May this phone-prism save us from the smog of information overload

Being distracted by our phones can cause loss of friends, alienation of loved ones, and in extreme cases, getting hit but an oncoming bus. But, who can we blame? We all do it; our screens and our digital lives just pull us in and captivate us… right?

Distracted walking is so pervasive that it yielded the invention of a gimmicky phone prism called the Urban Periscope, meant to help us interact with phones and the world at the same time. It works by redirecting your vision 90 degrees. This allows the user to stare down at their phone while also seeing what’s directly in front of them.

The urban periscope comes in the form of a case that users can attach to their case so that while they are looking down at their phones they can still see what’s ahead of them. It is made using periscopic lenses attached to a phone case. It is currently a prototype pending consumer interest.

The traditional definition for a periscope is an apparatus consisting of a tube attached to a set of mirrors or prisms, by which an observer (typically in a submerged submarine or behind a high obstacle) can see things that are otherwise out of sight. This is a modern take on the nautical device. This is not a digital product — it is concerned with real world space and time — so we don’t walk around like idiots bumping into each other.

For now, they are only making urban periscopes for the iPhone 6. The product page also suggests that this can be used in other ways, like at the dinner table for example.

Life through the looking glass shouldn’t seem this bleak, but at least the makers of this product are trying to save us from the thickening fog of information overload.

Urban Periscope

Originally published at www.psfk.com on March 2, 2016.