3D printing's great mystery: Where's HP?

Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman in March said watching 3D print projects complete was like "watching ice melt," that quality was lax and that her company "solved both of those problems."

Whitman's riff on 3D printing was in response to a shareholder question at HP's annual meeting. Off script, Whitman said there would be an announcement in June about HP's 3D printing plans, which would address the enterprise market first.

We're still waiting. HP could roll out its 3D printing lineup tomorrow and there's a good argument that the company is too late. Analysts are expecting HP to outline its 3D printing master plan some time in the fall, but it's stunning how late the company is to the game. HP has prototypes in progress and a 3D printing pipeline of some sort, but it may want to start commercializing and marketing before it's too late.