Expected as free bread at the beginning of dinner is the Instagram portion of meals. Because what’s the point of ordering a fancy, well-manicured entrée if you can’t show it off to your social media following? (Gotta build that casual foodie personal brand!)
In case you were in search of tangible proof that foodstagramming has gone too far, look no farther. Meet #dinnercam, a microwave-sized machine that has worked hard to earn the #socialmediafriendly and #quasi-obnoxious hashtag in its name. While it looks like a tanning bed, the #dinnercam is actually a photo booth for food. Gone are the gauche, casual days of diners taking pictures of their plates at the table. Now the over-sharing eater can take food to a machine that will provide optimal lighting and positioning options to make your tacos really shine.
“Tapping in to the trend of posting jealousy-inspiring food shots on Instagram, Twitter and other social networks, the unique device creates the perfect studio to take social media food shots to the next level,” MWEB, the South African Internet provider responsible for the machine, says on its YouTube page.
But wait, the #dinnercam doesn’t just allow you to tweet, Facebook, and Instagram your food! After your now lukewarm food is done modeling, the #dinnercam prints out a physical copy of your picture. You didn’t order something involving a Jello mold did you, because that’s retro!
For now, #dinnercam is only available at a Mexican restaurant in Cape Town, but even though MWEB calls the campaign “tongue-in-cheek,” we wouldn’t be surprised if it starts making its way to other continents.
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