Whether it's a Game Boy Color in Atomic Purple or a Blueberry clamshell iBook, transparent tech holds a very dear place in my heart (and I'm sure the heart of many a millennial who grew up on jewel-toned electronics and gaming peripherals that proudly showed off their circuitry).
So when Formlabs revealed its new Form Studio 1 3D printer this week, it wasn't just the $699 starting price tag that caused me to swivel my chair around to our Senior Editor Sam Davies in the office and say, 'Okay, I think I might finally buy a 3D printer.'
The Form Studio 1 is the company's lowest priced stereolithography (SLA) system, and said to package the technology, quality and reliability Formlabs is known for amongst professionals in an affordable option for the average user. To compare, Formlabs' flagship Form 4 model is currently priced around $2,600.
This is the company's first offering that feels intentionally designed to be a consumer product. There's always been something very Apple-adjacent in the way Formlabs presents itself - long before the appointment of former Apple Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering Dan Riccio as a strategic advisor this summer - and the aesthetic and simplicity of the Form Studio 1, which looks to offer an out of the box experience encased in a funky shell, embodies that.
Of course, the four colourful 'gotta collect 'em all' variants (including limited edition aqua, teal and violet colourways) are just part of what makes the Form Studio 1 appear more like a sophisticated consumer electronic than a piece of kit reserved for engineering departments and dental labs. In terms of functionality, it has been built for ease of use as attested to by Formlabs co-founder and CEO Maxim Lobovsky, who said in a press release, "We want anyone -from an engineer to someone exploring a new hobby - to spend more time making things and less time figuring out their printer."
To make that possible, Formlabs says it has created an intuitive workflow suitable for all skill levels, and has also introduced the Form Mobile App for remote print monitoring and live notifications. The Form Studio 1 also relies on simple resin cartridges with automatic dispensing and heating, and print removal is being made easier with a flexible build platform and 'Quick Release Technology' that means prints can be peel off the plate with less faff. You'll still need to buy additional post-processing equipment to finish your jobs, which will add around another $200 if you choose to go with Formlabs' new Form Studio Wash+Cure unit that combines both washing and curing.
In its marketing materials, Formlabs has also placed an emphasis on safety. The Form Studio 1 is the only resin-based 3D printer to achieve UL GREENGUARD Gold Certification when used with Formlabs Alpha Resins and optional VOC Extractor, meaning it can be setup in homes and office spaces without the need for additional ventilation equipment.
The machine got its big reveal at TCT Shenzhen this week complete with curtain drop and confetti. Our ManufacturingIQ Editor Oliver Johnson was there and told us it drew quite the crowd.
"The surrounding area was packed," Oli said. "This new machine represents more than just a more affordable printer, it shows the success of the company’s strategy of building a manufacturing presence here in China as a western company, rather than trying to sell into this market from outside.”
The decision to launch in Shenzhen is significant. Formlabs opened its first Shenzhen office last year which is also where the Form Studio 1 was designed by Formlabs' China R&D team - another first for the company. Kennedy Liu, Formlabs R&D Lead based in Shenzhen shared in a LinkedIn post that the team had taken on the challenge of "bridging the massive gap between cheap, unsafe, unreliable printers and the professional standard Formlabs is known for."
Oli spoke with Rong Lin, Head of China Sales & Marketing at Formlabs Shenzhen shortly after the launch who emphasised that the goal was not to simply build a cheaper printer but to bring professional quality, speed, reliability and accessibility that make a product that is "very easy and convenient for all those entry level users."
"Over the past 15 years, we have developed extensive expertise in printing technology, materials, software," Lin said. "With the Form Studio 1, we've been able to bring that experience into a new system, designed from the ground-up for affordability and easy to use."
We'll have more from Oli on the Form Studio 1 later this week but speaking about the importance of having an R&D presence in China, and how TCT Shenzhen was the "natural place" for Formlabs to introduce a new, entry-level product, Lin added, "Having a local team allows us to stay close to our customers, better understand their applications and the challenges, and respond to their needs more quickly. And I think it's about more than just having an office here. It's about building long term relationships."
The launch of the Form Studio 1 puts Formlabs in a user category it has never been in before. The competition in the sub $2,500 market is fierce, particularly in China were low-cost brands like Bambu Lab, Creality, Elegoo, and Anycubic (which CONTEXT described as The "Four Little Dragons of Shenzhen" in its most recent 3D printer shipment report) dominate the market. Those four companies alone accounted for 87% of global entry-level unit shipments in Q2 2026. That same report, however, also notes that a market saturation point may be incoming with Creality issuing a profit warning citing price competition, and essentially flat 1H 2026 revenues from 3D printer sales, and Bambu Lab diversifying into other non-3D printing products.
CEO Lobovsky has been vocal about the undeniable success of a new cohort of 3D printing companies coming from China, posting on LinkedIn last year that he felt "confident Chinese 3D printing companies will make up most of the top companies in 3D printing in the coming years, but there will be at least one strong one in the Western world. Who will it be?" With the launch of the Form Studio 1, which looks to be a strong competitor, perhaps Formlabs will make the list in both.
