsung will come eat your company alive! 2) Home users should always purchase a printer based on "Open standards" because when fact #1 catches up, and the small 3D printer manufacturer goes under, you can likely get support from the open community.
3Ders.org provides the latest news about 3D printing technology and 3D printers. We are now seven years old and have around 1.5 million unique visitors per month.
