Technology cycles

3D printing is among the innovations taking centre stage at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The practice has recently seen a surge in popularity as technology improves and costs drop, making it accessible for hobbyists, artists and entrepreneurs. Developing and marketing innovations is a complicated process -- a prototype goes through many test stages before being rolled out for mainstream use. Research group Gartner uses so-called hype cycles to describe these phases.VIDEOGRAPHIC