Often, when people are curious about 3D printing, they ask, “can 3D printers replicate any object?”. The answer is a little tricky! Yes, theoretically a 3D printer can replicate most objects, and can even 3D print figurines of body-scanned people. One of the main issues with 3D printing, though, has been colors.LCD panel 3d printer

It’s complex to 3D print in full, photorealistic color, and there are less than ten 3D printer manufacturers that achieve this. Until recently, full-color 3D printing was exclusive to expensive industrial additive manufacturing systems from brands such as Stratasys or 3D Systems. Today, more affordable (under $10K) desktop full-color 3D printers exist.
Full-color 3D printers are able to create objects with photorealistic color. To do so, the 3D printer must be able to mix different filaments or inks together to obtain precise shades and gradients, similar to regular 2D paper printers. This is also known as indirect color 3D printing, as the color is applied to the base material (the base material isn’t pre-colored before 3D printing).

In the 3D printing industry, the term “multicolor” is sometimes used as a synonym for full-color. However, for clarity in this article, we will only refer to multicolor for 3D printers and accessories that are able to 3D print a few colors (e.g.: 2-color 3D printers, 3-color 3D printers, Prusa multi-material add-on, Mosaic Palette, etc.).

This type of 3D printing is also called direct color 3D printing, as the filament already has a specific color before being 3D printed.