Tennis ball stuck to your phone could make for great dog selfies
A decidedly oddball Kickstarter project aims to improve dog selfies by attracting your pup's attention to your phone.
Not all dogs are natural supermodels. Try to take a selfie with your canine and the fluffball is more likely to look off to the side at a squirrel or stare at that morsel of moldy bread it just noticed on the ground.
If your Instagram feed is full of blurred dog faces, then you might want to check out the Pooch Selfie on Kickstarter.
Pooch Selfie is a deceptively simple device. It's a phone mount that holds a tennis ball, which is also known as the greatest object of desire your dog has ever laid eyes on that wasn't immediately edible.
There are no Google Android or Apple iOS worries here. The device fits onto most phones or tablets using a flexible clip system. The prototypes are 3D-printed, but the Kickstarter is raising funds to manufacturer the Pooch Selfie at scale.
You hold up your phone and your dog turns from having a nonexistent attention span into being the most photogenic pup in the world as it stares a hole into the tennis ball. Your friends will be amazed at how well-behaved and attentive your dog seems to be. They don't have to know about the secret behind your perfect pooch pics.
There are a million ways for this all to go hilariously wrong. All you need is a fast dog determined to get the ball and you could end up chasing your expensive smartphone all over the yard. Another possible hazard is using the ball for fetch and then reattaching it to your phone, slobber and all.
If you're willing to take those risks (as well as the usual crowdfunding-delivery risks), then you can pledge $13 (about £8, AU$18) for a Pooch Selfie of your very own. There are still plenty of cheaper early-bird slots left, as well. The campaign is aiming for a $7,000 goal and has so far raised just over $1,000 with 25 days left to run.
As far as unusual Kickstarters go, the Pooch Selfie wanders somewhere between "That's insane" and "That's kind of a great idea." Which side you fall on may have to do with how you treat your smartphone. Is it a pretty, pretty princess not to be sullied or a tool that can take a bit of dog drool?