--- description: Find out why Looking Glass Portrait is one of the best inventions of 2021 title: Looking Glass Portrait: The 100 Best Inventions of 2021 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt375bd9ff9309abdc/698a1ea286f68e8a436f07ca/best-inventions-2021-Special-Mentions-Looking-Glass-Portrait-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 10, 2021 # A 3D Display for Your Desk Looking Glass Portrait by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Yin Studios _SPECIAL MENTION:_ A 3D future might not require special glasses or headsets after all. [The Looking Glass Portrait](https://lookingglassfactory.com/portrait "undefined") ($349), a picture-frame-like device that showcases images in 3D, allows virtually anyone to capture images and videos on their phones and display them in 3D, right from their desktop. The company behind the product, Looking Glass Factory, says it’s hoping to democratize 3D technology by leaning on the tools that already reside in most people’s pockets—namely a smartphone that features a camera with Portrait mode. _—Jared Lindzon_ **Buy Now:** [Looking Glass Portrait](https://lookingglassfactory.com/product/portrait "undefined") Looking Glass Portrait: The 100 Best Inventions of 2021 ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6115489/looking-glass-portrait/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6115489/looking-glass-portrait/"},"headline":"A 3D Display for Your Desk","datePublished":"2021-11-10T11:15:39.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:56:33.217Z","description":"Find out why the Looking Glass Portrait received a special mention on TIME's 2021 Best Inventions list.","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6115489/looking-glass-portrait/","keywords":["list","franchise","best inventions","Best Inventions 2021"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt375bd9ff9309abdc/698a1ea286f68e8a436f07ca/best-inventions-2021-Special-Mentions-Looking-Glass-Portrait-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt375bd9ff9309abdc/698a1ea286f68e8a436f07ca/best-inventions-2021-Special-Mentions-Looking-Glass-Portrait-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6115489/looking-glass-portrait/","name":"A 3D Display for Your Desk"}}]}] ```